Inside Alex DeBrincat's torrid start to '23-24 for the Red Wings A rookie Steve Yzerman featured on the cover of The Hockey News' February 17, 1984 issue [https://thehockeynews.com/.image/c_fit,h_600,w_600/MjAxOTUzMzQ1MzAzMjI2Mjkx/14_3720.jpg] A rookie Steve Yzerman featured on the cover of The Hockey News' February 17, 1984 issue There are many people responsible for the success the Detroit Red Wings had in the late 1990s – but Dick Todd doesn’t usually get mentioned. In this 1984 cover story on future Hall of Famer Steve Yzerman, the OHL Peterborough coach gets his due (in a roundabout way). “Every night when I go to bed, I say a prayer and thank God for Dick Todd,” said Detroit GM Jimmy Devellano. “Thank God for Dick Todd and the fact he only used Steve Yzerman every fourth shift and only sometimes on power plays.” The joke here is that Yzerman went fourth overall in the 1983 draft in part because he was harder to scout than Brian Lawton and Pat LaFontaine. Yzerman quickly made a mark in Detroit, where the moribund Red Wings (a.k.a. ‘Dead Things’) needed hope. And ‘Stevie Y’ provided it. “He’s got so much composure for an 18-year-old,” said Wings vet John Ogrodnick. “He never panics out there. He’s just one smooth hockey player.” Yzerman lived up to his promise, first as a prolific scorer and then as a two-way center who won three Cups with the Wings. Now he’s their GM, looking for a fourth title someday. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- THN Archives is an exclusive vault of 2,640 issues and more than 156,000 for subscribers, chronicling the complete history of The Hockey News from 1947 until today. Visit the archives at THN.com/archives and subscribe today at subscribe.thehockeynews.com [http://subscribe.thehockeynews.com/] -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Also from THN Detroit: From Amsterdam to Montreal to the NHL: On Daniel Sprong's Long Journey Home [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/detroit-red-wings/features/daniel-sprongs-long-journey-home] Panthers 2, Red Wings 0: Miscues Abound in Frustrating Shutout Defeat [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/detroit-red-wings/news/panthers-2-red-wings-0-miscues-abound-in-frustrating-shutout-defeat] Red Wings Defense Corps Leads NHL in Points [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/detroit-red-wings/news/red-wings-defense-corps-leads-nhl-in-points] Carter Mazur Activated, Assigned to Grand Rapids [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/detroit-red-wings/prospects/carter-mazur-activated-assigned-to-grand-rapids] Introducing The Silky Mitten State [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/detroit-red-wings/news/introducing-the-silky-mitten-state]
