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The Joy Of The Pain – September 23, 2003 – Vol. 57, Issue 4 – Mike Brophy
As he slowly skated through the line at the end of the first round playoff series, shaking hands with members of the victorious Mighty Ducks, Detroit’s Steve Yzerman happened upon his old coach and GM, Bryan Murray
“You gonna play next season?” Murray asked the Red Wings longtime captain
“I have to,” Yzerman replied. “I need the money.”
Now unless Yzerman, a 20-year veteran who has earned more than $44 million in the past seven seasons alone, has had a bad run at the craps tables, then you know he is full of, uh, well, you get the picture
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But it still raises the question, why on earth would a man who underwent massive reconstructive surgery on his right knee a little more than a year ago, a man who has won an Olympic gold medal and three Stanley Cups, why does he want to keep playing?
“How many guys do you see retire who end up coming back to play, not just in hockey, but in all sports?” Yzerman said. “The majority of guys I talk to love retirement. They enjoy it, but they all finish by saying, ‘Play as long as you can because you’ll miss it when you are out.'”
Still, we’re talking 20 years in the bigs-17 of those as captain of the Red Wings. We’re talking a Lester B. Pearson Award as the league’s MVP (as voted by the players) in 1989; a Conn Smythe Trophy as playoff MVP in 1998; and a Selke Trophy as the league’s premier defensive forward in 2000. What’s left?
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“By the end of last year’s playoffs, which obviously wasn’t very long for us, I felt myself starting to improve,” said Yzerman, who had two goals and eight points in 16 regular season games and then one assist in four playoff games
“Had I not felt myself improving, I probably would have said enough is enough. But I found my mobility improving, my speed improving. I figured with a long off-season and time to rest and train, I might as well keep at it and hope I continue to improve this year.” The Red Wings are sure glad Yzerman is giving it another shot. The loss of leading scorer Sergei Fedorov, who never felt comfortable playing second fiddle to Yzerman, means the team will be looking for someone to fill the gap in terms of offensive output.
There are certainly no guarantees that Yzerman, once a regular visitor to the 100-point plateau, will approach that level again in a league where scoring is more precious than a mint condition Bobby Orr rookie card, but his well-rounded game and leadership are very much appreciated
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Wings coach Dave Lewis is not at all surprised at Yzerman’s decision to play
“I think it has a lot to do with not wanting to leave anything in the tank,” Lewis said. “When he finally quits, I think he wants to know he left it all behind him. The great ath-letes are like that. A player of lesser skill might have approached what Steve had to do to come back and thought it just wasn’t worth it. Wanting to leave nothing behind, I think, is the driving force inside Steve.”
When the Wings won the Cup in 2002, Yzerman had a huge decision to make. He had limped around bravely on a badly mangled knee throughout the playoffs, but if he was to continue playing, it was going to take surgery and a very long and intense rehab period. And that is exactly what he opted for
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“Had 1 retired then, I always would have wondered if I could have come back and played,” he said. “I want to make sure it’s out of my system, that when I retire I’m not coming back”
