Detroit Red Wings general manager Steve Yzerman has three Stanley Cup titles to his name, and he’s mostly responsible for the Tampa Bay Lightning earning their 2nd Stanley Cup championship thanks to his work in his former capacity as their general manager prior to his arrival back in the Motor City in April of 2019.
The Lightning are now on the verge of a 2nd straight Cup win, which would make them the 3rd team to repeat as champions since Yzerman’s Red Wings did so in 1997 and 1998 followed by the Pittsburgh Penguins in 2016 and 2017.
During his time as Tampa’s GM, Yzerman made several of the draft picks, free-agent signings and trades that resulted in the Lightning becoming an NHL powerhouse.
“Jeff Vinnik is a fantasic owner, he’s been great for the Lightning and the community in Tampa,” Yzerman explained. “The fan base, they really support the team well and embrace the Lightning. They won the Stanley Cup in the bubble in Edmonton last year – it’s not just the players, but people in management in the scouting staff and front office on the business side. A lot of people I got to work with are fantastic people, and I’m enjoying them having success.”
Yzerman announced prior to the 2018-19 season that he’d be stepping down in his role as GM of the Lightning and remain with the team through the remainder of their season that ended prematurely thanks to a 1st round sweep at the hands of the Columbus Blue Jackets. He returned to the Red Wings a week later and took over as GM from Ken Holland, who soon departed for Edmonton.
Julien (BriseBois) has done a great job in the past three seasons as the GM in completing the roster and building a Stanley Cup winner last year and making some tweaks to the roster this year to help them compete for it again,” Yzerman said of his successor. “I’m happy for them, it’s a tremendous organization.”
– – Quotes via Bally Sports Detroit Link – –
