When Yzerman hung up his skates and moved into the role of vice-president of the Detroit Red Wings in 2006, he made it sound like an internship. “For me, initially, it’s going to be almost an education in how the business works and the management side of running a team,” Yzerman said. “What I’ll be doing is spending time with Kenny [Holland] and Jim Nill and Jimmy D [Jim Devellano] in the hockey department, and observing how they operate, whether it be contract negotiations, player analysis, just sitting in, listening and watching hockey.”

At the time, everyone inside the organization thought this was rich, the mere suggestion that Yzerman had anything to learn about the business of the Red Wings. After all, he had been in the middle of it for more than 20 years. He knew better than anyone that a few basic principles applied.

At its root, Detroit wasn’t a players’ organization. No star had all the pull, like Mario had in Pittsburgh. Communication didn’t go from ground up. It went from the top down on every count. Players were put in their place by the coaches—first by the most brutal taskmaster, Scotty Bowman, and then the less draconian Mike Babcock. (Let us skip over the brief interregnum of Dave Lewis.) The working hands had to develop a tolerance for both the night-in, night-out drudgery of a 200-foot game and occasional humiliation. Famously, Bowman put Sergei Fedorov, only a couple of years removed from the Hart Trophy, on the blueline for a stretch of games—not because of a shortage of personnel but as a slap-down. That’s how Bowman had won in Montreal, suffering no pushback, demanding praise-free sacrifice.

Because Yzerman bought in, no one could opt out. That said, if you weren’t in Yzerman’s favour, you were well-advised to rent rather than buy in Detroit. That’s what he wanted for Tampa Bay.
. . .

Yzerman went all in to win this season. He had done enough right for Tampa Bay to take a run at the Stanley Cup again this spring, but enough wrong that if Stamkos had carried the Cup on a lap of the rink, it might still have been the last time he’d ever wear a Lightning sweater. But now, through a couple of unforeseeable bad breaks, Yzerman has busted out. His team will need a miracle every other night for two months to play for the Cup. And if winning can’t fix everything, neither will such a disappointing, desultory end.

There's talk the Yotes will trade for Datsyuk's dead-wood contract to get to the salary cap floor.

Wings will immediately use that freed up cap space to sign Stamkos this off-season. They (rumoredly) almost traded for him. Makes ya wonder if the Wings front-office isn't kicking Datsyuk out the door a season early, to get in on the Stamkos UFA bidding this off-season.

Datsyuk leaving for Mother Russia after the playoffs leaves Detroit with a $7.5mil cap hit for next season...per what I read.

They can trade the expiring contract to a bottom feeder who needs to stay above the Cap floor...but they'll likely have to include a pick or prospect to make it work. Then they could make a run at Stamkos.

If the Islanders go deep in the playoffs, it won't be because of Tavares, Halak, or even Hamonic. It'll be the work of the best mascot in the NHL...Honky the Car!

I've wondered all season why they place a car there, right next to the ice? Presumably in place of expensive 100-level seats?

The president of the Nets (yes, Nets, they run the Islanders now) said they make more money selling the space to Honda to put a car there than they would selling season tickets.

Stamkos, Tampa's leading scorer and best all-around player, is out and they split the season series. .

He's not their leading scorer nor is he their best all-around player.