St. James on Yzerman stepping down, Larkin's future and the GM search
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What is the main topic discussed in this episode?
Joining us in the Maple Toyota hotline right now is Helene St. James from the Detroit Free Press. Helene, welcome in. How are you?
Very well. Thank you for having me on.
Our pleasure to have you. I mean, it had to be a surprise. You've had a number of hours to sort of sift through this. Have you been able to figure out why and why it had to happen today?
Why did Steve Yzerman step down as Red Wings GM and why now?
Yeah, the only thing that makes sense to me because of the timing of it is that this was Steve's decision to Much more so, you know, otherwise, why now? The season's been over for three months. We've had the draft free agency, et cetera. If he was being pushed out, that would have been the time to do it in April. But I think this is Steve just deciding he doesn't, you know, he wants to take on a more advisory role than being the straight-up GM.
Yeah.
And what do you make of that, Helene? I mean, when you look at the way it's gone for Steve since he took the job back in 2019, obviously surprising how poorly it has gone for the Red Wings. We were just going over the stats, you know, their 29th in points percentage since then, their 29th in goals for, 29th in goals against. What have you made of that, and where does that leave the Red Wings as they look to move forward from here?
Well, I really think, I mean, yes, he came in April 19th, 2019 to, you know, just unabashed joy amongst Wings fans. And everybody knew he was taking over just a terrible team. You know, they had nothing in the farm system, nothing. And he very steadily and wisely and kind of conservatively, you know, built them into a better team. I think the frustration, I imagine, has to come from the fact he wasn't able to get them any further and With 32 teams, we all know it's hard to get players. It's hard to make trades. Free agency is basically a scrap heap these days, right? And now for another March, the wings folded. And now I think the players need to be held responsible for that. They're the ones who are out there performing.
But at the same time, those are Steve's players, right?
Yeah, I mean, social media is just full of Eisenman criticism, and those that know him understand that it's unwarranted in a lot of respects, but him stepping aside actually does put the onus on the players, doesn't it?
Yeah, I think so, and on the organization to figure out, okay, what comes next, you know, and they still have to sort out this Dylan Larkin situation, you know, that's kind of, That was, you know, what erupted in June when that became news. So there's a lot to be done. But, you know, I think for Steve, you know, he'll, I mean, his legacy in Detroit is still as the captain to me for the most part. But this absolutely has been a rough seven years.
When you look at the Larkin situation, Helene, from what you know about it, would this particular move, moving Eisenman out of the GM seat, given that Larkin has been publicly critical of at least one trade deadline situation in Detroit, do you think that would at all change Larkin's stance on his want to move?
Yeah, that's a great question, but, man, that would be a lot to walk back. I mean, it's been going on now for two months, and, you know, the organization is upset with him for asking for a trade after they've paid down the chunk of the actual salary, $31 million over three years for that contract. And I don't know. To me, you know, the Vorensky-Don LaGal thing in Columbus was – And that only took place over a few days, right, and was very well handled by everybody ultimately. But I just don't know even if it's a different GM. I mean, Steve Eisenman still works for the team. I just don't know if Dylan Larkin can walk this back. But at the same time, it may be his best option because I think a trade –
You know, the Wings basically have to get back Dylan Larkin in the trade. They need a top-line center. Getting a first-round pick just sets them back another four or five years in the rebuild. I mean, that'd be miserable, you know?
I guess once the new general manager is hired, you could figure out which direction this is going to go in.
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Chapters
5 chapters
1
What is the main topic discussed in this episode?
0:00–0:20
2
Why did Steve Yzerman step down as Red Wings GM and why now?
0:20–4:46
3
How does Helene St. James assess Yzerman’s legacy and performance since 2019?
4:46–7:09
4
What factors explain the Red Wings’ struggles in goals-for, goals-against and points percentage?
7:09–9:45
5
How might Yzerman’s move to senior advisor shift responsibility onto players and the organization?
9:45–10:04
Speakers
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