Steve Yzerman Stephen Gregory " Steve " Yzerman ( ; born May 9 , 1965 ) is a retired Canadian professional ice hockey player and current general manager of the Tampa Bay Lightning of the National Hockey League . Yzerman played his entire National Hockey League ( NHL ) career with the Detroit Red Wings and is a member of the Hockey Hall of Fame . Prior to the 1986 – 87 season at the age of 21 , Yzerman was named captain of the Red Wings and continuously served for the next two decades , retiring as the longest - serving captain of any team in North American major league sports history . Once voted to be the most popular athlete in Detroit sports history , locals often simply refer to Yzerman as " The Captain . " Yzerman led the Wings to five first - place regular season finishes and three Stanley Cup championships ( 1997 , 1998 and 2002 ) . Yzerman won numerous awards during his career , including the Lester B . Pearson Award in 1989 , the Conn Smythe Trophy as the Most Valuable Player of the Stanley Cup Playoffs in 1998 , the Selke Trophy as the league ' s best defensive forward in 2000 , and the Bill Masterton Memorial Trophy for perseverance in 2003 . He was a ten - time NHL All - Star , a First Team All - Star in 2000 , and a member of the All - Rookie Team in 1984 . On July 3 , 2006 , Yzerman officially retired , finishing his career ranked as the sixth all - time leading scorer in NHL history , having scored a career - high 155 points ( 65 goals / 90 assists ) in 1988 - 89 which has been bettered only by Wayne Gretzky and Mario Lemieux . Yzerman ' s jersey # 19 , was officially retired on January 2 , 2007 during a pre - game ceremony at Joe Louis Arena in Detroit . On November 4 , 2008 , he was inducted into the Canadian Sports Hall of Fame . He also became an honoured member of the Hockey Hall of Fame in 2009 , his first year of eligibility , inducted alongside 2001 - 02 Red Wing teammates Brett Hull and Luc Robitaille . On September 25 , 2006 , Yzerman was named as a Vice President of the Detroit Red Wings . He won a fourth Stanley Cup as the Vice President of Operations in 2007 – 08 . He served as the team ' s Alternate Governor until he was hired away from the Red Wings to become the general manager for the Tampa Bay Lightning in May 2010 . Yzerman has represented his country in several international tournaments as a member of Canada ' s national hockey team ( Team Canada ) . In 2002 , Yzerman won an Olympic gold medal , making him one of few players to win an Olympic gold medal and the Stanley Cup in the same year . Yzerman was the general manager of Team Canada for the 2007 IIHF World Championship which they won . Yzerman was appointed Executive Director of Team Canada on October 7 , 2008 , for the 2010 Winter Olympics . Team Canada went on to win the gold medal by defeating Team USA . Playing career . Early years . Yzerman was born in Cranbrook , British Columbia , but grew up in Nepean , Ontario ( a suburb of Ottawa , now a district in that city ) where he attended Bell High School and played for his hometown Nepean Raiders Junior A hockey team . After one season with the Raiders , the Peterborough Petes of the Ontario Hockey League drafted him , and he played center for the Petes from 1981 to 1983 . The 1983 NHL Entry Draft was the first for Mike Ilitch and Marian Ilitch , who had purchased the Detroit Red Wings in the summer of 1982 . Jim Devellano , the Red Wings ' then - general manager , wanted to draft Pat LaFontaine , who had grown up outside Detroit and played his junior hockey in the area ; however , when the New York Islanders took LaFontaine third overall , Devellano settled on Yzerman , drafting him fourth . Standing 5 ' 11 " and weighing just 160 pounds , the Red Wings were prepared to send Yzerman back to Peterborough for another year , but " after one ( training camp ) season , you knew he was a tremendous hockey player , " said Ken Holland , the current Red Wings general manager who was a minor league goaltender for the Wings during Yzerman ' s rookie training camp . Yzerman tallied 39 goals and 87 points in his rookie season , and finished second in Calder Trophy ( rookie of the year ) voting . That season , Yzerman also became the youngest player in an All - Star Game at the age of 18 . Becoming a leader . Following the departure of the previous captain , Danny Gare , after the 1985 - 86 season , then - coach Jacques Demers named Yzerman captain of the team on October 7 , 1986 , making him the youngest captain in the team ' s history . Demers said he " wanted a guy with the Red Wings crest tattooed on his chest . " The next season , Yzerman led the Wings to their first division title in 23 years . During the 1988 – 89 season Yzerman recorded 155 points ( 65 goals / 90 assists ) , a total that only Wayne Gretzky and Mario Lemieux have surpassed . Yzerman finished third in regular season scoring behind Lemieux and Gretzky , won the Lester B . Pearson Award ( MVP as voted by the NHLPA ) , and was a finalist for the Hart Trophy ( MVP as voted by the NHL writers ) . When Scotty Bowman took over as coach in 1993 , Yzerman initially chafed under Bowman ' s stern coaching style . Bowman , for his part , felt that Yzerman wasn ' t concentrating enough on defense ; Bowman had long expected his forwards to be good back - checkers as well . Relations between the two became so strained that at one point , the Red Wings seriously considered trading him to the Montreal Canadiens in 1994 in exchange for Mathieu Schneider and a 1st Round Draft Pick . However , Yzerman gradually became a better defender , and is now considered one of the best two - way forwards in the history of the game . In 1995 , Yzerman led Detroit to its first Stanley Cup finals series since 1966 , but the Red Wings were swept by the New Jersey Devils . Before the start of the 1995 – 96 NHL season , Yzerman ' s leadership was called into question and soon he had to deal with rumors that he was about to be traded to the Ottawa Senators , a deal that never materialized . Detroit finished the season with an NHL - record 62 regular season wins and were heavily favored to win the Stanley Cup . Yzerman scored perhaps the most memorable goal of his career in the 1996 playoffs , beating St . Louis Blues goalie Jon Casey with a slap shot from the blue line to win the Western Conference Semifinals in double overtime of Game 7 . However , the Red Wings fell short of their ultimate goal , losing in six games to the Colorado Avalanche in the Western Conference Finals . The glory years . In 1997 , Yzerman put to rest all doubts of his ability to lead a team to a championship as Detroit won its first Stanley Cup in 42 years by sweeping the Philadelphia Flyers . The following year Detroit repeated the feat , sweeping the Washington Capitals and winning their second consecutive Stanley Cup title . Yzerman earned the Conn Smythe Trophy as playoff MVP . He handed the Cup first to wheelchair - using Vladimir Konstantinov , who had been severely injured in a car accident just six days after the Cup victory in 1997 . On November 26 , 1999 , Yzerman became the 11th player in NHL history to score 600 goals . In 2000 , he made the NHL All - Star First Team and won the Frank J . Selke Trophy . In 2001 – 02 , Yzerman re - aggravated a knee injury , forcing him to miss 30 regular season games . Yet , he still finished sixth in team scoring . Yzerman ' s knee greatly pained him during the 2002 Stanley Cup Playoffs , but this didn ' t stop him from leading the Red Wings from an early 2 - 0 deficit in their opening round series to defeat the Vancouver Canucks and St . Louis Blues en route to Detroit ' s sixth playoff series with the Colorado Avalanche to decide the Western Conference Championship . Detroit defeated Colorado in a seven game series and moved on to the Stanley Cup Finals , where they defeated the Carolina Hurricanes to win their 10th Stanley Cup championship in their history . Rather than raising the Stanley Cup first , Yzerman passed the Cup to coach Scotty Bowman , who announced his retirement following the game . Late career . That fall , Yzerman underwent a knee realignment surgery known as an osteotomy , a procedure usually reserved for the elderly . He missed the first 66 games of the 2002 – 03 season , but got an assist in his first game back on February 27 , 2003 . On May 1 , 2004 , Yzerman was hit in the eye by a deflected slapshot from the stick of teammate Matthieu Schneider in a playoff game against the Calgary Flames , breaking his orbital bone and scratching his cornea . He underwent eye surgery following the incident , and was sidelined for the rest of the 2004 post - season . The eye injury also forced Yzerman to miss the 2004 World Cup of Hockey . Fellow Canadians Joe Thornton ( then of the Boston Bruins ) and Joe Sakic ( Colorado Avalanche ) , who each wore the number 19 for their respective NHL clubs and who were now eligible to wear it for team Canada due to Yzerman ' s enforced absence , both refused the number out of respect for their injured countryman . Yzerman returned in the 2005 – 06 season , following the lockout , wearing a face shield . On August 2 , 2005 , Yzerman signed a one - year deal with the Red Wings ; this was his last contract signed as a player . On March 31 , 2006 he scored his 691st NHL career goal , passing Mario Lemieux for 8th place all - time . He scored his final NHL goal , the 692nd of his career , on April 3 , 2006 , in a game against the Calgary Flames . On July 3 , 2006 , Yzerman announced his retirement . Shortly afterwards " Sports Illustrated " published a special commemorative edition dedicated to Yzerman entitled " Yzerman : A Salute to Stevie Y " which featured Yzerman ' s first appearance on the cover of " Sports Illustrated " . Yzerman currently holds the NHL record ( 19 seasons / 20 years ) as the longest serving captain of a single team . In addition to being eighth all - time in regular - season goals and sixth in overall scoring , Yzerman finished his career seventh all - time in regular season assists , and eighth in all - time playoff scoring . He ranks second in nearly every significant offensive category in Red Wings history behind Gordie Howe except assists ; Yzerman has 1 , 063 assists to Howe ' s 1 , 020 . Only Howe ( 1 , 687 games ) and Alex Delvecchio ( 1 , 550 games ) played more games as a Red Wing than Yzerman ' s 1 , 514 . Front office . On September 25 , 2006 , the Red Wings named Yzerman a team vice president and alternate governor . On January 2 , 2007 , the Red Wings retired Yzerman ' s jersey # 19 , before a game against the Anaheim Ducks . As an additional honor the captain ' s " C " was added to the corner of his banner to forever commemorate him as " The Captain " . The official retirement ceremony was hosted by Yzerman ' s long - time friend , former NHL goalie and ESPN hockey analyst Darren Pang and featured such Red Wing luminaries as Gordie Howe , Ted Lindsay , Alex Delvecchio ( the three still - living Red Wings players to have their uniform numbers retired by the team ) , and Scotty Bowman . For the ceremony , the active Red Wings players wore Yzerman throwback jerseys representing the Red Wings , Team Canada ( Canada won gold at the 2002 Salt Lake City Winter Olympic Games ) , the Campbell Conference All - Star team and the Peterborough Petes . Former teammate Vladimir Konstantinov attended the ceremony , walking across the ice for the first time without a wheelchair since his last game in the 1997 Stanley Cup Playoffs . On January 30 , 2007 , Hockey Canada named Yzerman the general manager of Team Canada for the 2007 IIHF World Championship in Moscow ( April 27 - May 13 ) , where they beat Finland with a score of 4 - 2 on Sunday May 13 to win the Championship . Yzerman is one of the most powerful figures in Red Wings history and NHL history , and is considered a hero outside hockey as well . On January 2 , 2007 , Yzerman was presented the key to the city of Detroit by Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick at a luncheon prior to the jersey retirement ceremony . On January 13 , 2007 , Michigan governor Jennifer Granholm ( incidentally another Canadian - American ) visited Detroit and the Joe Louis Arena and proclaimed the day as " Steve Yzerman Day ” in the state of Michigan . On January 11 , 2008 , when the Red Wings visited Ottawa to play the Senators , Yzerman was inducted into the Ottawa Sports Hall of Fame . Yzerman received another honor when he was inducted into the Michigan Sports Hall of Fame on February 11 , 2008 . Yzerman was voted as the NHL ' s greatest captain by the fans in the 2008 – 09 season . On June 23 , 2009 , it was announced that Yzerman will be inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame . He was honored during the November 6 – 9 induction weekend alongside his former Red Wings teammates Brett Hull and Luc Robitaille , as well as Brian Leetch . Vancouver 2010 Olympics . In 2009 , he was named Executive Director for the Canadian men ' s hockey team at the 2010 Winter Olympics . The Canadian team he put together went on the win the gold , the first gold won by a home team in ice hockey since the 1980 USA Olympic hockey team . Yzerman said he would consider coming back as head of the Canadian team in 2014 . Yzerman went on saying that “ I loved it , but it was very stressful . Given the chance to represent Canada and be the guy in charge , if somebody offered it to me , I didn ' t hesitate the first time , I wouldn ' t hesitate again . " This experience would eventually lead to Yzerman leaving the Red Wings to take the Lightning GM job in May 2010 . Tampa Bay Lightning General Manager . On May 25 , 2010 , it was reported that Yzerman would be introduced as the vice - president & general manager of the NHL ' s Tampa Bay Lightning under new Owner Jeffrey Vinik . In the off - season and early in his new reign he re - signed Martin St . Louis , signed defenceman Pavel Kubina for his second tenure with the team , signed top free agent goaltender Dan Ellis to a 2 - year contract , signed defenceman Brett Clark , and brought in left - winger Simon Gagné in a trade that saw Matt Walker and a fourth - round pick in 2011 depart Tampa Bay . Personal life . Yzerman and his wife Lisa Brennan ( born 17 June 1965 ) were married on June 10 , 1989 , and have three daughters , Isabella Katherine ( born 23 February 1994 ) , Maria Charlotte ( born 21 April 1998 ) , and Sophia Rose ( born 14 May 1999 ) . They reside in Bloomfield Hills , Michigan . Yzerman has acquired naturalized United States ' citizenship , due to his many years of residence in Michigan . Not far from where Steve Yzerman grew up , the Nepean Sportsplex named one of its indoor ice surfaces the Steve Yzerman Arena in 1997 in his honour . This is the home rink of the CJHL ' s Nepean Raiders , the Tier II Junior " A " team Yzerman played on during the 1980 – 81 season . The Raiders currently play in the Yzerman Division . The CJHL divisions have been renamed the Robinson and Yzerman divisions after two of its most prominent alumni , Yzerman and Larry Robinson . Yzerman ' s feature has been included on the tickets for the Ice hockey events at the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver . He also is the person for the ice hockey pictogram at those same games . International play . Played for Canada in : International statistics . Yzerman was considered a leading candidate for the captaincy of Team Canada in 1998 , along with Wayne Gretzky and Ray Bourque . Yzerman had led the Detroit Red Wings to the Stanley Cup during the previous season and he was one of the longest serving team captains . However , General Manager Bobby Clarke instead selected Eric Lindros . In late 2005 , after Yzerman ruled himself out of a third Olympic appearance , Wayne Gretzky announced that no one would be allowed to wear jersey # 19 for Team Canada for the 2006 Olympics , in Yzerman ' s honor .