Thank You Steve

Last night, I celebrated the beginning of my last week of freedom by attending my first NHL game in 8 years. Unfortunately, my beloved Detroit Red Wings fell short against the Carolina Hurricanes, 3-2. The Wings came out flat, falling behind 3-0 before rallying to make a game of it. In fact, the Wings ended up outshooting the Hurricanes 38-25, including 19 shots in a 3rd period where Detroit did everything but score. To their credit, Carolina jumped out to the lead, and battled hard enough to make it stand up. In particular, their Swiss international goaltender, Martin Gerber, was brilliant.

Overall, though, I still enjoyed the game. It was a tense, hard-fought affair, played in a playoff-like atmosphere. I especially appreciated getting to see Red Wings captain Steve Yzerman play one last time. Yzerman has been with the Wings since joining the team as a teenage rookie in 1983. Back then, the team was not so affectionately known as the "Detroit Dead Things". Yzerman became team captain in 1986, and emerged as one of the NHL's top players in the late 1980's, just as the Wings rose to respectability and then dominance. He has become the embodiment of the Red Wings, second only to Gordie Howe on the team's pantheon of heroes.

In December, the Christian Science Monitor published a great Steve Yzerman profile, that I highly recommend to any hockey fan.

Last night, I was not disappointed as Yzerman scored a brilliant goal. Thanks Steve, for yet one more great moment to remember.