News Article: Yzerman was “Disrespectful towards officials”

[Gniwder]

What is the point of this post?

I'm question the point of his post. What's it to you, are you playing moderator?

 

[vladdy16]

I'm question the point of his post. What's it to you, are you playing moderator?

Seems like the best thing to do when you have a question, is to wait for an answer.

I was curious what the answer would be.

 

[Marky9er]

Why is this coming out now? Is Yzerman running for Prime Minister? He'd have my vote.

 

[ManwithNoIdentity]

Paul Stewart is a douchebag

 

[Steve Yzerlland]

Not sure what you're getting at, and I don't care for your opinion. Everyone expects Larkin to be the next captain so there will be comparisons made, so you can go fly a kite. (If we met in person, I'd be using stronger words. Considering the fact that I was kidding around, your tone is much unappreciated.)

Steve Yzerman

 

[avssuc]

Paul Stewart

... dude made up stuff to help sell his book. It's especially funny that he uses Chelios as an example of someone who didn't berate officials.

That being said, Stevie definitely was ornery with refs later in his career. The only part of that narrative I take issue with is when people claim he was a whiner early in his career. He simply wasn't.

-That seems impossible, but maybe we don't remember things the way they were.

-That distinction clearly belongs now/forever/always to Crosby.

 

[The Flying Octopus]

Don't compare Yzerman to Larkin in any capacity....

You might want to get used to compairisons, considering Larkin is the next Captain.

 

[rt]

Yzerman was seen as having maturity/attitude problems early in his career. He’d have been roasted if HFB existed back then. He matured and became the legendary leader he’s known as today. It was a very different story when he was a young NHL player.

 

[vladdy16]

Yzerman was seen as having maturity/attitude problems early in his career. He’d have been roasted if HFB existed back then. He matured and became the legendary leader he’s known as today. It was a very different story when he was a young NHL player.

Perception doesnt equal reality however.

 

[Lazlo Hollyfeld]

Yzerman was seen as having maturity/attitude problems early in his career. He’d have been roasted if HFB existed back then. He matured and became the legendary leader he’s known as today. It was a very different story when he was a young NHL player.

By who?

All I can say is as someone who watched him from the day he was named Captain, I have no memory of anyone talking about his attitude problems. It's the equivalent of saying Datsyuk was a whiner and had attitude problems early in his career. It goes against any memory or experience of the guy.

There was Bowman getting him to commit to being a defensively responsible player but that was 10 years into his career. When the Wings kept coming up short people started to question maybe he "just didn't have what it takes" to get his team there, they way they do any captain whose team seems to underachieve.

But Yzerman was a quiet, very talented Canadian kid from BC who had played for Peterborough. He was immediately beloved when he came into the league.

I'm not saying he was a saint like some people may try to portray him (as they do Datsyuk). He's a competitive guy and always has been. But being a whiner and having attitude problems early in his career is revisionist history.

 

[Lazlo Hollyfeld]

Just to put this revisionist history to rest, here's an article about Yzerman from 1988 when he was 23 years old. It's from Detroit journalist Mitch Albom (who I can't stand) but here's some excerpts. And another one from Sportsnet about Yzerman as a 15 year old phenom.

Apologies for the long post. I just get tired of people making things up and stating them as fact here.

STEVIE WONDERFUL YZERMAN WON'T LET ACCLAIM GO TO HIS HEAD » Mitch Albom

He made a commercial for Ford recently. Didn’t use an agent. Just went in, heard the offer, and accepted it. (“Well, it’s not like I’d won any Oscars,” Yzerman says. “I couldn’t really demand anything.”
On Monday he eclipsed a Detroit hockey record held by the great Gordie Howe — most consecutive games with at least one goal. Yzerman is at nine and counting.
I ask whether he has ever met Howe.
“A couple of times,” he says. “He’ll come over and say hi.”
“Couldn’t you just say hello first?”
His eyes bulge.
“No way! I would never just go up to Gordie Howe out of the blue.”
“Why not?”
“Because he’s Gordie Howe. What am I gonna say, ‘Hey, Gordie. How’s it goin’?’ ”
“Well, don’t you think you’ve reached that point?”
He shakes his head.
“I’ll never reach that point.”

“There’s no comparison between Wayne Gretzky and me,” Yzerman says, sitting in his West Bloomfield apartment Wednesday afternoon, his voice, as always, soft and unassuming. “He’s done it all. Won Stanley Cups, won scoring championships. . . . These people who compare us, or say he and Mario and I are 1-2-3, it’s so unfair to guys like Mark Messier, Dale Hawerchuk, Ray Bourque. You can’t compare. . .
“And Gordie Howe? No way. I was looking at some of his records the other day. He’s got marks that will last forever. He played with a dynasty. If we ever become a dynasty, a lot of other guys will be breaking records, too.”

The other night on WLLZ-FM, hockey analyst Don Cherry rated Yzerman up there with Gretzky and Lemieux in talent. “But you know,” he added, “if you ask players around the league, Yzerman is the one they’d most like to sit and have beer with. He’s the most regular guy of the three.”
And then there is this story. I heard it from Mary Schroeder, a photographer for our newspaper, who sits near the penalty box at Joe Louis Arena. Whenever Yzerman gets called for a penalty, he enters the box, cursing like a sailor.
Then he sees her.
“Sorry, Mary,” he always says.
And he sits down.

How a young Steve Yzerman became the pride of Nepean - Sportsnet.ca

His work ethic back then was the stuff of legend, says Giacobbi, such that even players on opposing teams were hearing stories of the gruelling off-ice hours the young phenom was logging.

“I remember there was one game … I gave up just the worst goal in the world,” Pang recalls of their time with the Raiders. “It was bad. It was a bad goal. But this will tell you about Steve. He comes back — and he’s 15, and I’m 16, we’re the underage guys — he comes back to the net, hits my pads, and he says, ‘We’re going to get that one back. Now, let’s go.’ One of those kinds of things — he doesn’t say a lot but he kind of has that clenched jaw.
“[Then] he gets the faceoff win, spins around, goes down, scores a magnificent goal, comes right back and he says, ‘Let’s go.’”

 

[The Axe]

To be honest, every time Paul Stewart reffed for the Wings, I knew he would try to screw them over. Paul Stewart is one of those officials who always wanted to make the games about him. I was glad when he left the league. Now they just need to get rid of O'Halloran. They are both ********s.

Good call. These 2 refs sucked hard. Every game the Wings had them, it was always tilted.

 

[FMichael]

Ex-NHL referee: Steve Yzerman was 'disrespectful'

Interesting read. I actually remember the game against Nashville they reference in the article. There’s a clip of it on YouTube. I don’t have many memories of Yzerman being a prick to officials except one instance in his last season while taking a faceoff. The linesman kicked him out of the circle, Stevie stayed in the ready position and you could clearly read his lips saying, “drop the f***ing puck” before finally leaving the circle lol.

This just in...Water is wet - sitting too long in direct sunlight may cause sunburn - and a veteran NHL player who happens to wear the 'C' for his team was deemed 'disrespectful' by Paul Stewart who's trying to sell his book.

Meh - who cares...The NHL was a $hit ton tougher back in those days in so many ways.

 

[Mickey Redmond]

Paul Stewart was known for being terrible at his job, it’s hilarious that he wonders why players berated him.