Henrik Zetterberg just told Expressen he disagreed with how Steve Yzerman's time as Red Wings GM ended.
The former captain didn't hold back on how it felt. Watching Yzerman step down was difficult for him, he said, according to the report.
Zetterberg played 15 NHL seasons and 1,082 games, all of them in Detroit. When he speaks about the organization, it carries weight in that building.
The Majors Detroit relayed, via DetHockeyNow, that Zetterberg declined to discuss the reasons behind Yzerman's exit.
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That last part matters. He disagreed with the ending, he called it hard to watch, and he left the why unanswered.
Yzerman finished his playing career with 1,755 points over 22 seasons, all in a Red Wings sweater. Few people in the sport can claim the standing he has in Detroit, and fewer still have a former captain publicly questioning how his tenure wrapped up.
Why Zetterberg's comments land at a rough time for Detroit
The timing isn't helpful for the current regime. Shawn Horcoff is the GM now and Todd McLellan runs the bench, and the Red Wings sit 7-7-3 through 17 games.
That record has them 20th in the NHL and eighth in the Atlantic Division, with a goal differential of -3.
| GP | W | L | OL | PTS | DIFF | |
| 1. Boston Bruins | 17 | 12 | 4 | 1 | 25 | +24 |
| 2. Montreal Canadiens | 16 | 10 | 3 | 3 | 23 | +6 |
| 3. Tampa Bay Lightning | 15 | 10 | 3 | 2 | 22 | +10 |
| 4. Ottawa Senators | 17 | 10 | 6 | 1 | 21 | +2 |
| 5. Florida Panthers | 16 | 9 | 5 | 2 | 20 | +5 |
| 6. Toronto Maple Leafs | 17 | 8 | 7 | 2 | 18 | +6 |
| 7. Buffalo Sabres | 15 | 7 | 5 | 3 | 17 | -7 |
| 8. Detroit Red Wings | 17 | 7 | 7 | 3 | 17 | -3 |
Thursday night's 2-1 loss to the Golden Knights made it two straight defeats. Daniil Tarasov stopped 32 of 34 shots and Anton Johansson scored the lone Detroit goal, but the Red Wings couldn't find a second.
Losing teams make every outside voice louder. A club in the middle of the pack doesn't get to ignore a franchise icon saying he disagreed with a major call from the front office.
Nobody knows yet whether Zetterberg will say more, or whether Yzerman will ever respond. Zetterberg chose not to explain, which leaves fans to fill in the blanks themselves.
For now the Red Wings have a game to play. They head to Colorado on Saturday, hoping to stop the slide and give people something else to talk about.
Was Zetterberg right to go public with his disagreement over how Yzerman's GM tenure ended?
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