List of Detroit Red Wings general managers

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Steve Yzerman has been Detroit's general manager since 2019.

The Detroit Red Wings are a professional ice hockey team based in Detroit, Michigan. They are members of the Atlantic Division in the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League (NHL) and are one of the Original Six teams of the league.[1][2] The general manager (GM) of the team "oversees all aspects of Detroit's hockey operations including all matters relating to player personnel, development, contract negotiations and player movements."[3] There have been twelve general managers in franchise history; two during the era of the Detroit Cougars (1926–30) and Detroit Falcons (1930–32) and the rest under the Detroit Red Wings (1932–present). The first was Art Duncan for the 1926–27 season; he also served as head coach and was also a defenseman and team captain.[4][5][6]

Jack Adams took over as coach and GM for the 1927–28 season. He served as coach through the 1946–47 season and remained in the general manager position until 1962.[6] As both head coach and general manager, Adams built and guided the team to its first three Stanley Cup titles in 1936, 1937, and 1943,[7] and after turning the head coach position over to others the team won four more Cup titles in 1950, 1952, 1954, and 1955.[8][9] Adams earned the nickname "Trader Jack" for his willingness to make high-profile deals;[10] in 1955, just after the Stanley Cup Finals, he traded starting goaltender Terry Sawchuk to the Boston Bruins, elevating Glenn Hall to the starting role.[11] In 1957 he traded Hall and star left wing Ted Lindsay to the Chicago Black Hawks and reacquired Sawchuk by giving up Johnny Bucyk to the Bruins.[12][13]

Adams left the club in April 1962 and was replaced with Sid Abel, who was also head coach.[6][14] First under Abel as GM and then Ned Harkness, Alex Delvecchio, Lindsay, and Jimmy Skinner in the position, the Red Wings suffered a long period of decline, from 1967 until 1983, during which they made the playoffs only twice. They did not appear in the Finals in this time and only won one of the three series they appeared in, beating the Atlanta Flames two games to none in 1978.[15][16]

In 1982, Mike Ilitch bought the team from Bruce Norris.[17] Ilitch hired Jim Devellano from the New York Islanders to replace Skinner as GM; Devellano had served as a scout and assistant general manager with the Islanders, where he won the Stanley Cup three times.[18] Under his leadership the Red Wings began a new era of success;[18] in 1983 they drafted Steve Yzerman, who spent his entire career in Detroit, including a league record 20 years as team captain.[19] The Red Wings returned to the playoffs in 1984 where they suffered a first round defeat to the St. Louis Blues.[20] The team reached the Western Conference finals in both 1987 and 1988, losing to the Edmonton Oilers both times.[21][22] Devellano became team vice president in 1990, handing over the general manager position to Bryan Murray for the 1990–91 season.[23] The club made the playoffs that season and every season since; with Bryan Murray from 1990 to 1994, Devellano and head coach Scotty Bowman sharing general manager responsbilites from 1994 to 1997, and general manager Ken Holland, the team put together of a streak of 25 consecutive playoff appearances from 1991 to 2016. Under first Devellano, Bowman, and then Holland the team won the Stanley Cup in 1997, 1998, 2002, and 2008.[23]

A young Jack Adams as a player for the Toronto Arenas
Jack Adams was general manager for 35 years, winning seven Stanley Cups

Key[]

Ken Holland was general manager for 22 years, winning three Stanley Cups.
Key of terms and definitions
Term Definition
No. Number of general managers[a]
Refs References
– Does not apply
dagger Elected to the Hockey Hall of Fame

General managers[]

General managers of the Detroit NHL franchise[6]
No. Name Appointment Departure Accomplishments and events during this term Refs
1 Art Duncan October 18, 1926 May 14, 1927 First team captain, head coach, and general manager of the franchise [4][24][25]
2 Jack AdamsElected to the Hockey Hall of Fame May 14, 1927 April 26, 1962 Won Stanley Cup seven times (1936, 1937, 1943, 1950, 1952, 1954, 1955) [7][25][26]
3 Sid AbelElected to the Hockey Hall of Fame April 26, 1962 January 6, 1971 Appeared in Stanley Cup Finals in 1963, 1964, and 1966 [14][26][27]
4 Ned Harkness January 8, 1971 February 6, 1974 [28][29]
5 Alex DelvecchioElected to the Hockey Hall of Fame May 21, 1974 March 16, 1977 [30][31][32]
6 Ted LindsayElected to the Hockey Hall of Fame March 16, 1977 April 11, 1980 [32][33][34]
7 Jimmy Skinner April 11, 1980 July 12, 1982 Mike Ilitch purchased team from Bruce Norris in 1982 [17][35]
8 Jim DevellanoElected to the Hockey Hall of Fame July 12, 1982 July 13, 1990 Team reached conference finals in 1987 and 1988 [18][23][35]
9 Bryan Murray July 13, 1990 June 3, 1994 Club began streak of 25 consecutive playoff appearances (1990/91 thru 2015/16) [36][37]
10 Jim DevellanoElected to the Hockey Hall of Fame and
Scotty BowmanElected to the Hockey Hall of Fame 		June 3, 1994 July 18, 1997 Won Stanley Cup (1997) [18][37][38][39]
11 Ken Hollanddagger July 18, 1997 April 19, 2019 Won Stanley Cup three times (1998, 2002, 2008) [3][39]
12 Steve Yzerman April 19, 2019 – [40]

Notes[]

  • a A running total of the number of general managers of the Red Wings; thus, any individual who has two or more separate terms as general manager is only counted once.

References[]

  1. ^ "Rosters, Arena Information, and Aerial Maps". National Hockey League. Retrieved August 27, 2013.
  2. ^ The Canadian Press (May 14, 2013). "4 of the NHL's Original 6 – Chicago, Detroit, Boston, NY Rangers – among 8 still in playoffs". National Hockey League. Retrieved August 26, 2013.
  3. ^ a b "Ken Holland, Detroit Red Wings Executive Vice President & General Manager". redwings.nhl.com. Detroit Red Wings. Retrieved May 12, 2013.
  4. ^ a b "Art Duncan". Hockey-Reference.com. Sports Reference, LLC. Retrieved May 11, 2008.
  5. ^ "Arthur Duncan hockey statistics and profile". The Internet Hockey Database. Retrieved September 4, 2013.
  6. ^ a b c d National Hockey League (2013). "Detroit Red Wings". NHL Official Guide & Record Book 2014. Triumph. pp. 57–60. ISBN 978-1-60078-916-8.
  7. ^ a b "Jack Adams". Hockey-Reference.com. Sports Reference, LLC. Retrieved May 11, 2008.
  8. ^ "Tommy Ivan". Hockey-Reference.com. Sports Reference, LLC. Retrieved October 3, 2013.
  9. ^ "Jimmy Skinner". Hockey-Reference.com. Sports Reference, LLC. Retrieved October 3, 2013.
  10. ^ Sullivan, Jack (May 2, 1962). "Retirement of Colorful Jack Adams Closes Era". Saskatoon Star-Phoenix.
  11. ^ "Wings Deal Sawchuk, Three Others to Boston". The Montreal Gazette. June 4, 1955.
  12. ^ "Six Player Trade Sends Lindsay to Black Hawks". The Spokesman-Review. July 24, 1957.
  13. ^ Associated Press (June 11, 1957). "Sawchuk Traded Back to Detroit". The Milwaukee Journal.[permanent dead link]
  14. ^ a b "Sid Abel". Hockey-Reference.com. Sports Reference, LLC. Retrieved May 11, 2008.
  15. ^ "Detroit Red Wings Statistics and History". The Internet Hockey Database. Retrieved May 12, 2013.
  16. ^ "1978 NHL Playoff Summary". Hockey-Reference. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved May 12, 2013.
  17. ^ a b "Bruce Norris biography". Hockey Hall of Fame. Retrieved September 29, 2013.
  18. ^ a b c d "Jim Devellano biography". Hockey Hall of Fame. Retrieved June 13, 2013.
  19. ^ "Red Wings retire Yzerman's No. 19 jersey". January 3, 2007. Retrieved September 29, 2013.
  20. ^ "1984 NHL Playoff Summary". Hockey-Reference. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved May 12, 2013.
  21. ^ "1987 NHL Playoff Summary". Hockey-Reference. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved May 12, 2013.
  22. ^ "1988 NHL Playoff Summary". Hockey-Reference. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved May 12, 2013.
  23. ^ a b c "Jim Devellano, Detroit Red Wings Senior Vice President & Alternate Governor". redwings.nhl.com. Detroit Red Wings. Retrieved May 12, 2013.
  24. ^ "Art Duncan". redwings.nhl.com. Detroit Red Wings. Retrieved October 2, 2013.
  25. ^ a b "Adams to Manage Detroit Cougars". The Montreal Gazette. May 16, 1927.
  26. ^ a b Associated Press (April 27, 1962). "Jack Adams Retires, Abel Named GM". The Montreal Gazette.
  27. ^ Paladino, Larry (January 7, 1971). "Sid Abel Quits Red Wings, Blasts Harkness". The Owosso Argus-Press.
  28. ^ Mulvoy, Mark (January 18, 1971). "Poor Broken Wings". Sports Illustrated.
  29. ^ Daily Wire Services (February 7, 1974). "Harkness Resigns". The Michigan Daily.
  30. ^ "Alex Delvecchio". Hockey-Reference.com. Sports Reference, LLC. Retrieved May 11, 2008.
  31. ^ Associated Press (May 22, 1974). "Alex Delvecchio Gets Wings' Dual Role". The Ottawa Citizen.
  32. ^ a b Associated Press (March 16, 1977). "Red Wings Fire Delvecchio; Name Lindsay New Boss". The Owosso Argus-Press.
  33. ^ "Ted Lindsay". Hockey-Reference.com. Sports Reference, LLC. Retrieved May 11, 2008.
  34. ^ Associated Press (April 12, 1980). "Lindsay Tabbed for Task of Revitalizing Red Wings". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.
  35. ^ a b Grove, Bob (July 13, 1982). "Help in Detroit?". Observer-Reporter.
  36. ^ Sentinel wire services (July 14, 1990). "Red Wings Fire Demers". The Milwaukee Sentinel.[permanent dead link]
  37. ^ a b "Murray Fired as Red Wings' GM". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. June 4, 1994. p. D-3.
  38. ^ "Scotty Bowman". Hockey-Reference.com. Sports Reference, LLC. Retrieved May 11, 2008.
  39. ^ a b "Bowman Stays on as Coach, Holland is Wings' New GM". The Buffalo News. July 19, 1997. Archived from the original on September 24, 2015.
  40. ^ Wakiji, Dana (April 19, 2018). "The Captain returns to Detroit as Red Wings general manager". NHL.com. Retrieved April 20, 2019.
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