How exactly is this not significant progress?
I actually stated that it
was progress. Did you read my post?
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Look, there is room for moderation between two opposite perspectives on this question. We've seen some typically stupid posts attacking Yzerman in senseless spite, disproportionate to the extreme challenges the GM faced in inheriting a really bottomed-out roster. On the other side, we've seen some (in my opinion) remarkably charitable and optimistic posts -- which is what I'd expect and is totally fine from Red Wings' fans -- who are now claiming that the franchise "wasn't even trying to win" or whatever for the past few years (as if that's a thing).
Rather than take an extreme opinion, it should be possible to land in the middle-ground here.
It's quite fair to say that Yzerman's reign
so far is, as I put it, a "moderate failure", because the club missed the playoffs last season (and the four seasons prior, though not really any fault of Yzerman's). The idea that they weren't even trying to win is absurd. Every NHL team is trying to win every game -- that's the nature of the beast. It's not a League where you get points for trying or even making logical moves. It's a League where you get points for winning. In Yzerman's reign
so far, they haven't won. So, no matter what Yzerman did (even if he made mostly good moves), it's a still a "moderate failure". Sorry, but that's how big-League sports works.
I watched Yzerman play in the 1980s, and with what I know of him, I'm 100% certain that if we back to summer 2019 and told Yzerman "Your team is still going to be missing the playoffs in 2024", his response would not be: "Okay, fine! That's just swell and dandy, because, you know, I don't really want to win that badly for half a decade!" More likely, he would say, "F***!" and then start making moves to change the path he was going down.
But the key words here are "moderate" failure and "so far". All it takes is one big step forward and the word "failure" is erased from Yzerman's resume. I'd say the Wings are a year behind where they wanted to be. If they make the playoffs in 2025, most things will look rosy again for Yzerman and his legacy. Then, if they make it again in 2026, suddenly his reign will change to a "success" from where it is now, a "moderate failure". And, of course, all it takes is one Stanley Cup win to wipe the past clean and make him look like a genius.
How well a GM is doing is a moving target. It changes year by year. The tale of Yzerman's tenure is yet to be told.
But, to be clear, he's not a success yet -- not even close. Results are the only thing that counts.