July 3: Yzerman retires from NHL after 22 seasons, all with Red Wings

THIS DATE IN HISTORY: July 3
2006:
Steve Yzerman
announces his retirement from the NHL after 22 seasons with the Detroit Red Wings.

The Red Wings select Yzerman with the No. 4 pick of the 1983 NHL Draft and name him captain three years later; at 21, he's the youngest player (at that time) to be named captain and fills that role for an NHL-record 19 seasons.
Yzerman piles up points early in his career but develops into a more effective two-way player later on and helps the Red Wings win the Stanley Cup in
1997
, ending a 42-year drought. They repeat in
1998
and win again in
2002
. He retires with 1,755 points (692 goals, 1,063 assists).
"I've enjoyed every aspect," he says. "My whole career has really been a highlight in that I've really enjoyed playing. At the age of 5 and before that I really wanted to be an NHL player. It's all I ever wanted to do."
Yzerman remains with the Red Wings in the front office until 2010, when he takes the job as general manager of the Tampa Bay Lightning. But he
returns to the Red Wings as GM
on April 19, 2019.

MORE MOMENTS
1970:
Teemu Selanne
is born, in Helsinki, Finland. Selanne is the first-round choice (No. 10) by the Winnipeg Jets in the 1988 NHL Draft; he joins the Jets in 1992-93 and
sets rookie records
with 76 goals and 132 points. Selanne scores at least 50 goals in 1996-97 and 1997-98, and then has 48 goals and 94 points to help the Anaheim Ducks win the Stanley Cup in
2006-07
. He ends his NHL career after the 2013-14 season with 684 goals and 1,457 points, NHL records for Finland-born players, and is inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 2017.

1998:One year and one day after signing one future Hockey Hall of Fame member, goalie
Ed Belfour
, the Dallas Stars add another when they sign forward
Brett Hull
. Though the 33-year-old isn't the offensive force who scores 228 goals in a three-season span from 1989-92 with the St. Louis Blues, he scores 32 goals in his first season with the Stars, then gets eight more in the Stanley Cup Playoffs, including the overtime goal in Game 6 of the Final that wins the Cup for the Stars.

2003: The Colorado Avalanche land two future Hall of Famers when they sign free agents
Paul Kariya
and Selanne to one-year contracts after the two decide they want to play together again, as they did with the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim from 1996-2001. The Avalanche, Stanley Cup winners in 1995 and 2001, have dreams of another championship after signing two of the NHL's top forwards, but Colorado finishes second in the Northwest Division and is eliminated in the second round of the playoffs -- and neither player returns for a second season when play resumes after the 2004-05 lockout.
2006: The Anaheim Ducks acquire defenseman
Chris Pronger
in a trade with the Edmonton Oilers for forward
Joffrey Lupul
and defenseman
Ladislav Smid
. The addition of Pronger, who helps Edmonton reach Game 7 of the 2006 Stanley Cup Final, keys the Ducks' run to their first championship in 2007.