Kane latest addition in Detroit's assembly line of imported stars

Patrick Kane, also known as "Showtime," is the latest in a long line of superstars who have joined the Detroit Red Wings.

Some have had success. Others, not so much. And it remains to be seen how the 35-year-old forward will perform after having hip resurfacing surgery June 1 and signing a one-year, $2.75 million contract Tuesday.

But there is a familiar buzz in the city the Red Wings used to market as "Hockeytown," and there is more hope Detroit can end a seven-year Stanley Cup Playoff drought.

"We think we have a chance to be in the mix," general manager Steve Yzerman said Wednesday. "And with a healthy Patrick Kane, that gives us a better chance."

The Red Wings have acquired superstars, many of them late in their careers, under different circumstances through the years.

The history traces back to 1982, when Mike Ilitch bought the team and hired Jimmy Devellano as general manager. Then, the Red Wings needed a boost at the box office and on the ice.

They had missed the playoffs five straight seasons and 10 out of the previous 12. They had 2,100 season-ticket holders.

"It was not Hockeytown," Devellano, now senior vice president, said in 2001. "The fans had left the team. It was pretty apparent that we really now had to do something to sell tickets, had to somehow give the fans and the press something with a little more hope, something with a little more pizzazz."

Devellano was big on big names.

"I'm big on the show-business aspect of sports," he said. "I believe it's entertainment. I've always felt that way. I don't like dull. I don't like drab. I like pizzazz."

The Red Wings found a cornerstone in the 1983 NHL Draft when they used the No. 4 pick to select a guy named Yzerman. But they needed to build the roster around him. It was a long process.

While they found other key players in the draft, like Nicklas Lidstrom (third round, No. 53, 1989), Sergei Fedorov (fourth round, No. 74, 1989), Pavel Datsyuk (sixth round, No. 171, 1998) and Henrik Zetterberg (seventh round, No. 210, 1999), they got creative in trades and free agency.

In the 1980s, it was about becoming competitive. They added Brad Park (1983-85), Darryl Sittler (1984-85), Borje Salming (1989-90), Bernie Federko (1989-90) and Jimmy Carson (1989-93). They made the playoffs five times from 1984-89, advancing as far as the Campbell Conference Finals in 1987 and 1988, and started filling the seats.

In the early to mid-1990s, it was about pushing for the Stanley Cup. They had Dino Ciccarelli (1992-96), Mark Howe (1992-95), Paul Coffey (1993-96), Mike Vernon (1995-97), Slava Fetisov (1995-98), Igor Larionov (1995-2000), Brendan Shanahan (1996-2006) and Larry Murphy (1997-2001). They won the Cup in 1997, ending a 42-year championship drought, and repeated in 1998, becoming the hottest ticket in town.

In the late 1990s and 2000s, it was about trying to win the Cup again. They had Wendel Clark (1999), Bill Ranford (1999), Chris Chelios (1999-09), Pat Verbeek (1999-2001), Larionov for a second stint (2000-03), Luc Robitaille (2001-03), Brett Hull (2001-04), Dominik Hasek for three stints (2001-02, 2003-04 and 2006-07) and Curtis Joseph (2002-04). They won the Cup in 2002 and 2008.

In the late 2000s and early 2010s, it was about trying to keep their playoff streak alive, at least, and taking another shot at the Cup, if possible. They had Mike Modano (2010-11), Daniel Alfredsson 2013-14), David Legwand (2014) and Mike Green (2015-20). Their playoff streak lasted 25 seasons, through 2015-16.

Now it's a little like the 1980s again. The Red Wings are trying to avoid missing the playoffs for the eighth straight season, which would be a Detroit record. Although they still have strong fan support, they aren't selling out each game.

Kane isn't exactly chasing the Cup. He wants to keep playing, and Detroit gives him the best chance to succeed this season and earn another contract.

"I think it might have been blown out of proportion that I had to join, like, a big-time contender throughout the whole thing,' he said. "But you know, you definitely want to go to a team that's competing for a playoff spot and someone that you think you can help too. Just trying to find the right fit for me was probably the biggest thing."

The Red Wings have drafted players like Dylan Larkin (first round, No. 15, 2014), Moritz Seider (first round, No. 6, 2019) and Lucas Raymond (first round, No. 4, 2020), and they have promising prospects in their system. But they haven't selected in the top three of the NHL Draft since 1990, when they took Keith Primeau at No. 3, and haven't had the No. 1 pick since 1986, when they took Joe Murphy.

So where do you find elite talent, not just depth? Wherever you can. The Red Wings biggest offseason addition was forward Alex DeBrincat, whom they acquired from the Ottawa Senators on July 9 and signed to a four-year, $31.5 million contract (average annual value $7.875 million). Now they have added his old linemate in free agency.

No one knows if Kane will rekindle the chemistry he had with DeBrincat when they played for the Chicago Blackhawks from 2017-22. But he's a future Hockey Hall of Famer with the best set of hands anyone will have seen in a Red Wings uniform since Datsyuk, the "Magic Man," left for Russia in 2016.

Kane adds pizzazz, even if Yzerman doesn't look at it the way Devellano once did.

"Selling jerseys or tickets wasn't even a consideration," Yzerman said. "We looked at it and said, ‘If Patrick Kane can be healthy, that's the type of player we could really use in our lineup right now. It'll make us a better team.'"

We'll see what happens.

"It's notable," Yzerman said. "‘Wow, the Red Wings signed Patrick Kane.' And everybody will follow it. Ultimately, he's going to have to play well, and we're going to have win hockey games for our fan base to be pleased with it."