Jimmy Devellano: A blueprint for success

Leo- Saturday, November 13, 2010

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"I did it because I loved hockey," said Jimmy Devellano, senior vice president of the Red Wings, thinking about the letter he wrote nearly 44 years later on the eve of his induction today into the Hockey Hall of Fame in Toronto. "I like hockey more than most people, who just want to sit around and watch it on TV. I had season tickets to the Toronto Maple Leafs, I coached a lot of minor league hockey and there were various junior teams in Ontario that I used to travel around and watch. That was my passion."

From The Detroit News: http://detnews.com/article/20101108/SPORTS0103/11080319/1128/#ixzz14n4zqgJm

TORONTO – On the day he was inducted into hockey's Hall of Fame, Red Wings senior vice president Jimmy Devellano shared the secret to building a winning franchise.

You might want to write this down.

"You have to get good players," Devellano told Sporting News. "I know it sounds so simple just to say that, but you really do."

Well, yeah, there's that. But if it were that simple, every former GM would have the long list of accomplishments that earned Devellano a spot in this year's Hall of Fame class with Dino Ciccarelli, Cammi Granato, Angela James and Doc Seaman.

Devallano was part of the Islanders front office that won three Stanley Cups. In Detroit, he was hired over other candidates like David Poile and Pat Quinn to run the Red Wings, for whom he helped build four Stanley Cup winners.

He knew exactly what it took to win. On the day he was inducted into the Hall, he shared three crucial pieces to his blueprint:

Build through the draft. Devellano said he had many long conversations with Steve Yzerman before Yzerman left to run the Tampa Bay Lightning. One of the biggest things Devellano passed on was that long-term success comes only through player development.

The Lightning are off to a strong start under Yzerman, but he's committed to building the right way, which doesn't happen overnight.

Devellano preaches building with draft picks, and Yzerman is listening.

"It's something we're going to stress in our organization. We're going to do everything we can to build through the draft," said Yzerman, who traveled to Toronto to honor Devellano. "The secret of an organization is long-term success built through the draft and being patient with your players."

Find the right coach. After Bryan Murray was fired as Red Wings coach in 1993, Devellano got wind that Red Wings owner Mike Ilitch wanted to hire Mike Keenan. He did everything he could to prevent it.

"I went to ownership and really discouraged it," Devellano said.

Instead, Devellano suggested the Red Wings should hire Al Arbour or Scotty Bowman.

"He looked at me and said go get one of them. I said, 'Which one do you want?' He said, 'I don't care,' " Devellano said. "We got Scotty and the rest is history."

During his induction speech, Devellano also credited the role Jacques Demers played in reviving the Red Wings.

"Jacques re-invigorated hockey in Detroit," Devellano said. "Jacques, if you're listening, thank you, thank you, thank you."

Work for a strong, supportive owner. One of the reasons Devellano strongly encouraged Yzerman to take the Tampa Bay job was because of new Lightning owner Jeff Vinik. While it's possible for a team to win with a faceless ownership group, Devellano thinks a single committed owner dramatically boosts the rate of success.

"I prefer to work for one person, that was important to me. I feel sometimes in a group, you can go off on different tangents," he said. "If you have a singular committed owner, that's the best scenario."

In Detroit, that owner is Ilitch, who joked that Devellano's appreciation for Ilitch was for only one reason.

"He liked the way I spent. I hate the (salary) cap," Ilitch said. "I liked to go out and get players."

It was with Ilitch's support that Devellano was able to draft and then lure Europeans to the NHL at a time when other teams were scared off by the Iron Curtain.

"He gave me the assignment," Ilitch said, "and I had to do all the dirty work."

Read more: http://www.sportingnews.com/nhl/feed/2010-11/hockey-hall-of-fame/story/jimmy-devellano-a-blueprint-for-success#ixzz14n4GGWqI