Number 19 has come home on the 19th day of April.
And sometimes ill-tempered -- some would say Always Aggravated -- 97.1 The Ticket host Mike Valenti couldn't be happier about the return of Steve Yzerman to the Detroit Red Wings.
Mike happy about a Detroit sports move? He was nearly euphoric.
"I think it's a great day, I'm happy for Red Wings fans," he said. "We need some positive juju here."
He also said there are cetain times when things are as good as they're supposed to be, and this is one of those moments. Yzerman's name is the only one that could unite the entire fan base, and energize fans.
"This is the grand slam hire that the Red Wings had to have," he said adding that "Yzerman is going to be everything that Harbaugh was supposed to be."
"I do believe Steve Yzerman will come here and he will bring a Stanley Cup back to Detroit."
Valenti added he didn't see a reason to cast doubt on Yzerman's future possibilities with the team. There's no reason to be churlish about a team that has struggled for years now doing what it can to turn it around. This move makes the team relevant again.
Fans deserve this, the city of Detroit deserves it.
"This will be a legacy job, and you were able to bring him back and I don't see a reason to cast doubt on it," he said. "It's OK to just say, "This is objectively the best thing to happen locally in sports since ... for the Red Wings, it might game seven 2013 against Anaheim."
For his part, Yzerman urged fans to be patient.
"It's gonna take time," was the theme of Yzerman's message to the gathered media Friday during his announcement.
The iconic Yzerman took a measured stance on his approach as GM: "I'm asking for patience," he said. "I know there's a limit to the patience of the fans, of the boss, of everyone, but I'm not going to come here this first year and make a big splash on July 1 just so we're a little bit better next year."
Many noted that it seemed fitting that Yzerman, no. 19 on the Wings, was drafted fourth overall. He announced his return on 4-19.
Is it fate?
"Honestly, the reason we're having the press conference today is we've got work to do," he said, brushing off the irony of the date.
Ken Holland, who moved to senior vice president to make way for Yzerman, has been working on this succession plan for the past 3 months, according to Sportsnet.
It's a notable change on the part of Holland, who reportedly declined to step aside as GM during Yzerman's first stint in the Red Wings front office from 2006-09. That's what prompted Yzerman's move to the Tampa Bay Lightning.
10 years later, Holland was willing to hand over the reins. Valenti wondered if Yzerman took over with the expectation Holland would stick around for awhile.
In eight seasons with the Lightning, Yzerman earned a reputation as one of the best GMs in the league. He built Tampa into a perennial juggernaut with smart draft picks, savvy trades and shrewd negotiations in free agency.
