Flip Senior On His Way to Detroit

Often bereft of compatriates to play with, Valtteri Fippula was a lonely Fin after the departure of 2nd Finnish player in Red Wings history, Ville Leino. His loneliness won't last long however, with Ken Holland's signing of his older brother, Ilari Filppula to a one-year, two-way $500k contract.

From Ansar Khan at mlive:

The Detroit Red Wings have signed 28-year-old Finnish free-agent forward Ilari Filppula, the older brother of Valtteri Filppula."

He adds some depth to our organization,'' Red Wings assistant general manager Jim Nill said. "His career has blossomed in the last 2-3 years. He was one of the better players in Finland. It's time to see if he can play in the best league in the world.''

Ilari is a 28-year old winger, who also has the versatility to move to center when needed. He has spent his entire professional career in the Finnish SM-Liiga, playing for JYP, Jokerit Helsinki and most recently TPS Turku where his club won the Finnish Championship and he earned himself the Jari Kurri trophy as the playoff MVP.

Filppula is 5'11", 191lbs and last season with TPS, he tallied 12 goals and 37 assists in 58 games but was a minus-3 despite leading his team in scoring. He's said to be a good playmaker but doesn't skate as well as his younger brother, Valtteri.

Steve Yzerman Bolts for Tampa Bay

Contrary to earlier reports from thefourthperiod, Steve Yzerman will be leaving the only NHL team he's ever been a part of, to take the helm of the Tampa Bay Lightning.

In Tampa Bay, he inherits a promising team with a mixture of experienced stars the likes of Vincent Lecavalier and Martin St. Louis, and high-end young talent like Steven Stamkos, Steve Downie and Victor Hedman. The Lightning have failed to make the playoffs for the past 3 seasons; a streak Stevie Y. hopes to immediately break.

Tampa Bay Lightning owner, Jeff Vinik fired head coach Rick Tocchet and GM Brian Lawton at the conclusion of the season after the Lightning improved to playoff contention, but fizzled out down the strech to fail again. Vinik has promised to leave all hockey decisions to Yzerman, including the hiring of their new head coach.

Stevie Y. has been with the Red Wings organization for 27 years and his presence will be sorely missed. Current GM Ken Holland and Assistant GM, Jim Nill are likely to be given long-term contracts in the near future, which I'm sure weighed in on Yzerman's decision to pursue an outside opportunity.

It's a reality Red Wings fans always hoped wouldn't eventuate but ultimately knew would. Stevie is gone from Detroit. I, for one, wish him every success in Tampa Bay and I think he'll do very well with the club. With new ownership, I think it's not a bad place to be and I think he'll do very well there. Personally, he's been my hero for the longest time and I now have a genuine favorite team in the East.

Congratulations Stevie Y. Best wishes. But most all... thank you.