The selection of Vladimir Konstantinov in the 11^th Round of the 1989 Draft was as good as stealing.  This was one of the last years that it was considered pointless to take players from the U.S.S.R., and two years later, he defected, joining the Detroit Red Wings in 1991.

The Detroit Red Wings signed Harry Lumley, but in a rare turn of events, the Goalie's first start was with the New York Rangers, when he was loaned there for a single game.  He was only 17 at the time.  “Apple Cheeks” would play in only two other NHL Games that year (1943-44), but that would be with Detroit.

Detroit Red Wings owner, James Norris, called Larry Aurie the franchise's heart and soul, and praise doesn't get much better than that.

Viacheslav Fetisov did not enter the National Hockey League until he was 30, but the Soviet Defenseman was considered one of the best of the 1980s, anchoring the U.S.S.R. to multiple World Championships and Olympic medals.  When he finally made it to North America, he was with the team that drafted him, the New Jersey Devils, before he was traded early in the 1994-95 Season to Detroit.

Johan Franzen played his entire 11-year career with the Detroit Red Wings after the Swedish Left Wing was drafted in the Third Round in 2004.

Everyone likely agrees that the Hall of Fame career of Marcel Dionne was forged as a Los Angeles King, but it began in the Original Six with Detroit, a team that was not immensely blessed with other talents on Dionne's level at the time.

In Larry Murphy’s 17^th NHL Season, he was traded from the Toronto Maple Leafs to the Detroit Red Wings for their playoff run.  The Defenseman had already been a Second Team All-Star three times, and when he was with Pittsburgh, he aided them in winning their first two Stanley Cups, so the Red Wings knew they had a veteran blueline who knew how to win.

Igor Larionov was one of Hockey's best players in the 1980s, but he was not a member of the NHL.  This was because he was from the Soviet Union, and they were not permitted to play in North America.  Larionov finally went across the world in 1989, playing for Vancouver, the Swiss League, and San Jose before he was traded to Detroit before the 1995-96 season.

Jimmy Howard was taken late in the Second Round in 2003, but the American Goalie only played in nine Games for Detroit before he truly became a Red Wings rookie (2009-10).

Bob Goldham was already a well-established Defenseman before he arrived in Detroit in a ten-player trade from Chicago.  He would, however, take his game to another level in the Motor City.

The Detroit Red Wings were not a very good hockey team in the first half of the 1980s, but they did have John Ogrodnick, who was their best scorer at the time.

Paul Coffey was one of the greatest offensive Defensemen in the history of Hockey, but it is fascinating how many teams he played for at an elite level.

The entire NHL career of Swedish Defenseman was spent in Detroit, where he proved himself to be one of the most dependable blueliners in league history.

Pound for pound, Herbie Lewis was one of the toughest players in the National Hockey League, and he spent all of his 11 NHL campaigns in Detroit.

Lewis had blistering speed and could play make as well as rush behind on defense.  He would score 308 Points for the Red Wings and help them win two Stanley Cups (1936 & 1937).  Lewis was also a former Detroit Captain. 

Darren McCarty is one of the few players who can boast four Stanley Cup Rings with the Detroit Red Wings, hoisting the biggest trophy in hockey in 1997, 1998, 2002, and 2008.

Before the Detroit Red Wings had Gordie Howe, they had another eventual Hall of Famer with the same surname in Syd Howe.

Jack Stewart was a bruising Defenseman who was a tough man in a challenging sport.

With the Detroit Red Wings for his entire career, Henrik Zetterberg is another example of the Detroit brass's brilliant scouting.

There are many pieces needed to make a Stanley Cup Championship, or, for that matter, an elite NHL team.  Many have argued that the missing piece that put the Detroit Red Wings over the top was the acquisition of Brendan Shanahan.

Pavel Datsyuk might be one of the best stick handlers the world of hockey has ever seen.