Meet the Red Wings In the National Hockey League NHL only one team a year can claim that it’s the best And that team takes home the trophy e trophy to prove it the Stanley Cup Look at that trophy carefully and llllyy aanndd you’ll see the Detroit Red Wings listed as champions over 10 times 0 times No team from the United States has won the trophy more often ften Every season for nearly 90 years the Wings have taken the the ice hoping to add their names to the Stanley Cup one more re time It takes hard work talent teamwork and a little luck When the Red Wings have put all those pieces together they have accomplished great things This book tells the story of the Red Wings During the team’s proud history Detroit fans have cheered for legendary scorers and speedy skaters They have welcomed stars from all over the world And they have seen the Wings win the Stanley Cup again and again and again Coach Mike Babcock scans the ice as Joakim Andersson and Henrik Zetterberg cheer on their teammates 5
Glory Days During the early years of the NHL the league’s future was uncertain Canadian fans loved hockey but the country’s population was too small to support the NHL Would fans in big American cities pay to watch hockey The NHL hoped so During the 1920s the league formed several new teams in the U S including one in Detroit Michigan That team actually got its start as the Victoria Cougars in the Western Hockey League WHL In 1925 and 1926 Victoria played for the Stanley Cup and won it once A group of investors soon bought the Cougars and moved the team to Detroit In 1927 Jack Adams was hired to run the club He would stay in that position for more than three decades After four seasons as the Cougars Adams changed the team name to the Falcons That lasted until 1932 when James Norris bought the club He changed the name to Red Wings During the 1930s Detroit finished first in its division three times The Wings won the 6
Stanley Cup in 1936 and 1937 Detroit’s top player was Ebbie Goodfellow a defenseman who skated and shot like a forward Other leaders during the 1930s included Herbie Lewis Larry Aurie and Marty Barry A new group of stars led Detroit into the 1940s including Sid Abel Syd Howe Jack Stewart Bill Quackenbush and Johnny Mowers They delivered a third Stanley Cup to Detroit in 1943 In the years after World War II Abel teamed with a pair of tough and talented young superstars Ted Lindsay and Gordie Howe on the high-scoring Production Line This threesome led the Red Wings to three more Stanley Cups in the early 1950s Their teammates included center Alex Delvecchio defensemen Red Kelly and Leo Reise Jr and goalie Terry Sawchuk By the 1960s only Howe Delvecchio and Sawchuk remained from those great teams They formed the heart of a fantastic new squad From 1961 to 1966 Detroit made it to the Stanley Cup Finals four times Unfortunately the Red Wings fell short of the title each year despite the contributions of hard-nosed players such as Norm Ullman Bill Gadsby Marcel Pronovost and Roger Crozier LEFT Ebbie Goodfellow led Detroit to two Stanley Cups in the 1930s ABOVE Gordie Howe was the toughest player in team history 7
