Mike Ilitch

So let's talk about it with one of those experts.

Merrick Masters, the Professor Emeritus of Management at Wayne State University's Mike Ilitch School of Business joins us.

Uh, Merrick, it's great to have you back.

Thanks for having me this morning.

He says the root of the problem is their owner, Chris Ilitch.

And he says when Mike Ilitch was the owner of the team, he says they were like a model organization in the National Hockey League.

And he said, "Tony, Yzerman did not do, contrary to what people think, Yzerman did not do a terrible job with the Red Wings.

If you take a look at the contract that he gave Edmundson and that he gave Mort Sider and that he gave Dylan Larkin, that he gave to Brincat, he gave long-term team friendly deals.

So we'll keep an eye-

Also, also, uh, we, I don't know if you talked about this, but, uh, how about Illitch trying to talk to the fans through LinkedIn? W- w- who [laughs] I was actually surprised that people were commenting in LinkedIn, like using their personal, like, information, uh, uh, through via LinkedIn to go at it with, uh, Illitch, but that just seemed like the wrong platform to be, uh-

Yeah

... uh, trying to speak to the fans.

Well, that's what's incredible.

I remember the Dead Wings, and it turned around when we talk about Mike Ilitch buying the team, and that's why the chant, "Sell the team," you don't hear that very often, right? You know-

Yeah

...

Yeah, I don't know that he, that Chris Ilitch, uh, has the same passion, uh, that his father had for, you know, athletics.

But Um, you know, they're just, they're different styles.

I mean, Mike Ilitch, uh, uh, historically wanted the very best.

You know, Jim Devellano tells stories about him saying like who ...