Ken Holland explains why he left the Detroit Red Wings for the Oilers

"I thought I would be here for life, but I did not know if I would get agitated either. I told that to Chris Ilitch. I worried earlier than I thought. "

Holland spent 22 years as a Wings manager, 36 in the organization, starting as a guard and scout for the minor leagues. Holland thanked Wings senior vice president, Jimmy Devellano, for being "my role model and mentor when I started the business. … He recommended to Mr. and Mrs. Ilitch in 1997 to hire me as General Manager of the Detroit Red Wings. "

The Wings won three Cups under the colors of Holland, whose signature, trade and independent agent signatures helped forge a playoff series that lasted 25 historic seasons.

"He knows how to create a culture of victory," said Oilers owner Daryl Katz. "When it's about hiring a person with the experience and authority to have an immediate impact, what we need, no one else will s in approach.

"We did not engage Ken just for what he did in the past. We have hired him for what he can do for the Oilers now and in the years to come. "

More: Yzerman makes his first hiring: Pat Verbeek as Assistant to the General Manager

Yzerman and Ilitch issued statements congratulating Holland when the news became official.

"Ken Holland has been a friend of mine since I was recruited in 1983," said Yzerman. "We were teammates. He held various management positions during my playing career and mentored me in my transition to management. Few General Managers in the history of the National Hockey League have accomplished what he has accomplished and I consider it a privilege to have learned from him in Detroit and during our collaboration with Hockey Canada .

The new Edmonton Oilers general manager, Ken Holland, Ken Holland, is making moves at a press conference in Edmonton, Alberta on Tuesday, May 7, 2019. (Photo: JASON FRANSON, AP)

"I was hoping that Ken would stay with the Red Wings and I was delighted to be working with him again, but I understand that Ken is a real competitor who likes to be a general manager and that he's always the burning desire to fight for Stanley. Cup championships as a leader. I look forward to competing with him and, as a close friend, sincerely wishes him the best of luck in his new role alongside the Oilers. "

Ilitch thanked Holland for more than three decades serving the Wings. He concluded: "Ken is a first class man and a leading hockey player. We are excited about the future of the Red Wings with Steve at the helm. On behalf of Marian Ilitch and the entire Red Wings family, we would like to thank Ken for his 36 wonderful seasons and wish him and his wife Cindi and the rest of the Holland family all the best for the future. "

Holland's immediate task is to find a head coach to replace Ken Hitchcock and then catch up on the Oilers' farming system before next month's draft. This is the kind of daily work that Holland loves to do: track, evaluate, meet with staff at the front desk to discuss ways to improve a team. Not surprisingly, he spent less than three weeks in an advisory capacity, even though it was ideal.

When Yzerman reported last September that he would not stay with the Lightning after the end of the year that remained on his contract, the only appropriate result was a return to the Red Wings.

In the end, this led to a change of address for Holland.

"One of the things I've asked my people, players over the years, is to sacrifice themselves," Holland said. "Go to the miners. Spend more time with minors. Take a little less. It's a question of sacrifice. If you want to win, everyone has to sacrifice a little bit.

"When Steve Yzerman resigned in Tampa Bay. I realized that the time had come to make this sacrifice. I worked with Chris Ilitch and, in the end, I'm glad to see that the last thing I did as Detroit Red Wings GM was to give Steve Yzerman the place and give him the key. "