Today marks the end of an era in Detroit, as Nicklas Lidstrom officially announced his retirement after 20 seasons in the NHL, all of them as a Red Wing. Lidstrom did nothing spectacular, but did everything consistently well, and that is the legacy he leaves behind as he will certainly be a first ballot Hall of Famer. Four Stanley Cups, seven Norris Trophies (four of those came after the age of 35), a gold medal in 2006, a Conn Smythe in 2002, and the first European captain to hoist the Stanley Cup (in 2008), Lidstrom was a winner, plain and simple. However, his off the ice demeanor tells a different story, as you would never know he accomplished all of that in his career. Ask most NHL players who have played in the last decade or so and the word on Lidstrom is almost always going to be positive. The Red Wings lost more than a valuable contributor to their team, they lost a true leader in every sense of the word. Of course, Lidstrom doesn't leave the Red Wings entirely devoid of leadership, as he identified Henrik Zetterberg and Niklas Kronwall as guys he would want to inherit the C. That's a big void to fill, but if anyone knows a good replacement when he sees it, it's Lidstrom. After all, he took over from Steve Yzerman when he retired, and that worked out well. There's little doubt this transition will work, particularly since both Zetterberg and Kronwall will have soaked in what Lidstrom taught them.
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