Jim Devellano | |
|---|---|
| Born | (1943-01-18)January 18, 1943 (age 83) |
| Occupations | Senior Vice President of theDetroit Red Wings andDetroit Tigers, part-ownerSaginaw Spirit |
| Awards | Michigan Sports Hall of Fame (2006) Hockey Hall of Fame (2010) |
James Devellano (born January 18, 1943) is a Canadian sports executive. He currently serves as the senior vice-president & alternate governor of theDetroit Red WingsNational Hockey League (NHL) team and vice-president of theDetroit TigersMajor League Baseball (MLB) team.[1] He is also part owner and alternate governor of theSaginaw Spirit.
During Devellano's time with the Red Wings, he played a large role in building the teams that eventually won two consecutiveStanley Cup Championships, including the drafting ofSteve Yzerman andNicklas Lidstrom as well as bringing theRussian Five together, three of whom he persuaded to defect from Russia in order to play for the Wings.
Devellano is originally from the Toronto area, growing up in theCabbagetown andScarborough areas. In 1959, he dropped out of high school after failing grade 9algebra, and found work in the Torontogarment district for 80 cents an hour. He also spent time coaching and playing hockey, and closely followed theToronto Maple Leafs andToronto Marlboros.
In the 1960s, Devellano was employed by theCanadian government as aclaims adjuster. During his frequent business trips, Devellano watched as many major junior hockey games as he could, and eventually found a job with theSt. Louis Blues, working on spec (essentially no guaranteed compensation) as an amateur scout for general managerLynn Patrick and head scoutFrank Mario. Devellano and Patrick had met in person during the1967 NHL Expansion Draft in Montreal. One of the first players Devellano recommended,Gary Edwards, was drafted in the first round by the Blues in the1968 NHL Draft.[2] Also a part of the Blues organization at the time wasScotty Bowman, who was first an assistant coach and assistant general manager, and later head coach of the Blues.
In 1972 Devellano was hired by general managerBill Torrey and head scoutEd Chadwick as an Eastern Canada scout for the expansionNew York Islanders. In his first season, he scouted "no-brainer" number 1 overall pickDenis Potvin, whom the Islanders selected in the1973 NHL Draft. Devellano also played a role in nominatingAl Arbour, a former player in St. Louis, to be Islanders head coach. In 1974, Devellano was promoted to director of scouting, where he would be overseeing the Islanders drafts. He also served as general manager for the Islanders minor league affiliate, theIndianapolis Checkers of theCentral Hockey League. In 1981, Devellano was named assistant general manager of the Islanders after Stanley Cup championships in 1980 and 1981. After winning the Stanley Cup again in 1982, Devellano invested his playoff bonus of $25,000 intoMaple Leaf Gardens Limited.
Devellano received three Stanley Cup rings with the Islanders; two as scout (1980, 1981) and one as assistant general manager and director of scouting (1982). Some of the Islanders drafted during his tenure include Denis Potvin,Bryan Trottier,Mike Bossy,Clark Gillies,John Tonelli,Ken Morrow, andBrent Sutter.[3]
Devellano was hired as general manager for theDetroit Red Wings by new ownerMike Ilitch in the summer of 1982.
Devellano served as the general manager of the Detroit Red Wings from 1982–1990, and again from 1994-1997. He remained in the Red Wings front office as a vice president duringBryan Murray's tenure as GM from 1990-1994. During his second stint as GM, Devellano served alongside Red Wings head coachScotty Bowman, who also held the title of director of player personnel.
Devellano was instrumental in bringing theRussian Five to the Red Wings. He draftedSergei Fedorov,Vladimir Konstantinov, andVyacheslav Kozlov while all three were still playing in Russia, and later played a role in helping them defect to the United States so that they could play in the NHL.[4] He addedSlava Fetisov in a trade with theNew Jersey Devils in 1995, and then acquiredIgor Larionov just after the start of the 1995-1996 season by tradingRay Sheppard to theSan Jose Sharks.[5] Detroit went on to win two consecutive Stanley Cups in 1997 and 1998, and won two more in 2002 and 2008.
After theStanley Cup Championship 1997 season, Devellano was named senior vice president and alternate governor, Bowman remained as head coach, and assistant general managerKen Holland was named general manager.
On September 22, 2012, the Red Wings were fined $250,000 by the NHL after Devellano made public comments about the2012 NHL lockout during negotiations between the owners and the players' union. Owners and team officials had been warned that they would be fined if they made any such comments after the lockout began.[6]
On June 7, 2001, Detroit Tigers owner Mike Ilitch reorganized the team's front office. He named Devellano Senior Vice President, and tasked him with providing advice and expertise to the Tigers' business and marketing operations.[7] During Devellano's tenure, the Tigers won theAmerican League Championship in 2006 and 2012.[8]
As of 2017, Devellano continues to serve as senior vice president andalternate governor for the Red Wings. He divides his time between Detroit, Toronto, andSarasota, Florida.
In 2006, Devellano was named to theMichigan Sports Hall of Fame.[9]
In 2008, Devellano co-authored hisautobiography withsportswriter andradio personality Roger Lajoie titledThe Road to Hockeytown: Jimmy Devellano's Forty Years in the NHL.[10]
In 2009, Devellano earned theLester Patrick Award for his outstanding service to the sport of hockey in the United States.[11] Also in 2009, Devellano was named to the Board of the Directors of theIndianapolis Indians, the Triple A affiliate of thePittsburgh Pirates in theInternational League. Devellano is a minority owner of the franchise.[12]
Devellano was elected to theHockey Hall of Fame on June 22, 2010. He was inducted November 8, 2010.[13]
In August 2016, Devellano became a part-owner of theOntario Hockey League'sSaginaw Spirit. A few days later, former Red Wing goaltenderChris Osgood also joined the ownership group of theSaginaw, Michigan-based team.[14]
In interviews and in his autobiography, Devellano recalled that the one player he tried to acquire on several occasions wasRay Bourque; and that he recommendedScotty Bowman andAl Arbour overMike Keenan as candidates to be the Wings coach in 1993. He said his best trade was probably in 1996, acquiringBrendan Shanahan andBrian Glynn from theHartford Whalers in exchange forKeith Primeau,Paul Coffey, and a 1997 first-round draft pick (Nikos Tselios).[15] Another of his favorite trades was sendingKelly Kisio to theNew York Rangers for goaltenderGlen Hanlon.[16]
Devellano admitted that his worst trade was sendingAdam Oates andPaul MacLean to theSt. Louis Blues after the 1988-89 season forBernie Federko andTony McKegney. Oates went on to play 19 seasons in the NHL and ranks sixth in all-time assists. Federko played one season in Detroit before retiring, and McKegney lasted only 14 games before he was traded.[17]
Recollecting, Devellano called Islanders forwardMike Bossy "the best pure goal scorer" he had ever seen.[18]
Devellano has been a part of 15 championship teams: sevenStanley Cup wins with the Islanders (1980, 1981, 1982), and Red Wings (1997, 1998, 2002, 2008); threeAmerican Hockey LeagueCalder Cup wins with theAdirondack Red Wings (1986, 1989, 1992); twoCentral Hockey LeagueAdams Cup wins with theFort Worth Texans (1978) andIndianapolis Checkers (1982); oneEast Coast Hockey LeagueRiley Cup win with theToledo Storm (1994); and twoAmerican League Championship wins with the Detroit Tigers (2006, 2012).
| Preceded by | General Manager of the Detroit Red Wings 1982–90 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by Bryan Murray | General Manager of the Detroit Red Wings 1994–97 withScotty Bowman | Succeeded by |