The NHL Redux: Ken Holland, chairman of the masterclass

There are so many teams who spout off about tradition.

Passion. Commitment. Excellence. The relentless pursuit of perfection.

Teams use these buzzwords and emblazon motivational elements across dressing room walls to fill empty spaces left between the rare merited commemoration they can offer, the message often growing painstakingly contradictory as seasons wear on. 

Players will tap the lettering on the way by, but fail to tap into its meaning when they reach the ice. 

It's all well and good, though. At least these teams are trying - trying to be the Detroit Red Wings. 

You know the story. The Red Wings lead North American professional sports' big four with 23 (soon to be 24) straight postseason appearances. Over that near quarter-century span, they've won four Stanley Cups, made six appearances in the final, captured six Presidents Trophies and 14 division titles. 

Above all, they own a true identity. A fixed, unfeigned method of process and a voice at the top in vice president and general manager Ken Holland - the most successful executive in sport - who could engineer a masterclass in running an organization. 

"We've had stability," Holland told theScore. "The same people have been here for a long time and we haven't changed the course. There are certain things we look for in a player in Detroit and we haven't had a change in direction or a change in philosophy."

Holland's genius isn't up for dispute. But like any industry mogul, he's built his empire on opportunity and circumstance. 

In the mid-1980s, he joined a legion of industrious hockey minds working for Scotty Bowman, a group that built a stable of top-end talent around captain Steve Yzerman. They used the draft, tapped the European market and sold off assets at the right time to construct a Stanley Cup roster featuring the likes of Brendan Shanahan, Nicklas Lidstrom, Igor Larionov and the rest of the Russian Five, before the championship reins were handed to Holland in 1997.

For the next seven years, Holland used deep pockets, the lure of playing in Detroit and the trading of top-end draft selections to carry that momentum to two more Stanley Cups. Then his true test as an NHL GM presented itself, when the league locked out the players in 2004-05.

Holland was tasked with cutting the Red Wings' payroll in half after a new collective bargaining agreement implemented a $39-million salary cap. He trimmed the fat, filling out the roster with low-cost additions to reinforce the franchise.

In this watershed moment for the league, one that sees many teams still suffering in the aftermath, the Red Wings - call it perfect foresight or simply dumb luck - were better equipped for the new NHL, having shed tens of millions off the payroll.

"The rules of the game came in our direction - the way we built teams," Holland said. "They talked about trying to reduce interference and let the smaller players be able to play the game, and the game being played on speed and skill - that's the way we drafted, that's the way we built our teams."

Holland's career can be split into two, with the first decade being pocket aces played to perfection. After that, he was chiefly responsible for combating rule changes expected to cut down his organization and for the first time in his executive career, he earned a ring on the strength of his executive shoulders alone.

What has remained throughout, however, is the paramount importance of success at the draft, particularly in the latter rounds, and an ability to see trends before they happen.

For example, after trading eight first-round picks in eight seasons leading up to the lockout, Detroit pulled back on using picks as currency to acquire talent, realizing long before other teams that an influx of prospects is crucial for long-term success.

But because they have picked in the top 15 only once since Holland took office in 1994 (drafting Dylan Larkin last June), the Red Wings have had to continue scrutinizing the draft board through to round seven. And as a result, they continued to stack top-end talent, including the likes of Pavel Datsyuk, Henrik Zetterberg, Gustav Nyquist and Tomas Tatar.

"It's not an exact science, but you'd like to get a player, someone who comes out of that first round that plays on your team and is a regular to some degree. But if you're going to have depth, if you're going to build a foundation, you gotta find players from rounds 2-7," Holland said.

"With a full compliment of draft picks, I think ideally you'd like to look back and see that you're getting a couple of players out of most drafts. The odd draft you get lucky with three, the odd time you get one - but you'd hate to get shut out. You're going to need a couple a year."

Executives and pundits will say that a first-line center, stud defenseman and elite goaltender are the three key positions to success. Detroit has that, of course, in Datsyuk, Niklas Kronwall and Jimmy Howard, but it also has a different outlook on the three pillars within an organization.

Holland appoints the head coach, the person making the final decision on the draft floor and the team's leader on the ice - whether it be the captain or a core group of players - as the three most important pieces.

Over the last few years, the Los Angeles Kings have rode the archetypal trio of Anze Kopitar, Drew Doughty and Jonathan Quick to the makings of a mini dynasty.

But if it's time-honored tradition you're after, success that spans decades, longevity that survives ebb and flow and a history free of inauthenticity - the nucleus of talent might need to shift higher on the organizational chain of command.

The Next 48

Minnesota Wild at St. Louis Blues: Saturday, 8 p.m. ET

The Wild's pursuit of the Central Division has become a real thing, and could get more interesting Saturday night.

With a win over the Ducks on Friday, Minnesota can move within six points of the division-leading Blues with a regulation win the next night. To that, the Wild will have two additional opportunities as part of a four-game season series with St. Louis and one-third of their games down the stretch are against teams directly above them in the standings.

What will be interesting to see is whether Devan Dubnyk continues to shoulder the load entirely and plays on back-to-back nights versus the Ducks and Blues.

Nashville Predators at Anaheim Ducks: Sunday, 8 p.m. ET

The Predators and Ducks own a share the Western Conference lead and sit atop the league standings with identical 42-20-7 records heading into the weekend - but neither are playing particularly good hockey. 

Nashville has lost seven of its last eight games, losing authority over the division in the process. The Ducks remain comfortable in the Pacific, but are losers of three straight after an embarrassing defeat to the Flames on Wednesday. 

The Ducks have played this loose, open-ended style all season, and seem to be having some of their fortune even out - including finally being on the losing end of a one-goal game this week. Nashville's problems seem deeper rooted: their goal-scoring has completely dried up and the power play has plummeted to fifth-worst in the league.

That said - first-place matchup!

The Pylon

Or several pylons in fact, for those who want Steven Stamkos suspended for tossing his broken stick into the crowd late in Thursday's loss to the Boston Bruins.

Listen: this wasn't a javelin toss. He didn't spike it into the crowd. It's an air-light piece of carbon fibre that's going to travel given a little frustration. He was on the power play in overtime - you think he wants shrapnel lying in the middle of the ice?

The 10-minute misconduct and dropped point without him in the shootout was certainly punishment enough.

Parting Shots

1) Those pesky Senators are one of only two teams who haven't been shut out all season, and after hanging five on the Canadiens, have now scored in every game dating back to Dec. 27, 2013 - a span of 108 games.

2) Linemates Sidney Crosby and Patric Hornqvist being the first and last picks of the 2005 draft is damn cool. They've combined for 22 goals in Hornqvist's 54 games - including the first scored this season and latest Thursday night.

3) A whopping 17 players have made their debuts for the Blue Jackets this season. They were supposed to contend, man.

4) The Rangers' 31-7-3 record over the last 41 games, which equates to a half season, is downright looney. 

5) Chris VandeVelde has more even-strength goals than Claude Giroux.

6) Douglas Murray had a 41.1 Corsi For percentage with the Canadiens last season. He'll fit in right in in Calgary, minus that whole exciting youth thing.

7) Aside from the Vezina, there isn't a single race - whether it be a trophy, division or conference - that isn't wide open with a month left. The stretch run is going to be mighty fun. 

8) Through trial and shrilling error, the Islanders have figured out that whole long-term contract thing. Having Johnny Boychuk, Nick Leddy and Travis Hamonic locked in until 2020 - not 2030 - looks good on Garth Snow.

9) Why why why is Doug Wilson talking about the pressures and stresses on Joe Thornton during his captaincy after the Sharks' fourth win in five games?

10) Reason No. 83 why life as an NHLer is preferred in California: You will not be extorted when your car is illegally parked.