Christopher Ilitch described what it was like to hear fans express their anger over his running of the team his family has owned for more than four decades.
"Fans absolutely have the right to tell us how they feel," the Detroit Red Wings
owner said during an 18-minute availability with select reporters on Thursday, Oct. 15, a couple of hours before the Wings took an 1-3-2 record against the Philadelphia Flyers at Little Caesars Arena.Chants of "Sell the team!" reverberated around the stands during the Wings opener on Oct. 2.
"This is their team," said Iitch, the president of Ilitch Sports + Entertainment. "I understand fan frustration. I share it, to be frank.
And my thoughts are that fans want to see our team win on the ice. I do, too.
"As the person that's accountable for this franchise, it's why I made the change, and it's why I'm so deliberate in our search."
The change
Ilitch said the organizational review that ultimately led to the dismissal of Steve Yzerman as general manager in mid-July began shortly after the 2025-26 season ended with the Wings missing the playoffs for a 10th straight year – the longest active drought in the NHL.
"In January of last season, our team was first in our division," Ilitch said. "We were fourth in the NHL. So a leadership change was not on my radar whatsoever. Then our team slid through the spring, and at the end of the season, we decided, I decided, to do a pretty thorough organizational review. And through that review, really determined that Steve had done some really good work for the organization beyond what he had inherited.
"But it was also apparent that the league had evolved, and there was an opportunity for new leadership. And so I made the decision at that time. That was a difficult but necessary decision."
On Dylan Larkin
The change in leadership was just one of the events that has rocked the organization over the past six months. Then-captain Dylan Larkin requested to be traded shortly after last season ended, and there's also a contract stalemate with restricted free agent Simon Edvinsson.
Ilitch said he has talked to Larkin, who the team would like to keep because he is their top center and in the fourth year of an eight-year deal, but declined to elaborate on the conversation.
"I'm not going to get into any private conversations," he said. "I don't think that would be appropriate. But I would say to you, I support Dylan. I support every single one of our players on our roster. I do everything I can in terms of resources, support, to make sure that our players can reach their full potential."
On a rebuild
Interim general manager Shawn Horcoff, promoted from assistant general manager on Sept. 15, two days before training camp began, was emphatic in the direction he wants to take the club, saying that "a rebuild is out of the question." That would rule out accepting picks or prospects in return for Larkin, unless those assets immediately can be flipped for value-now players.
Ilitch indicated he supports that mindset.
"I support Shawn in the work he's doing," Ilitch said. "He's doing a really nice job in his role. He's stepped right in. He's hit the ground running. A lot of these issues that he's dealing with were not new issues for him or the hockey operations team.And so he's doing a nice job. I support him in all regards. He's got my full confidence.
"I'm accountable for the direction of the franchise and also for finding the right folks to lead it. What my role has been is to find great leaders, to provide them the resources and the authority to do their jobs and then support them. And that's what I've consistently done. I've done it with Steve, I do it with Shawn, and I'll do it with our next leader of hockey operations. I'm not going to sit here and act like a GM. Ultimately, I support him in the direction that he wants to go on a whole host of hockey operations type issues."
How the search is going
Horcoff is a candidate to have the "interim" tag removed, but the search contiues for someone who can move the franchise forward, partly by being adept at analytics.
"I am seeking a president of hockey operations," Ilitch said. "I will leave it up to that individual once they're on board as to whether and when they would like to, if they'd like to, add a general manager and when they may like to do that.
"This search could end soon, during this season. It could be at the end of the season. I'll make the hire when I find the right person. It's just too important for this organization."
Contact Helene St. James at Hstjames@freepress.com. Read more on the Detroit Red Wings and sign up for our Red Wings newsletter.
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Wings' Chris Ilitch on GM hire: 'Could be at the end of the season'
