Center Boyd Devereaux began his NHL career in 1997-98 with the Edmonton Oilers. After three seasons with the Oilers, and a series of concussions placed his career in jeopardy, he signed on as a free agent with the Red Wings on Aug. 23, 2000.
What it is like playing with Pavel Datsyuk, who speaks hardly any English, and Brett Hull, who probably talks enough for the whole team?
Well, it's definitely two ends of the spectrum there. Pavel is coming a long, he understands a little more than people give him credit for. But at the same time, it's a little hard. He has a good personality, he gets his jokes across in the end, even if he has a little trouble. Of course, Hully, he's never one to let his opinions go unnoticed. He's funny, so he's a very fun guy to play with in that sense. I just stray in the middle. I try to be the medium guy.
In Edmonton, you suffered a few concussions and your career was in jeopardy. How worried were you and what do you think made Detroit take a chance on you?
It obviously wasn't a good time. I had been told that it would probably be best to hang 'em up, and that was devastating for me. I was just a few years into my career, but thankfully I had a lot of family and friends to keep me upbeat. I eventually got cleared to play by a specialist and then it was great of Detroit. I was so excited that they showed interest and pursued me as heavily as they did. I was just flattered and I was really excited because I was a big Red Wings fan growing up.
You grew up in Ontario. How did you become a Wings fan instead of a Leafs fan?
I'm probably about two and a half hours from Detroit. Obviously, there are a lot of Toronto fans, but the first game I ever saw was at the Joe. From the first time I saw them play, I was just blown away. Steve Yzerman had a hat trick that game. A lot of my friends followed suit and I think they were all Red Wings fans.
What is your relationship like with Scotty Bowman?
With Scotty, it's not a secret that he has his own way of doing things. Coming in, I didn't know what to expect. I just tried to follow the lead of the guys that have been here a while on a daily basis, as far as practice is concerned and things like that. He's obviously had success with what he does and the guys respect him to the utmost degree. I don't really talk to him one-on-one. It's funny, he does let you know when he's unhappy with you, but the odd time when he does take you aside and give you some positive feedback it's just huge. It feels really good. He's different, but he's done a great job.
Detroit doesn't have the greatest reputation as far as cities are concerned. How have you liked living there?
It's pretty cool. I live in the suburbs in Birmingham, about a half hour from downtown. The drive isn't all that fun every day, but I have a lot of fun in Detroit. I'm a big music fan, and all the good bands and hot concerts roll through. I like some pretty far out there music, Tool and Radiohead. I saw Tool three times last year. I see a lot of bands at St. Andrew's and a lot of other smaller venues. It's a great scene in Detroit. I've met a lot of cool people in the industry there, so I have no complaints.
