Detroit Red Wings name new GM as major front-office change takes shape

It is a title that already felt inevitable.

Horcoff has spent the last several weeks running Detroit's day to day hockey operations anyway, showing up on league conference calls, handling contract work and staying plugged into the roster even without the authority to make trades.

Now the club has simply caught the paperwork up to reality.

The move comes about two months after Yzerman stepped away from the GM chair following seven seasons without a playoff berth in Detroit.

Since then, owner Chris Ilitch and the organization have leaned on an outside search firm while quietly letting Horcoff hold things together behind the scenes.

That in itself says something about how much trust the front office has in him.

Horcoff spent six seasons as assistant GM before this, and before that he ran player development, giving him a rare vantage point on both the NHL roster and the prospect pipeline in Grand Rapids.

Add a 1,008 game playing career that included long stretches with Edmonton, plus stops in Dallas and Anaheim, and it is easy to see why he is now considered a genuine contender for the permanent job rather than just a placeholder.

The Red Wings say the search for a full time hire continues, with external candidates still believed to be in the mix as camp approaches.

For now though, Horcoff gets to keep steering the ship, and every extra week in that seat only strengthens his case.

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