DETROIT – Steve Yzerman will return to the Detroit Red Wings for a 21st season after he signed a one-year contract with the club Monday.

Yzerman, 38, is the longest serving captain in NHL history.

“We are all very pleased to have Steve back in the fold for one more year,” Red Wings general manager Ken Holland said in a release. “He brings a great deal of dedication, skill and leadership abilities to our hockey club and I feel his competitive nature will greatly help this team remain successful throughout the upcoming season.”

Yzerman had two goals and six assists in 16 games for the Red Wings last season, giving him 660 goals and 1,010 assists in 1,378 career games. The center had an osteotomy – a realignment procedure – on his right knee on Aug. 2, 2002, that caused him to miss the first 61 games last season.

Sabres sign Drury for four years

BUFFALO, N.Y. – Forward Chris Drury signed a 4-year contract with the Buffalo Sabres on Monday, finally joining the team that considers him its No. 1 offseason acquisition.

Monetary terms of the deal were not disclosed, but the established offensive threat is expected to get a significant raise over the $2.5 million he made in the final year of his contract with Calgary last season.

The Sabres’ new owner B. Thomas Golisano was among those that welcomed Drury at a press conference after the Sabres’ alumni golf tournament. Golisano called Drury’s signing, “an important plus.”

Drury was impressed that the Sabres offered him a 4-year deal.

“It shows a lot of commitment. It’s a long time, certainly, with the CBA expiring shortly,” Drury said, referring the NHL’s collective bargaining agreement that expires at the end of next season. “That’s really what did it for me.”

Coach Lindy Ruff hoped Drury will remain with the team beyond the 4-year contract.

A five-time 20-goal scorer, Drury is being counted on to be a first-line forward on a Sabres team that lacked offense last season and is seeking to end a two-year playoff drought.

Hedberg traded

to Canucks

PITTSBURGH – The Pittsburgh Penguins traded goaltender Johan Hedberg to the Vancouver Canucks on Monday for a second-round pick in next year’s NHL entry draft.

Hedberg has one-year left on his contract and appears headed for a backup role with Vancouver. The Canucks avoided arbitration with goaltender Dan Cloutier by signing him to a one-year contract last month.

Hedberg, 30, played in 41 games last season, posting a 14-22-4 record with a 3.13 goals-against average. He had been considered the Penguins’ incumbent starter, although rookie Sebastien Caron drew much of the playing time in the second half of last season.

The Penguins’ top draft pick this year, Marc-Andre Fleury, 18, is also a goalie. Fleury hasn’t signed, although the Penguins say he’ll be allowed to compete for a job with the NHL club – not just for a spot in the minor leagues – when camp begins Sept. 12.