The Detroit Red Wings and General Manager Steve Yzerman have decided not to renew the contract of coach Jeff Blashill, assistant coach Doug Houda, and goaltending coach Jeff Salajko.
Fans were getting restless with Blashill, concerned that he was pushing the team away from a successful rebuild instead of closer to a playoff spot. Blashill had been criticized for some moves he had made and that he had underutilized some young talent.
Blashill remained in Detroit as head coach for 7 years, ranking him 5th in franchise history for games coached. He finished with an overall record of 204-261-72, a winning % of .447.
Blashill was thought to be a player’s coach and one that had good coaching instincts. However, his faults, and not his successes, were blown up to show his incompetence, most of them coming with some truth. Was he doing his best to put his systems in place and the team did not respond, or did he just give up, knowing the season was lost?
Blashill had many criticisms, most of them had to do with his coaching strategies. He had been faulted for misusing talent like Filip Zadina, who was a 6th overall pick but had his minutes reduced and was playing on the 4th line. Blashill was also criticized for putting his 4th line on the ice when the team was behind late in a close game. Blashill was also questioned about putting defenseman Danny DeKeyser, who was bought out and not playing to his full capabilities, on the top pairing with Calder Trophy favorite, Moritz Seider.
One of his most “famous” flaws was the constant juggling of lines. He would often change the lines only minutes into the game, often pairing high-scoring players with defensive, or 4th line, players.
Minutes were also an issue, giving 4th-line players more minutes than the top two lines. When he arrived in Detroit, Blashill was thought of as a players coach who would listen to the players and take their displeasures to heart. This season he yelled at players and gave them fewer minutes, which raised eyebrows.
Blashill is a good guy who seemed to be liked in the organization. However, when coached for seven seasons and the team made no progress in that time. The Red Wings did not make it past the second round of any playoff season and the team was below .500 most of the time. The Red Wings were in a rebuild keeping Blashill behind the bench may have extended that rebuild instead of moving it along. We hate to see a coach lose his job but at this rate, it had to be done. The organization, fans, and team needed a change and it could not come soon enough with the dismissal of coach Blashill. Now the search for a new head coach begins.
With the off-season now in full swing for Detroit and the NHL Entry Draft coming up soon one would assume Yzerman and the organization would want a new coach, assistant coach, and goaltending coach before that time comes. The only two coaches Yzerman has hired have had no prior coaching experience in the NHL. Something to keep an eye on.