Decision on Blashill coming up?

[Run the Jewels]

I dunno i feel that's why Gallant hasn't been coaching. Maybe they've talked. Steve Yzerman-Hey, i want you as coach and i'm new myself. I wanna feel this out, decide who i want to keep load up on picks and cap space. Ill let Jeff finish his contract as we are turning the corner on the rebuild. I'll some prospects coming up and we have lots of cap space if we wanna go for a big fish. Maybe just maybe it was dicussed.

There is nothing stopping Yzerman from naming Gallant coach. The fact it hasn't happened leads me to believe there is no plan to hire him. It sounds like the NYR are interviewing him so it's pretty much a moot point. If Yzerman wanted Gallant he'd be our coach by now. I like Gallant but I trust Yzerman.

 

[Ezekial]

Sometimes when you swing for the fences you strike out. It doesn't mean you never take another at bat.

I'm fine with dropping him and picking another coach that hasn't coached in the NHL yet. I was just trying to point out that we kinda did that last time.

 

[Retire91]

In my humble opinion most of the criticism of Blash is simply criticism that is going to exist from any losing team's fan base. The on ice performance of the team does not matter at this stage, what matters is mental attitude in the locker room and skill development. This is probably where Blash excels and there is no way to know about it because its not public and there is no metric that will show in the standings. The only way to speculate that this is the case is the fact that Blash is still here. If Blash was losing the locker room Yzerman would have already canned him.

Blash is pretty much a Babcock system clone. Same dump and chase grind it out style that is painful to watch. But any coach putting a better system out there is not going to move the dial in the standings enough and soon they will be the same target of a losing team's fan base.

Yzerman is waiting for this coach to become available. Not sure who it is, I only suspect that they are not available yet or they would already be here. I have trust in Yzerman's management skills so I have absolutely no problem with how long Blash stays around.

 

[deca guard]

extensive list of coaching candidates :
The top rising candidates for NHL coach, GM jobs

 

[deca guard]

dont care what all the cry babys say ide be very interested in babcock if i thought the players wouldnt tune him out because the guy is a heck of a leader , and very intelligent . hes just the coach that took the brunt of the attack that was coming for a real long time against the archaic gruff old coaching methods where players were treated like dogs . that old way had worked forever amongst canadian people , but todays international group of snow flakes in the nhl circles and the sjw fans on the internet threw a cancel culture hissy fit all heaped on babs . but the bottom line is the guys a hell of a coach ands the reason team canada and shanahan hired him . does it register with anybody that the very intelligent brendan shanahan hired babs after all the terrible stuff he was supposed to have been doing in detroit ???????????????????? as in maybe it actually wasnt terrible but the media and internet sjw waged such a giant witch hunt against babs that he was pushed out of the nhl ?

 

[Hen Kolland]

I feel like that entire post is deserving of a timeout

 

[Winger98]

Or Babcock outlived his welcome, lost the room in Toronto, and was a dick who got what he had coming to him. I think he's also over rated for going on a few runs with a ridiculously talented Wings teams and not screwing up while coaching an even more ridiculously talented Canadian national team. In his last five years here we saw him get outcoached by Quennville, Trotz, and Cooper on different occasions in the playoffs.

You give Babcock a great roster, he'll do great things with it. Give him a mediocre roster and he'll get you to the first round. The only time his teams exceeded expectations was when Giguere was allowed to strap midgets to his shoulders and use them as protective gear.

Actual pregame image of Giguere:

 

[lhsgolf19]

It definitely feels like something is up

Either he’s coming back with changes to the assistants (that will be announced at that same time) or he’s not resigning him

 

[Run the Jewels]

It definitely feels like something is up

Either he’s coming back with changes to the assistants (that will be announced at that same time) or he’s not resigning him

I may be reading too much into this but Yzerman:

• Said he was going to meet with Blashill after the season, no further comment
• Let Blashill's contract expire

This doesn't seem like a situation where he's in a hurry to get Blashill signed to a new contract. I wonder if we start to hear rumors about Blashill interviewing for other jobs.

 

[LeftWingLocked]

It definitely feels like something is up

Either he’s coming back with changes to the assistants (that will be announced at that same time) or he’s not resigning him

If you aren’t going to bring him back then you would have let him go on Sunday. My hunch is he’s coming back

 

[ricky0034]

seriously though he's probably planning on bringing him back but holding out hope that Cooper gets let go if Tampa gets swept in the first round or something

dudes as bad as Holland with the Coach crushes

 

[Oddbob]

The fact that he is still with the team, tells me he has a pretty good chance of returning. Otherwise why not let him go when our season ended?

 

[DetroitRed]

seriously though he's probably planning on bringing him back but holding out hope that Cooper gets let go if Tampa gets swept in the first round or something

dudes as bad as Holland with the Coach crushes

I dunno... Depending on if Tampa has guys return from injury before a key point in the playoffs, I think they could win another cup or compete very well for it anyway.

Also, Cooper just won a cup. I know he's been with TB like forever and maybe it is just time for a change, but if he just won a cup and the team does well in the playoffs again, despite injuries or because they had guys return, then is it really time to replace him?

I think that Cooper or not, Stevie will want to, and has to, put his own coach on the Red Wings. At the moment, he's got his own draft picks maturing and ready to be called up to the NHL soon. So, you could argue that this is an extremely good moment for changing coaches rather than waiting for Cooper.

And as for Cooper leaving Tampa Bay, remember that Stevie left of his own volition. Tampa's owner might just be the type who sticks with people he likes, such as with Cooper and Yzerman. So, maybe the question for TB is really whether Cooper himself thinks he'd rather go elsewhere. I seriously doubt he would though. Why leave home if you've got a great team?

 

[Ezekial]

Waiting for Cooper feels kinda like the Werenski stuff (but with a lesser chance), yea the connections are there but until I see it I'm going to expect that it won't happen.

 

[Cyborg Yzerberg]

dont care what all the cry babys say ide be very interested in babcock if i thought the players wouldnt tune him out because the guy is a heck of a leader , and very intelligent . hes just the coach that took the brunt of the attack that was coming for a real long time against the archaic gruff old coaching methods where players were treated like dogs . that old way had worked forever amongst canadian people , but todays international group of snow flakes in the nhl circles and the sjw fans on the internet threw a cancel culture hissy fit all heaped on babs . but the bottom line is the guys a hell of a coach ands the reason team canada and shanahan hired him . does it register with anybody that the very intelligent brendan shanahan hired babs after all the terrible stuff he was supposed to have been doing in detroit ???????????????????? as in maybe it actually wasnt terrible but the media and internet sjw waged such a giant witch hunt against babs that he was pushed out of the nhl ?

Hi Mike!

 

[Henkka]

I dunno... Depending on if Tampa has guys return from injury before a key point in the playoffs, I think they could win another cup or compete very well for it anyway.

They had this already at practise.

Palat - Point - Kucherov
Killorn - Cirelli - Stamkos
Coleman - Gourde - Colton (Ross Colton will replace injured Barclay Goodrow)
Maroon - Johnson - Joseph

Hedman - Rutta
McDonagh - Cernak
Sergachev - Savard

Vasilevsky
(McElhinney)

It's the best team to beat.

 

[DetroitRed]

They had this already at practise.

Palat - Point - Kucherov
Killorn - Cirelli - Stamkos
Coleman - Gourde - Colton (Ross Colton will replace injured Barclay Goodrow)
Maroon - Johnson - Joseph

Hedman - Rutta
McDonagh - Cernak
Sergachev - Savard

Vasilevsky
(McElhinney)

It's the best team to beat.

Yeah, Hedman, Palat, Kucherov and Stamkos are all practicing and on Goodrow, his replacement, Colton had 9 goals in 30 games for Tampa Bay this season!

Of course, what I neglected to mention is that the "key point in the playoffs" could come in the first round for the Lightning, because they are playing the Panthers...

I think though, if TBL gets back their injured players, they can match their first round opponent, the Panthers, in offense.

On the defensive side of the ice, TBL would probably be better than Florida - better goal tending, better defenseman (considering the loss of Eklblad). So, yeah. I'm not writing them off.

 

[cjeagle]

I hope we get a new coach. 6 years without making the playoffs should be sufficient enough incentive to do so.

However I feel the Redwings want to keep Blashill within the organization in some capacity so they are being respectful and taking their time making a decision.

 

[DetroitRed]

I hope we get a new coach. 6 years without making the playoffs should be sufficient enough incentive to do so.

However I feel the Redwings want to keep Blashill within the organization in some capacity so they are being respectful and taking their time making a decision.

I think Blashill could get hired as a head coach elsewhere in the NHL and I wonder if that will be his first priority when and if he leaves. If he doesn't get another job as head coach in the NHL, then I think he'd look at other roles across the NHL. But he's young and he's probably going to put himself into the best position to get hired again as a head coach in the NHL someday if he doesn't get hired for it right away. That's obviously just my opinion.

I think some organization somewhere might wonder someday if the problem with him in Detroit was really our players and/or say 'Hey, he was young and that was his first NHL coaching gig. What could he do now with the chance to begin new?' Maybe all another team needs is a stopgap coach and all Blashill needs is that kind of opportunity.

Of course, a lot of us are looking at how certain players developed for him, how many basically reached their potential, but not their full potential, just minimum potential, or even underachieved. We're also looking at how the team never really overachieved for him over any whole season...

I think there was a moment in the beginning when most fans gave Blashill a chance rather than just seeing him as a stopgap who was brought up as we were kinda liquidating all of our player assets in order to rebuild. Some Detroit fans still have faith in him.

For me, for Blashill to succeed in the circumstances we brought him into, he didn't necessarily need to develop a winning game record, but he did need to develop players into stars and develop healthy winning attitudes. At this point, it looks like half of his team needs professional counseling. Also at this point, we're having to give up on major pieces he developed and trade them away. So...I personally wouldn't put him in another coaching role in Detroit.

However, I still think he will try to put himself into the best position to coach again, as young as he is, rather than move into to the backseat here and if he doesn't get another job as head coach in the NHL, some team will hire him as an assistant coach - I think OTHER teams would take that much of a chance on him. Some Detroit fans still think he was pretty good. So, I think another team will give him a chance to coach in some capacity.

 

[TCNorthstars]

I hope we get a new coach. 6 years without making the playoffs should be sufficient enough incentive to do so.

However I feel the Redwings want to keep Blashill within the organization in some capacity so they are being respectful and taking their time making a decision.

You can get a new coach, but you are still missing the playoffs for a couple more years.

 

[better Red than Dead]

I’m still thinking Blashill will be coaching here, but curious if Hzerman may be waiting to interview someone like Lane Lambert who will be coaching the Isles. The longer this drags out, the more likely this scenario is.

 

[Hen Kolland]

For me, for Blashill to succeed in the circumstances we brought him into, he didn't necessarily need to develop a winning game record, but he did need to develop players into stars and develop healthy winning attitudes.

How do you develop run of the mill prospects into stars as a coach? Just curious, do you think that coaches are able to create talent that isn't there? How much of the development do you place on a coach vs. how much do you place on the player?

What is a winning attitude when your team is so talent deprived that you lose 2 games for every 1 you win? What is a winning attitude in general? I get the idea of avoiding a defeatist attitude, and I do think the team played hard most nights and kept things close despite being outclassed.

At this point, it looks like half of his team needs professional counseling. Also at this point, we're having to give up on major pieces he developed and trade them away. So...I personally wouldn't put him in another coaching role in Detroit.

What major pieces did he develop that are being traded away? Athanasiou? Not a major piece. Mantha? Was a "major" piece by definition that he was one of the top 3 players on a horrible team; but by the way that the majority of this forum feels about him, he was the biggest problem with his own success, not Blashill. At a certain point you need to (fans need to) be able to admit that their shit does in fact stink. Not every player is a potential star, or even a potential first line player. We have not given Blashill a single player with the potential of becoming a star. Now that may be coming with a Seider or a Raymond. Maybe we get lucky and see some growth from Zadina (who by the way is 21 and only has played 86 games). The players who actually carry pedigree haven't even started to make their mark on this franchise.

Moving on from him is one thing, but saying that he has failed is another. Don't fall into the trap believing that Blashill was given the proper tools to survive, and more importantly, don't think that a new coach is coming into a perfect situation.

 

[DetroitRed]

How do you develop run of the mill prospects into stars as a coach? Just curious, do you think that coaches are able to create talent that isn't there? How much of the development do you place on a coach vs. how much do you place on the player?

What is a winning attitude when your team is so talent deprived that you lose 2 games for every 1 you win? What is a winning attitude in general? I get the idea of avoiding a defeatist attitude, and I do think the team played hard most nights and kept things close despite being outclassed.



What major pieces did he develop that are being traded away? Athanasiou? Not a major piece. Mantha? Was a "major" piece by definition that he was one of the top 3 players on a horrible team; but by the way that the majority of this forum feels about him, he was the biggest problem with his own success, not Blashill. At a certain point you need to (fans need to) be able to admit that their shit does in fact stink. Not every player is a potential star, or even a potential first line player. We have not given Blashill a single player with the potential of becoming a star. Now that may be coming with a Seider or a Raymond. Maybe we get lucky and see some growth from Zadina (who by the way is 21 and only has played 86 games). The players who actually carry pedigree haven't even started to make their mark on this franchise.

Moving on from him is one thing, but saying that he has failed is another. Don't fall into the trap believing that Blashill was given the proper tools to survive, and more importantly, don't think that a new coach is coming into a perfect situation.

Okay, thanks for the response.

I don't agree on this point:

Blashill knew the predicament he was taking on when he was offered the job with the Wings and he agreed to it. So, if you accept that premise, what were our expectations of him at that point?

Well, not necessarily winning, but I think ideally we wanted more than a stopgap. And I think Jeff can be a good coach in certain situations, but I think we learned that he wasn't the kind of coach who could have a lot of success in a rebuild at this level. And that's exactly what we needed him to be when he signed the contract. -That was what would decide whether he was really successful here, not whether he could come into a bad situation and just kinda tread water.

I don't want to put words in your moth, but it seems like you're kinda saying the situation was bad and that's more or less the whole story on him as an NHL coach. I think we both agree that the situation was bad. What I'm saying is we needed a guy who can make the best of a bad situation and he was not that person.

For me, he has to optimize the situation, he has to own it and make it into something good in some way, not just point to the fact of the team sucking and say I can't do anything with this mess. For me, the terms of success are that he needs to be able to do something with this mess. That was either the whole point of hiring him or else he was just a stopgap and in either case it's time to move on.

I think when you reach a point where you have to trade away pieces of the rebuild, like Mantha, rather than are able point to those pieces as big successes after having them reach their full potential, then it's time to reassess.

Part of it could be that Jeff was learning extemporaneously and maybe he'll do better in the future elsewhere (and I wish him luck). But I think when you hear the cliche "We just needed a fresh face," it has something to do with the "face" in question. Why do we need a fresh face? What do we need that isn't happening? Etc.

 

[Run the Jewels]

The fact that he is still with the team, tells me he has a pretty good chance of returning. Otherwise why not let him go when our season ended?

Perhaps they will offer him another role in the organization.

 

[ShelbyZ]

I'm wondering if maybe at this point Blashill has a bit more leverage and isn't just simply hoping Yzerman wants to keep him around for another year.

I could be completely wrong, but I've long been of the opinion that if/when Blashill leaves Detroit under any circumstances that aren't controversial, he wouldn't be waiting long to get another head coaching gig in the NHL. His next employer will point out that he's won everywhere else he's coached, rely on the hockey media's glowing comparisons to Jon Cooper in systems/style and then write off his underwhelming record in the NHL thus far as having to do with the exodus and subsequent lacking of talent on the Red Wings roster during his tenure.

The Red Wings just finished this season going exactly .500 in the 2nd half with a roster made up mostly of guys that would be supporting cast, role players, fringe guys or straight up in the minors for other organizations.

I wouldn't be surprised if that raised his stock a bit with the handful of teams that currently have vacancies at HC, all of which have more talented rosters than the Red Wings.