Just following the conclusion of the 2021-22 regular season, the Detroit Red Wings announced that Jeff Blashill would not be returning as their head coach for the 2022-23 campaign.
It did not take long for Blashill to land a new gig in the NHL as the Tampa Bay Lightning announced on Tuesday that they have hired the former Red Wings head coach as an assistant.
Following the announcement, Blashill spoke to the media and while doing so, he opened up a bit about his time with the Red Wings.
Jeff Blashill opens up about his time with Detroit Red Wings
Jeff Blashill explained how it was a great opportunity to coach the team he rooted for as a kid.
“Over the course over seven years, I got the opportunity to coach the team I grew up cheering for,” Blashill said Tuesday. “For a young boy who was born in Detroit and grew up in Sault Ste. Marie, it was a great experience. My kids were in the Detroit area for seven straight years, which is not always the norm in coaching, and they got to grow up and really be raised here.
Blashill admitted that he did not have the success he wanted to have with the Red Wings but part of the reason why was the fact the team was in a rebuild for a portion of his tenure.
“We didn’t have the success we wanted on the ice, but part of that was the situation we were in and the fact that shortly into my time there, we went into a rebuild. I’m proud of the fact I think that we worked through a lot of difficult times and I think the ship is headed in the right direction.”
Blashill said the Red Wings are headed in the right direction and that they have a “really good” coach in Derek Lalonde.
“I know that the program is headed in the right direction,” Blashill said. “They have a really good coach in Derek Lalonde, who I think will do great things.”
“I totally enjoyed my experience working for Steve and felt that through those three years I learned a ton from him — as I did working for Ken Holland,” Blashill said. “I’ve been fortunate to work for some great, great people and in the two GMs that I worked for were both Hall of Famers.
“Through adversity, you can really have an opportunity to grow, and I feel like I had that opportunity to grow, and a big part of that was working with Steve.”
Nation, do you think Jeff Blashill will find his way back to a head coaching position in the National Hockey League?
