DETROIT – Looking back, Jeff Blashill wasn’t elated with the way his first season as the Red Wings’ 27th all-time head coach concluded.
It’s not surprising. Like the majority in the coaching fraternity, Blashill is a perfectionist.
So backing into the Stanley Cup playoffs on the final day of the regular season, then getting bounced by the Tampa Bay Lightning in five games of their Eastern Conference first-round series isn’t how the Sault Ste. Marie, Mich., native envisioned his rookie season as an NHL head coach ending.
If nothing else, it was definitely a learning experience for the 42-year-old Blashill, who plans to grow from it.