The Detroit Red Wings has rewarded their bench boss after a slightly improved season.
The NHL team announced Tuesday afternoon that head coach Jeff Blashill was given a contract extension to keep him behind the Wings' bench for at least another season. The length of the extension and terms were not immediately given.
Red Wings General Manager Steve Yzerman confirmed the extension. The Hall of Fame former Red Wing was not immediately available for comment, but he indicated after the Wings' pandemic-shortened 2019-2020 season that the club has the right man coaching the team.
The Wings did improve this past season under Blashill racking up 48 points in a 56-game season, compared to 39 points last year before the season was cut short. The Wings finished seventh in the eight-team Discover Central, one of the four temporary divisions the NHL set up for this season, and will likely receive a top-ten first-round draft pick.
While Blashill has been praised for his ability to nurture younger players, his record with the Wings has generated criticism. The team made the playoffs his first season, 2015-2016, but missed the playoffs every year since then, ending a 25-season playoff streak.
Blashill, the first American-born coach in Red Wings history, has coached the team since the 2015-2016 season when he succeeded Mike Babcock. He had previously been an assistant coach for the Wings, then head coach of its AHL affiliate, the Grand Rapids Griffins.
The Red Wings also announced Tuesday that assistant coach Dan Bylsma is leaving the team to pursue other opportunities. Bylsma was an assistant under Blashill for three years and was previously with the Pittsburgh Penguins, where he won a Stanley Cup in 2009.
