WXYZ’s Brad Galli posted Red Wings coach Jeff Blashill’s post-game presser from last night’s 2-0 loss to the Washington Capitals, and the Red Wings’ coach was downright combative while sparring with the media, displaying a Babcockian level off grumpiness.
While the Free Press’s Helene St. James’ morning article doesn’t directly address the time that Blashill barked at St. James, she does call coach Blashill “testy” while discussing a Red Wings power play that went 0-for-4 with 0 shots against the Capitals, including on a lengthy 5-on-3 opportunity:
“They have to look and say they’re going to decide to shoot it,” coach Jeff Blashill said. “We’ll work through it as a group. I don’t know if it’s as easy as you and I sit here and say it, in the sense that if you don’t think you have a lane and you shoot it and it gets blocked, you feel like it’s the wrong play. That’s what happens. The reality is, a lot of times a block ends up with chaos, and it’s OK to make them block shots. I think getting past that and having more of an attack mentality — we’ll work through it.”
It’s not the first time Blashill has lamented a lack of shooting mentality on the power play units, which feature Moritz Seider, Dylan Larkin, Lucas Raymond, Tyler Bertuzzi and FIlip Zadina on one unit and Nick Leddy, Pius Suter, Robby Fabbri, Filip Hronek and Sam Gagner on the other.
The Wings did not register a shot on net in 6:37 of man-advantage time, which included 1:23 of 5-on-3 play.
“We just didn’t execute, and we weren’t good enough,” Larkin said. “They made it hard for us on the walls and we put pucks there. We didn’t get to the net, we didn’t get it around the net, we didn’t get it up top and we didn’t take enough shots.”
Pressed on how he will get the message through, Blashill asked if the question meant it was something on a game-in and game-out basis that “hasn’t been good enough or it’s something that’s been some games.”
The Wings (7-6-2) have converted eight times on 50 power plays, a 16% success rate that ranks in the NHL’s bottom third.
I would be “testy” towards St. James as well. I don’t know if she understands how to ask questions, it seems like it’s always difficult for her to even finish her sentences when asking them. I think as someone in the media taking on that roll she needs to work on this.
And since when can’t coaches and players ask for more clarity on things they are asked? It seems fair to me.