McKenzie comments on rumors surrounding the future of head coach Jeff Blashill.

The Detroit Red Wings have been a bad team under the guidance of head coach Jeff Blashill and the sample size now is big enough that many have begun to openly wonder about what his future might look like as far as the Detroit Red Wings are concerned. 

Since taking over as head coach of the Red Wings Blashill has lead the team to the postseason just once, in his very first season as the organizations head coach, and even that was a first round exit. Now the Red Wings will miss the playoffs for the third consecutive season and that is a rather stunning development for a team that was previously viewed as a perennial Stanley Cup Contender for the better part of the last two decades. You would think that such a degree of failure in such a high profile organization would have landed Blashill on the hot seat, but there seems to be a sense that the coach is not the root of the issues in Detroit. 

This week TSN insider Bob McKenzie touched on the talk that has been floating around Blashill and he all but squashed the rumors of him being on the hot seat dead. McKenzie made it abundantly clear that in spite of Detroit's position in the rankings this season the organization still intends to keep Blashill on for the foreseeable future. 

From McKenzie:

The Detroit Red Wings don’t like being at or near the bottom of the league, but that won’t negatively impact head coach Jeff Blashill who’s on the final year of his contract. The expectation is the Red Wings, even before the end of this season, may begin extension negotiations with Blashill.

McKenzie also acknowledged that the team is not looking at Blashill when it comes to distributing blame for this lost season, arguing instead that the team has been well coached in spite of the fact that they have failed to produce as far as the standings are concerned. 

Again from McKenzie:

So even though the Wings are 30th place overall right now, they’ve liked the way Blashill’s handled the young kids and that they’ve continued to develop. And in spite of the fact that they don’t have nearly as many points as they’d like, the Wings have been very competitive, well-structured and well-coached over the course of this season. So the fault of the Detroit Red Wings’ season is not being laid at the feet of the head coach.

Where the blame should go is of course the next question, although many would be quick to point at general manager Ken Holland, but that only raises more questions given some of the other rumors around the team. There has been a growing sense that legendary Red Wings player Steve Yzerman could be returning in a management role as early as this summer, and you have to wonder how new leadership in the team could impact Blashill's own future behind the bench.