What are others saying about Hawks’ hiring of Blashill as head coach?

Florida Panthers general manager Bill Zito would have been excused if he wasn’t interested in talking about another team’s coaching hire while his team was in a Stanley Cup Playoffs run.

But just minutes after being texted, Zito was right there calling. As he was departing his team’s bus on its way home to Florida for Game 3 of the Eastern Conference final, Zito found time to talk about Jeff Blashill, the Blackhawks’ new coach.

Zito had worked with Team USA in 2018 as general manager for the World Championship, and Blashill was his head coach.

“It’s a 10-star hire,” Zito opened the call with.

They didn’t spend a ton of time together, but Blashill certainly left a lasting impact on Zito.

“I interacted with him at the World Championships, and he had a way of getting Pat Kane, Quinn Hughes, Anders Lee, all these different style of players and personalities and reach each of them and pull the most out of each of them,” Zito said. “Very, very outstanding technically. Patient. His teams will be prepared, and they’ll feel prepared and they’ll be encouraged. As a manager interacting with him, (he’s) very confident but (has) no ego. To work as a team is a dream come true.”

Zito wasn’t the only one thinking that when the hire happened. Blackhawks Tyler Bertuzzi and Joe Veleno played for Blashill with the Detroit Red Wings, and they welcomed the news.

Veleno played his rookie season under Blashill before Blashill was let go and became an assistant coach with the Tampa Bay Lightning. Veleno remained with the Red Wings until he was traded this past season to the Blackhawks. Veleno texted Blashill after the coaching announcement on Thursday and expressed his excitement about working with him again.

“I think it’s a positive there’s some familiarity between us,” Veleno said. “He’s known me since I was 18 years old. Obviously, playing against him, Tampa, same division as Detroit, so we got to see them a good four times a year. I think he’s obviously familiar a little bit with my game. It will be nice to have him again as our head coach. From what I’ve learned, I’ve definitely learned a lot from him, I would say. I think there’s more in my game that I can bring, and I think he obviously knows that, too. I told him that. I’m really excited for the opportunity and see him at camp and really catch up with him and start with him again.”

It’s easy to draw connections from the Red Wings’ rebuild to what the Blackhawks are doing. Veleno thought Blashill worked well with Detroit’s young group at the time.

“Very similar situation, come in with some young players,” Veleno said. “I had him for one year, but as far as I remember, even throughout my development camps and being there with the Wings coming out of junior, I was able to learn a lot from him. Obviously, teaching you how to become a real pro and play the game the right way. He had a big emphasis on playing all over the ice and not just when you have the puck, but defending well and having those opportunities to defend well will translate to more offense, spending less time in your own zone. There are definitely a few pages I took from him and the rest of the staff that was there at the time when I was younger. I think it’s definitely a positive, surrounding ourselves with him and being a younger team. I think it’ll be good to learn to play the right way and have a better feel game. Hopefully, he’ll be able to get that message out, and we’ll really grab onto what he has to teach us.”

Bertuzzi spent more time with Blashill. When Bertuzzi jumped from the OHL to pro hockey late in the 2014-2015 season, it was Blashill who was his first coach with the Grand Rapids Griffins in the AHL. When Bertuzzi got his first NHL call-up during the 2016-17 season, Blashill would also be his first NHL coach. They were together until the end of the 2021-22 season, which was Bertuzzi’s lone 30-goal season.

“I’ve had him for more than half of my career,” Bertuzzi said. “Honestly, nothing but great things to say. He explains things well. He’s very to the point. He’s very detailed. He’s very personable. I think that’s one of the biggest things when you’re just able to be honest with a coach and talk to each other and try to figure things out.

“He obviously went through it in Detroit, where he’s got a young guy and some other players and kind of the same situation we’re in now with growing as a team and trying to find our identity. A lot of young skill that needs to be coached well, and I think he’s the guy for the job.”

Bertuzzi thought he had developed under Blashill because of how he messaged what he wanted.

“I think just keeping it simple and keep doing the same things,” Bertuzzi said. “He just harped to play hard and simple, and plays will open up and chances will come, and you’ll be able to create off of that. I think that’s going to be huge for our team.”

It’s what one Eastern Conference pro scout spoke about with Blashill, too.

“He will establish standards and hold people accountable without any drama,” the scout said.

As for what the Blackhawks are getting as an in-game coach, Corey Sznajder, who tracks NHL microstats, shared some thoughts.

“It was hard for me to get a gauge on Blashill’s time in Detroit because they were never really supposed to be good for almost his entire tenure,” Sznajder said. “After (Pavel) Datsyuk left, their main Jenga piece was gone, and Ken Holland left him with a pretty barren roster handicapped with some poor signings. He was given more of a leash than some coaches who had a much better record than him, but the second Detroit was ready to start competing, they moved on from him. He had some success stories there with getting prospects into the league. Nick Jensen’s had a nice career that started under him, (Filip) Hronek’s become a pretty good defenseman, (Moritz) Seider’s Calder season was under him, and other guys like (Andrea) Athanasiou, (Anthony) Mantha and Bertuzzi became NHL players while he was coaching the Wings.

“You saw some of this with Tampa while he was coaching the defense there. They’ve had a pretty good recent track record of weaving guys from the AHL into their D-corps the last couple years. This is with a lot of guys that were mid-round picks and older prospects like Nick Perbix, so I think he could have a good impact on all the young defensemen the Hawks have in their system. He had to have a ‘sink or swim’ approach with the Wings with playing young guys, and it might be a similar situation in Chicago, depending on who they add over the summer and what their expectations are.”

© 2025 The Athletic Media Company. All Rights Reserved. Distributed by New York Times Licensing.