Detroit Red Wings former head coach Jeff Blashill. James Guillory-USA TODAY Sports

Former Red Wings head coach linked to open NHL job

By Michael Gallagher | Last updated 5/16/24

It’s been nearly three years since Jeff Blashill was an NHL head coach, but his extended hiatus doesn’t seem to deter one team from possibly considering him for its head coach opening.

According to Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman, Blashill could be a leading candidate for the open head-coaching job with the San Jose Sharks — a team looking for a fresh voice after a league-worst 19-54-9 record in 2023 under former HC David Quinn.

“I would like see Jeff Blashill get a second chance,” Friedman stated on his “32 Thoughts” podcast. “I would like to see what people learn after their first time through. So, I think Blashill is someone they’re considering.”

The 50-year-old Blashill was the head coach of the Detroit Red Wings for seven seasons. He compiled a 204-261-72 record and led the team to just one playoff appearance and was fired after a sixth-place finish in the Atlantic Division in 2022.

Our old friend Jeff Blashill, who coached the Red Wings from 2015 to 2022, joined Tampa Bay's coaching staff as an assistant prior to last season.#LGRW pic.twitter.com/IFG3u3q6N1
— Bally Sports Detroit (@BallySportsDET) January 22, 2024

While Blashill’s tenure in Detroit is mostly remembered for toiling through a seven-year rebuild, 2014 first-round pick Dylan Larkin did blossom into a 30-goal, 70-point center under his guidance.

In addition to his NHL coaching experience, Blashill also has some experience coaching internationally, serving as an assistant for Team USA during the 2006 Ivan Hlinka Memorial Tournament, the 2009 World Junior A Challenge, the 2009 World Junior Ice Hockey Championship and the 2017 IIHF World Championship.

Though the Sharks had one of the worst seasons in recent memory, their head-coaching vacancy is among the more desirable openings in the NHL. San Jose holds the No. 1 overall pick in the 2024 draft, where it will likely pick Boston University star Macklin Celebrini.

According to The Athletic, the Sharks have the No. 4 farm system in the NHL. It boasts several young, talented future NHLers, including centers Will Smith and Filip Bystedt, forward Quentin Musty and defenseman Shakir Mukhamadullin, plus several up-and-comers already on the NHL roster, like William Eklund, Fabian Zetterlund, Collin Graf, Filip Zadina and Henry Thrun.

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