In an interview with “Smol Talk“, a Russian hockey podcast, Utah Mammoth defenseman Mikhail Sergachev made several comments regarding Chicago Blackhawks head coach Jeff Blashill. Blashill, before joining the Blackhawks, served as the assistant coach of the Tampa Bay Lightning, serving seven seasons as the head coach of the Detroit Red Wings before that.
Sergachev had this to say regarding Blashill’s coaching style:
“And then we changed our system – the coach from Detroit came in. I mean, we had gone to three finals, and this guy comes in and says: ‘We’re not playing like that anymore. Now we’re playing like [explative] Vegas.’ And we’re all like, ‘Why?’ He goes, ‘They have a better system. It’ll work for us.’ Well, it didn’t work for me. Didn’t work for anyone. Everyone ended up with a negative plus-minus, we were all getting outscored.”
During Blashill’s time with the Lightning, the team put together a 138-86-20 record, failing to win a playoff series during each of the past three seasons. Before his time with Tampa, Blashill coached the Detroit Red Wings from the 2015-16 season to 2021-22 . In seven seasons, he managed a 204-261-72 record. Blashill’s role as an assistant coach revolved around defense and penalty kill, both of which heavily involved Sergachev.
Sergachev’s 2023-24 season came to an abrupt end after he broke his leg in a game against the New York Rangers. In June of 2024, he was traded to the Utah Mammoth for defenseman J.J. Moser, center Conor Geekie, a seventh-round pick in the 2024 NHL Draft and a second-round pick in the 2025 NHL Draft.
Former Blackhawks Speak Highly of Blashill
While Sergachev’s comments may suggest a rift between skaters and coach, one of Sergachev’s former teammates had other things to say. Brandon Hagel, once a Chicago Blackhawk, had this to say to Ben Pope of the Chicago Sun Times: “He teaches you how to play the right way. He’s hard on you but very understanding. You can tell him what you think, as well. He’s very easy to approach.”
Chicago legend Chris Chelios, who worked as a part-time coach for Blashill, sung praises of Blashill’s coaching style. “Very accountable, good structure, getting the point across and worked really well with the young kids,” Chelios said. “Now that he’s got this experience, if and when the Blackhawks sign some veterans and free agents, he can relate to that and I think he’s just gotten better with experience.”
Blackhawks Optimistic About Blashill
Blackhawks general manager Kyle Davidson selected Blashill as the head coach due to his background in player development. “Jeff is an incredibly smart and talented coach who boasts more than 25 years of coaching experience across developmental leagues, the NHL and the world stage,” Davidson said during Blashill’s introductory press conference.
“He’s thrived when in a position to develop young players and has shown he’s capable of blending that into overall team success, a vision and philosophy we share for where we are today and where we see our team in the future. We couldn’t be more excited for what’s to come under Jeff’s direction.”
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