The Chicago Blackhawks fired head coach Luke Richardson during the 2024-25 regular season. Interim coach Anders Sorensen did not do enough to earn the full time job, however. The Blackhawks recently tabbed Jeff Blashill has their next head coach. And he has a familiar face within the organization in forward Tyler Bertuzzi.
Bertuzzi joined the Blackhawks last summer as an unrestricted free agent. However, the veteran forward has crossed paths with Blashill before. The two spent time with the Detroit Red Wings earlier in their careers. Blashill spent six years coaching Bertuzzi in the Motor City.
Blashill now gets another chance to coach in the NHL. He will likely lean on Bertuzzi given their familiarity. How that will look obviously remains to be seen. For now, the veteran forward is happy to see his former bench boss land another head coaching gig.
“It’s cool to see him get a spot back in the NHL [as a head coach],” Bertuzzi said via Blackhawks studio analyst Charlie Roumeliotis. “He did a great job with us in the Red Wings and I’m just looking forward to working with him again. I started with him in the AHL, and that was one of the bigger ones, just the developing and the maturing of my game and just a learning aspect of it. He helped me big time kind of carve out a little career.”
What Blackhawks Can Expect From Jeff Blashill
Bruce Bennett/Getty ImagesJeff Blashill and Tyler Bertuzzi crossed paths with the Detroit Red Wings.
Blackhawks fans may feel some hesitation about Blashill, given how his time with the Red Wings ended. Detroit made the Stanley Cup Playoffs once under the Michigan native. The team bottomed out and even had one of the worst seasons in modern NHL history during the 2019-20 campaign.
However, Bertuzzi believes the former Red Wings coach can aid the Blackhawks. He revealed what the new Chicago bench boss likes to do tactically. And he provided some insight into what it’s like to play for Blashill.
“He likes to preach simplicity, north-south, play hard and obviously plays will be made when they’re available,” Bertuzzi said, via Roumeliotis. “If you play hard for him, he’s an easy coach to get along with. Obviously you’ll get your chances to make your plays and do all the other things but the three base things are probably work hard, play simple and go out there and do your best. If you make a mistake, do your best to get it back and give it 100%.”
Chicago Icon Joins Tyler Betuzzi With Blashill Endorsement
Bertuzzi certainly isn’t the only one who has positive things to say about Blashill. Chris Chelios, who played for both the Blackhawks and Red Wings, is a fan of this hiring. He emphasized Blashill’s ability to connect with the locker room when speaking with Roumeliotis.
“His best qualities are how he connects with the players,” Chelios said. “He’s almost like a manager with players. He reads them well, he knows how to talk to certain players. You can’t treat everybody the same, even though you try to, but some people know they can take being yelled at and disciplined sometimes and other players you’ve got to massage them a little bit. I think Blash is a good judge of a character.”
The objective for Blashill is to take this group to the next level. Bertuzzi and his new head coach are here to support franchise cornerstone Connor Bedard in 2025-26. It’s a tall task, but the organization has complete faith in Blashill to bring a new era of hockey glory to the Windy City.
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