Blashill: High Scoring Games Are Fun To Watch, Not Always Fun To Coach
DETROIT (WWJ) -- The Detroit Red Wings aren't among the NHL's top scoring teams, but they have come out on the winning end off a few high-scoring affairs this season.
Jeff Blashill's team came away victorious on Wednesday in a 6-5 contest with the Boston Bruins. The second-year head coach says high-scoring games may be fun for fans to watch, but it's a different story for the guys on the bench.
"They're fun games to watch, for sure. They're not always fun games to coach, but they're fun games to watch," Blashill said to the Detroit Economic Club at Motor City Casino on Monday. "In the end, if every game was 7-6 and we won them all, I'd love them."
Since the calendar flipped to 2017, the Wings have seen a modest increase in goals per game, but have been hindered by three shutouts in 15 games so far in January -- the latest a 1-0 overtime loss at the hands of the New York Rangers on Sunday.
The Wings have seen a drop in goal scoring over the past several seasons. The last time the team had a 30-goal scorer was in the 2008-2009 season, when four Wings reached that mark -- Marian Hossa (40), Johan Franzen (34), Pavel Datsyuk (32) and Henrik Zetterberg (31).
The Red Wings are preparing for another tilt with the Bruins on Tuesday. Though still sitting close to the bottom of the Atlantic Division standings, Detroit is only four points behind Boston for third place.