“We have talent.” | Jeff Blashill Pregame 10.30.25

Jeff, how you achieved the level of buy in, especially on the defensive side, the early stages here? Um, well, I just give credit to our our guys. I think our guys um they want to win and uh they don’t, you know, I’ve said this a few times, including our best young players. They don’t want to be guys who just score points on bad teams. They want to they want to produce offense on good teams. They want to win, you know, and so um sometimes, you know, you get a group at the right time. And I think, you know, certainly, uh our group was ready to listen. They were ready to be coached. They’re ready to work hard. They’re ready to go through grueling practices because they want uh they they they ultimately want to to continue to improve here and get better and better and win hockey games. So, um you know, they’ve uh I I just give a lot of credit to our group for that. So, the motivation’s there, but how hard can it be to teach young players that the best way to be good offensively is to be good defensively? Yeah, it’s, you know, it’s um it’s a process for sure and and understanding, you know, there there has to be patience on the coach’s side because you’re going to have some roller coaster through that. That’s just reality of it. And um you know, learning when you know, I talk all the time about make a play or live another day and and that’s a balance and and when you’re really talented player, um you have to have those moments where you you’re trying to make plays. You know, I’d use Sam Renzel as an example. He’s a really talented defenseman that we don’t want to become. We don’t want him to become just a simple uh a simpleton uh type get it out, get it in guy. He has to be a guy who controls the puck, but he has to have that balance also of knowing when uh you know, what are the areas of the ice you don’t, what are the situations you don’t, how much pressure you’re under. Um you know, so it’s a process of of of video. It’s a process of doing stuff on the ice. I think our guys are seeing though ultimately when you check for your offense, you’ll create as much offense than if you try to cheat for your offense. because when you cheat for your offense, you just spend so much time defending and I think our guys are realizing that. That said, there’s still uh pretty big disparity in possession. Spencer’s been, you know, masking some of the issues. Like, do you have to keep reminding them like, look, it’s going well right now, but that doesn’t mean you’re actually playing perfect defense here. Uh we don’t we we remind them on a daily basis when we’re not playing uh good defense for sure. Um, you know, we that’s where I that’s where I said I think our guys have are in a spot where they’re where they’re ready to be coached and and um you know, we’ve shown on a consistent basis uh uh you know, things that are leading to chances against things where we’re not checking good enough, things where we’re doing those things. We recognize we’ve gotten very good goalending this year um from both guys and and so that does allow us to learn some of these lessons while still winning hockey games. That’s the difference, right? when you when you if you’re not getting that goalending, you’re trying to teach those lessons when you’re not. So, that’s been a a real positive for us. Um, but again, they they they get it. They know they know how good our goalending’s been. They know that we still need to get way way way better. They know those things and uh that’s where I think they’re they’re I’m most impressed with just their mindset more than anything else. Having a defensive mindset allows you to cheat achieve, you know, good defensive play. looking in the standings, seeing where you guys are right now, having a mindset that you belong with the teams that you’re up competing with it, how important is that and how hard is it to achieve that? Um, you know, honestly, I don’t think you I haven’t thought I mean, we’re 10 games in. Um, you know, we’ve we’ve really just focused on ourselves and kind of our processes and making sure our processes are really good. I think our guys believe uh you know when they go into each game that they they can win that hockey game and and where that puts us in the standings will be dictated by how good we play and and what results we get. Um but I do think they walk into games believing you know we’ve said this a lot like we have talent just you know we have it just happens to be probably pretty young. Um but if if that talent plays a mature hockey game then you can win games. You know it it’s one thing if you’re devoid of talent. We’re not. We have talent. Um, it just, you know, again, it just is a learning process and so let’s play the right way. Let’s play a mature game. When we do that, we put ourselves in position to to win. As a fan of the game, what’s it like to see Jonathan Taves back playing the way that he is? Yeah, I think it’s awesome. Um, you know, obviously tons of respect uh for for, you know, what he’s been as a player. I don’t honestly know him personally at all. Um, uh, I we’ve barely crossed paths, but but but you know, certainly as a fan of the game, um, ton of respect for for what he’s done throughout his career, and to be able to come back and play the level that he’s playing right now is, uh, is tremendous and it’s a, you know, really kind of hats off to him for that. Face off might be extra challenging tonight with him on the other side. Yeah, face off will be challenging, you know. Um, and obviously with with the number of young centers that we have, they they are challenging on a on a nightly basis, but one of the things we can do to really help ourselves that we haven’t been really good enough is just the help from the wingers andor the defenseman and uh in Dzone coverage. We need better help on those 50/50s. We we just feel like we we’ve lost too many of those 50/50s and um so that’s an area we can certainly help ourselves with. How key is Connor Murphy in setting the standard of the mindset of this group and what are some of the qualities he has that make coaching easier? Yeah. So, you know, I I think we’re pretty uh lucky to have a really really good leadership group. Um you know, including including Connor. Um I think, you know, he understands uh he’s bought into the standard that that we’ve set and and and helped demand that players reach that standard and that’s what you want. You know, ultimately when you get great leaders, uh they they’re kind of an extension of the coaching staff. The other thing that they are that I think is extremely important in our scenario is they’re what I would call, and I’ve said this before, Papa Bears. They’re kind of they’re they’re guys who can kind of help our young guys uh grow and get better and not hold the young guys down. And there’s a huge difference there. And and I I’ve just seen a the group of veterans be a group that, you know, really want to help and help these young guys learn and take them put an arm around them at the right times. And you know, sometimes as a coach’s staff, you’re hard on players and you need some of those veterans to kind of pick them back up at times, too. And so, I think Connor’s done a great job. Conor’s a son of a coach. And there’s there’s, you know, I’m lucky, you know, Nick’s a son of a coach, Conor’s son of a coach. Like, they they get it. They understand uh what it takes to to win and and ultimately get to a better tomorrow here. Like MV was back in uh McKay uh is uh we’ll know game time. He’s a game time decision.

Head Coach Jeff Blashill discusses the players wanting to win against good teams this season and the mindset of improving ahead of matchup against Winnipeg.

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