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Blashill Runs Interference |
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First, Jeff Blashill beat his old boss. Then he put a beatdown on his old boss.
Before taking any questions from the media following Friday’s 3-1 win over the Mike Babcock-coached Toronto Maple Leafs, Blashill paused to congratulate the officials, specifically referees Chris Rooney, and Francois St-Laurent.
In reality, though, Blashill was taken a good-natured jab at former Wings coach Babcock.
“They demanded the game be played the right way by calling those interference calls,” Blashill said of the referees. “Those are big-time interference plays. I said it last time we were in there. I thought it was great the refs stayed on it.”
Back in the days when Babcock coached the Wings from 2005-15, there were constant complaints from opposing coaches about how interference the Wings were allowed to commit during games. Blashill served as an assistant coach on Babcock’s staff in 2011-12, so he knows well about this fact of life.
“Babs does a good job,” Blashill said, adding that he never described the type of play as interference when Babcock was teaching it to his Detroit players. “He used the word cut-off. Well, cut-off has turned into tackle. It’s not tackle football. That’s trying to take it back to the 1980s.”
The NHL has sought to take the holding up of players without the puck to prevent any sort of viable forecheck since the so-called dead-puck era of the mid 1990s, when the New Jersey Devils led league down a deadly-dull path of clutching and grabbing that took the skill and speed right out of the game.
Blashill is of the opinion that the league has slowly let a new form of interference creep back into the sport.
“I watched video from the playoffs last year and was like ‘Holy smokes!” he said.
Blashill couldn’t contain his delight to see the Leafs players James Van Riemsdyk, Matt Martin and Tyler Bozak all penalized for interference during Friday’s game.
“I was really excited,” Blashill said. “The refs said they’re illegal plays because they’re clearly illegal plays. It happened in Toronto and the refs called it.
“I think it’s hard for them to keep raising their hand but thankfully they did. That was the reality of it.”
Blashill isn’t about to suggest that his team is entirely bereft of the notion of committing interference, but feels that the are acceptable levels of obstruction and that the Leafs don’t just cross the line, they obliterate it completely.
“We all want to interfere, get in the way, make it harder for the forechecker,” Blashill said. “But the way we used to do it was face the people and hold them up. That was the New Jersey Devils, and then they started calling that.
“So now we skate forwards and kind of make them take the long route. But that wasn’t happening out there. It was good to see the refs continue to call it.”
Blashill indicated that he wouldn’t be bringing the issue up with the league.
“I’m bringing it up now,” Blashill said, smirking. “I’m sure the league . . . hopefully . . . I’m not sure if they watch my press conferences.”
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