greenwichtime
CHICAGO (AP) — In a show of support, Chicago Blackhawks general manager Kyle Davidson stood behind head coach Jeff Blashill on Wednesday, while also shouldering the blame for the team's sluggish beginning to the season.
Davidson revealed that Mark Eaton, the team's assistant general manager for player development and a former NHL defenseman, will be embedded with the coaching staff indefinitely to work on individual defensive skills for a squad that ranks among the league's weakest defensively.
Before the season started, Davidson and several players spoke about competing for a playoff berth. Instead, the Blackhawks have stumbled to a 4-13-1 record, including a six-game losing streak and losses in nine of their last 10 contests.
"Simply put, we've not been good enough," Davidson said. "This isn't what we told our fans to expect. And, you know, I take responsibility in this and I'm not going to come up here today and make any excuses."
Chicago wrapped up a dismal three-game road trip with a 9-2 defeat at Carolina on Saturday night. The Blackhawks then had four days off, which fueled speculation about Blashill's job security in his second season with the organization. However, Davidson opted to retain the entire coaching staff.
"Blash is our head coach," Davidson said. "I have full confidence in him. The players believe in him. He's made them better."
Blashill, 52, is the second full-time head coach hired by Davidson since he took over as interim GM following Stan Bowman's resignation in October 2021. Davidson, who started with the organization as a hockey operations intern in 2010, had his interim tag removed on March 1, 2022.
The rebuilding Blackhawks have finished 31st in the NHL in each of the past three seasons and haven't reached the postseason since the league used an expanded playoff format for the pandemic-shortened 2019-20 campaign.
"With the maturation of young players and the players we've drafted and bringing in the league, we have to get through these rough times that they're experiencing in their development in order to get to the other side," Davidson said.
Davidson noted that he has been in talks with other general managers about potential trades to upgrade the roster, but he won't make a move simply for the sake of making one. The Blackhawks hold three first-round picks and two second-round selections in the upcoming draft.
Meanwhile, Blashill and his staff have concentrated on fundamentals during the team's break before Thursday night's game against Buffalo.
"We talked about, you know, little different points of emphasis and things like that, making sure we're better in certain areas," Blashill said. "We've had a chance to have three productive practices and now we got to go out and play."
Blashill owns a 33-52-15 record in 100 games with Chicago, but he has received backing from his players during the difficult start.
"Yeah, 100 percent belief," captain Connor Bedard said. "I think he gives us a great game plan and super easy to talk to, really, you really know his message. He and the whole coaching staff are doing a great job."
Some of Chicago's struggles can be attributed to injuries. Bedard missed the first six games of the season. Defenseman Bowen Byram and forward Patrick Kane are on injured reserve with upper-body injuries, but they practiced on Wednesday in non-contact jerseys.
The biggest issue is team defense. The Blackhawks are allowing 4.22 goals per game, ranking 31st in the league going into Wednesday's action. That's where Eaton is expected to help when he joins the coaching staff beginning on Monday.
"We're not defending well enough," Davidson said. "We give up odd-man rushes, specifically 2-on-1s and breakaways, at a rate that's, you know, one of the highest in the league, as well as the high-danger chances that we're giving up at a too high of a rate in our defensive zone, which obviously then leads to goals against, which we have to do a much better job of cutting down on."
Key Analysis
Davidson's public endorsement of Blashill, coupled with his willingness to accept responsibility, signals a patient approach to the rebuild. The addition of Eaton to the coaching staff underscores the urgency to address defensive deficiencies. With a treasure trove of draft picks, Davidson has flexibility to make moves, but he appears cautious about sacrificing long-term assets for quick fixes. The coming weeks will test whether Blashill can turn things around and whether the players' support translates into on-ice results.
Originally reported by greenwichtime.