Steve Yzerman: Detroit Red Wings 'regressed' under Jeff Blashill

General manager Steve Yzerman defended his former coach even as he explained why the Detroit Red Wings had to move forward.

Yzerman spoke Monday for the first time since announcing the day after the season ended that the Wings would not be renewing Jeff Blashill's contract.

"Ultimately to take that decision, I felt our team fundamentally, that we kind of — I don't even know if plateaued is the right word," Yzerman said Monday afternoon. "But we had gotten to a point where fundamentally, with and without the puck, we had regressed. 

"We're at a point now where I felt like, OK, I've got to see if bringing in a new coach and coaching staff, can make a difference to get us back and get us going in the right direction."

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Yzerman, who inherited Blashill and extended his contract last year, complimented Blashill for the job he did coaching a team that has been rebuilding since he was promoted in June 2015.

"Jeff Blashill is a good hockey coach," Yzerman said. "He ran a really good program. I can certainly attest to our program for the last three years because it's been dictated by me. Under the circumstance where I'm trying to rebuild this team ... I say this sincerely, Jeff did an outstanding job leading this team, this organization, in a very, very difficult circumstance.  

"Pardon the expression, but he ran a good program. This wasn't a complete shitshow." 

Contact Helene St. James at hstjames@freepress.com. Follow her on Twitter @helenestjames. Read more on the Detroit Red Wings and sign up for our Red Wings newsletter. Her book, The Big 50: The Detroit Red Wings is available from Amazon, Barnes & Noble and Triumph Books. Personalized copies available via her e-mail.