Detroit Red Wings' Anthony Mantha has homework for the offseason

As Anthony Mantha prepares for the offseason, he does so with a renewed understanding of how important he is to the Red Wings’ rebuilding plans.

Mantha met Tuesday morning with head coach Jeff Blashill in his office at Little Caesars Arena. Blashill’s message to Mantha: come back meaner, because it will make a bigger impact.

“He said more grit,” Mantha said. “That’s something I’ll have to work.”

To that end, he’s going to explore boxing.

“I think Anthony still has to learn there is more inside,” Blashill said. “Sometimes my 12-year-old thinks he works hard and then I say no, you have to work harder. But he doesn’t know what that’s like. Until you have been pushed past that brink, it’s hard to understand that there is more in you.

“In Anthony’s case, I think we actually talked about trying to find a psycho boxing teacher who beats you to a pulp where you don’t think you can — I don’t mean physically, but in terms of the training to where you don’t think you have anything left and he demands 45 more minutes out of you and you find a way to do that. We have four months here to try to show that there is a bigger threshold than what he has ever seen before in terms of enduring that type of pain.”

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Blashill tried during the season to push Mantha by calling out in the media. The Wings have liked Mantha since drafting him 20th overall in 2013, but his pro career has been marked by inconsistency. That’s not that unusual for a 23-year-old, but the more Mantha plays to the full capability of his 6-foot-5, 220-pound size, the more it will help the Wings as they try to regain competitiveness.

“I just want him to continue to see that there is more there in terms of pushing himself beyond his comfort level,” Blashill said. “I’m hoping that summer training can push himself beyond his comfort level. If he comes back and has the same year next year that he had this year — not good enough.”

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Mantha had a team-leading 24 goals. There are those in the organization, including Chris Chelios, who see Mantha developing into a 40-goal scorer. Mantha himself wants to be a go-to guy, and this season has seen his relationship with Blashill develop. One key date was Jan. 22 in New Jersey, when the two had a heart-to-heart that led to a show-and-tell video.

“We took the 10 best shifts of my season and the 10 worst and we compared those,” Mantha said. “There is a big difference when I am actually competing or when I am not. That’s a learning thing I did this year.

“We talked about it again this morning. He knows I could be an impact player on this team and that’s his goal — he wants me to be like the best player, a superstar. He really wants me to focus on a couple details and sometimes the way he thinks he needs to reach out is by calling me out.”

Blashill coached Mantha his first year of pro hockey, in 2014-15, in Grand Rapids.

“My job is to get the very most out of each individual player that I can,” Blashill said. “Part of that job is to figure out the right buttons to push. And sometimes those buttons change. I’ve had Anthony a long time. It’s not like this is just a new growth process. Those buttons can change as people mature.

“One of the biggest thing in getting the best out of people is finding ways to connect with them. If the player gets to a realization where they understand what you are trying to do it get the very best out of them, that you’re not picking on them, when they understand that, there can be real growth.”

Mantha has handled public criticism well, generally admitting he can do better. The meeting in New Jersey benefitted both sides.

“We were talking about how to get me going in a game when it’s not going,” Mantha said. “Obviously I am not the kind of player where you should just start yelling at. So he changed his approach there. By calling me out in the media, that’s another technique he tried. We could say it worked, could say it didn’t work — for me, I just listen to it and move on and keep playing my game. I don’t try to make any drama about it or anything.”

From that New Jersey trip, Mantha took to heart what he heard about Devils forward Taylor Hall, who is a Hart Trophy candidate (regular-season MVP) on the strength of a 93-point season.

“He decided he wants to be an impact player and he’s been working pretty hard all season,” Mantha said. “Even Blash talked to their coach and that’s the main key — his work ethic this year was just unreal. I’ll try to bring that next year.”

Contact Helene St. James: hstjames@freepress.com. Follow her on Twitter @helenestjames.