Jeff Blashill 11-6-16

The Red Wings are last in the Eastern Conference, leading to questions about coach Jeff Blashill's future.

(The Associated Press)

The Joe Louis Arena press box was teeming with NHL scouts Wednesday, when 14 clubs sent representatives to watch the Detroit Red Wings play the St. Louis Blues.

Some undoubtedly were there to see Kevin Shattenkirk, the puck-moving defenseman who has long been the focus of trade rumors.

But many also were there to look at some rentals the Red Wings are sure to shop before the March 1 trade deadline.

The Red Wings are sellers. They're last in the Eastern Conference and even with 25 games remaining, they're not going to erase a nine-point deficit and hurdle eight teams to reach the final playoff spot.

The 25-season playoff streak will end. That has led to questions from M-Live readers about the future of general manager Ken Holland and coach Jeff Blashill, trading chips and prospects:

Q: The Wings are doomed. Hopefully there'll be a new GM to make the expected resulting higher picks. Holland's made too many mistakes. Maybe with Mike (owner Ilitch) gone there'll be a change. Wonder if (senior vice president Jimmy) Devellano could step in temporarily. - Clyde.

A: Holland has one year remaining on his contract and I expect he'll fulfill it. Maybe he'll retire or take another position in the organization after next season.

You can criticize him for giving too much money and term in contracts to Justin Abdelkader, Darren Helm and Danny DeKeyser, and for not starting the rebuild a couple years ago, but the playoff streak was important to the organization.

I don't blame them for trying to retool on the fly and doing what they could to keep the run going, including signing veteran free agents Mike Green, Brad Richards, Frans Nielsen and Thomas Vanek, and unloading Pavel Datsyuk's cap hit, in the process forgoing the opportunity to pick defenseman Jacob Chychrun 16th overall in 2016.

Now that the run has all but officially ended, it's time to rebuild in earnest.

Devellano is not stepping in.

Q: What are the odds that (Steve) Yzerman comes home? The Lightning might miss the playoffs, too. Might he be looking for a change. -- Don

A: I don't think Yzerman is in any danger of losing his job even if Tampa Bay misses the playoffs, and I don't believe he's interested in leaving.

Q: Teams like the Blues and Islanders have gotten a boost from a coaching change. With the bye week coming up, why not get rid of Blashill and bring in someone like (Gerard) Gallant or (Ken) Hitchcock? Even if it's too late for the playoffs, it would be good to see how the team responds to a change. - Mike

A: Blashill could be on the hot seat, but I don't think the club will replace him during the season. I think they'll evaluate after the season.

Teams have gotten a boost from mid-season coaching changes. The Islanders were 17-17-8 with Jack Capuano and are 8-3-2 with Doug Weight. The Blues are 6-1-0 since Mike Yeo replaced Hitchcock. The Boston Bruins are 3-0 since Bruce Cassidy replaced Claude Julien. The Florida Panthers were 11-10-1 under Gallant and are 14-10-9 with Tom Rowe. The Atlantic Division-leading Montreal Canadiens, in their bye week, fired Michel Therrien on Tuesday and hired Julien.

Who knows if a change would have sparked the Red Wings. I think Blashill earned more time based on a track record of success everywhere he's been, including a Calder Cup championship with the Grand Rapids Griffins in 2013.

But, it hasn't worked in the NHL. Too many players have regressed, including Gustav Nyquist, Tomas Tatar, Riley Sheahan, Tomas Jurco, Dylan Larkin, Luke Glendening, Abdelkader, DeKeyser and Petr Mrazek. It's surprising, because Blashill had success with most of these players in Grand Rapids.

Some of Blashill's decisions with his lineup and ice time management have come under scrutiny - not playing Andreas Athanasiou enough, including power play time, not sitting Sheahan and Niklas Kronwall more often, not sitting Jonathan Ericsson at all.

Q: What are the odds of the Wings shaking up the coaching staff in-season? Not necessarily Blashill, but the assistants? With the likes of Gerard Gallant and now Ken Hitchcock out there, it would seem the team needs some sort of shake up. - Brian.

A: If they were to make a change, I think it would start with the head coach and the new coach would decide the fate of the assistants. But, like I said above, I don't think that will happen in-season.

Q: Do you think the Wings will re-sign Vanek in the off-season even if they trade him? - J.A.

A: Vanek figures to be dealt by the deadline. I imagine multiple playoff-bound teams would be interested due to his offensive ability (14 goals, 36 points in 44 games) and affordable cap hit ($2.6 million). The Red Wings will probably wait until closer to the deadline to get the best possible return (guessing a second-rounder and perhaps an additional third- or fourth-round selection or maybe a prospect).

He's not coming back in the summer. He'll want a multi-year deal at a significant increase. The Red Wings won't have much cap space and have several younger players to sign over the next two seasons (Tatar, Larkin, Athanasiou, Anthony Mantha, Xavier Ouellet, Nick Jensen, Mrazek, Jared Coreau).

Vanek, as much as he has enjoyed his time here, probably will want to go to a Stanley Cup contender, not a rebuilding team.

Q: I just read your piece on the Wings needing to sell now. You mentioned Thomas Vanek (agree), Mike Green (agree) and Brendan Smith (somewhat disagree). What about Nyquist and Tatar? These two guys have not earned their paychecks the last 11/2 to 2 years. Did you leave them off for a reason? - Steve.

A: Generally, only rentals are dealt leading up to the deadline, as Holland pointed out. If the Red Wings were to move either Nyquist or Tatar, it wouldn't be for futures (picks, prospects), they'd want in return a player who could help them now. That type of trade is more apt to happen in the off-season or well before the deadline. That's why I didn't include them.

I consider Green a quasi-rental, since he has just one year remaining ($6 million, plus a no-trade clause). But I doubt he'll be moved because he's their only offensive threat on the blue line, someone they'll need next season, too.

I would also include Steve Ott as a possible rental, maybe for a late-round pick, if a team is seeking an abrasive presence and penalty-killer who's good on faceoffs.

Q: We're going nowhere, so why not give the kids in Grand Rapids a good look and see what we have for the future? - Chris

A: That's a good idea. The 23-man roster restriction is lifted at the trade deadline, and if they have the cap space, they should get a look at some Griffins, one or two at a time.

It would be good to see center Tomas Nosek, wingers Martin Frk and Evgeny Svechnikov and defenseman Robbie Russo for a few games.