Jeff Blashill's job under microscope as Red Wings near longest skid in franchise history

Helene St. James | Detroit Free Press

Show Caption Hide Caption Detroit Red Wings "can't seem to stop the bleeding" The Wings sound as miserable as their 7-22-3 record. Filmed Dec. 10, 2019 in Winnipeg, Manitoba.

WINNIPEG, Manitoba — Coaches can pay the price if their teams don’t do well, and the Detroit Red Wings are doing terrible.

They are 7-22-3, and their goal differential is minus-62. They return home to Little Caesars Arena on Thursday tarnished by a 12-game losing streak, just two losses from the franchise record. Their playoff hopes are crushed — at this point, they’re just trying to find a way to win a game. They have the fewest points in the NHL.

General manager Steve Yzerman has not given any indication he will make a coaching change. He has said he wants to spend this season observing. This is the second prolonged losing stretch of the season, with the Wings going 1-11-1 from Oct. 12 to Nov. 6.

Yzerman took over a team in rebuilding mode in April. The roster is a patchwork of talented young players, underperforming veterans, and AHL players called up to offset injuries. The organization knew this would be another tough one, that the team most likely would miss the playoffs for a fourth straight season.

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It is startling, though, how bad the Wings have looked — they have lost by three or more goals in 15 games — and that shines a spotlight on Jeff Blashill.

“I get that,” he said after the 5-1 loss to the Jets at Bell MTS Place. “For me, all I’m doing is what I always do and that’s be solution-based and worry about what we can control. What we can control right now is learning from this game and make sure we are helping our team get better. Find solutions. Come Thursday and worry just about that. That’s it.”

Blashill is in his fifth year behind the Wings' bench. He was signed to a two-year extension last summer. He is well liked and respected within the organization. It is more likely that if Yzerman decides on a coaching change, he will make it during the offseason.

Still, the Red Wings are in their longest losing streak since dropping 14 straight in 1981-82. They could pass that mark this week, with games remaining against the Jets, Montreal Canadiens and Western Conference-worst Los Angeles Kings.

The Washington Capitals (1974-75) and San Jose Sharks (1992-93) share the longest losing streak in NHL history at 17 games.

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.