from Kevin Allen of Detroit Hockey Now,

Grand Rapids Griffins coach Ben Simon said former NHL coach Gene Ubriaco used to say that hockey “was a great game, and a crappy business.”

Only Ubriaco used a stronger word than crappy.

Simon thought about that saying when he heard Detroit Red Wings coach Jeff Blashill was fired.

“I learned a lot about coaching from Jeff just throughout the years,” Simon said. “What I learned that’s way more important is just how he treated people. He’s a fantastic human being. He treats people – whether you’re the janitor, whether you’re the head coach of another NHL team coming in, whether you’re a minor league coach – he treats you with the utmost respect,makes you feel like you belong.”

Simon said he couldn’t thank Blashill enough for being so “inclusive of me and my staff when I was an assistant in Grand Rapids, when I was the head coach in Grand Rapids.”

“He’s had a lot of success at every level that he’s been at,” Simon said. “I got a lot of time for Jeff and a lot of appreciation for what he’s done for me and my career, my family, and I have no doubt that he’s going to land on his feet. Him and (wife) Erica and the kids are just fantastic people.”

continued, plus more Detroit related news...