from Helene St. James of the Detroit Free Press,

Coach Jeff Blashill and his staff

The Wings were a one-line, one-goaltender team that suffered so many injuries, 14 players were used on the back end alone. Yzerman charged Jeff Blashill and his coaching staff with focusing on developing the young players key to the rebuild.

Larkin, Mantha, Bertuzzi and Hronek endured rough patches but showed growth. Blashill scratched underperforming veterans when he could, but injuries limited his ability to do so. He had no choice but to keep playing Howard (when Bernier needed a break) because neither Calvin Pickard nor Eric Comrie was a viable option.

Throughout the losing streaks, players bought into Blashill’s program. Yzerman noted on multiple occasions he didn't think it fair to blame the record on Blashill. Grade: C

the players get their grades...