“That first full year he did an excellent job of leading, especially when times were tough,” Blashill said. “It says a lot about him, his character, and who he is as a person.
“I didn’t know him at all (when the Wings acquired Gagner) and I didn’t know what to expect. I learned quickly he was a guy who cared a ton, who was smart, who in that short period of time definitely said to me, ‘I’d like to have him back’.”
I’d like to have one of those two back.
There’s a few items at play here: The first is that I’m never quite certain whether this story is entirely Ted Kulfan’s idea or whether it’s a test balloon to get people comfortable with an idea while the player in question is playing well.