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Detroit Red Wings: Jeff Blashill Urges Team To “Earn This”

By John Curran

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For anyone who has ever played, watched or followed sports on any level, it is a well known fact that teams and coaches like to use inspirational quotes inside their locker rooms to inspire the performance of their players. The Fighting Irish of Notre Dame have their famous “play like a champion today” sign greeting the team as they take the field and Mike Babcock urged his 2010 gold medal-winning Canadian national team to “leave no doubt” before they hit the ice.

The Detroit Red Wings are no exception to the rule of having inspirational credos hanging in their locker room. For well over the last decade the Red Wings walked under a sign reminding them that “to whom much is given, much is expected” This timeless quote applied perfectly to the previous two decades of Detroit hockey, as the Red Wings were one of the most dominant and stacked rosters in the NHL.

Now in the salary-cap era, with talent being more evenly distributed throughout the entire league, the Red Wings find themselves transitioning into a younger team with a brand new head coach, Jeff Blashill. Not only is Blashill bringing in a new era of Detroit Red Wings hockey, he is also bringing some new motivational tools.

Now as the new-look Red Wings take the ice before every home game at Joe Louis Arena, they are no longer reminded how much is expected of them but rather that “greatness is a daily choice.” Coach Blashill refers to this as his “earn this” philosophy and describes it as follows:

"“Earn this” just means earning the winged wheel that’s on our jerseys everyday, living our life in a way that we’re going to make sure we earn those opportunities and never taking anything for granted, not having any entitlement whatsoever."

Now that’s a great philosophy to have, not only in sports, but in life in general. It’s a basic, blue-collar concept that seems to be lost in today’s instant-gratification seeking society.

Being born and raised in Michigan, Jeff Blashill understands and respects hard work. Also being a hockey fan who was born and raised in Michigan, Blashill understands and respects the pride and tradition that comes along with being a member of the Detroit Red Wings. Along with having several native Michiganders on his roster (Justin Abdelakder, Luke Glendening, Danny DeKeyser and Dylan Larkin) you can bet that Jeff Blashill has no desire to tarnish the Detroit Red Wings’ storied history.

With so many young prospects becoming close to being NHL ready in the Red Wings’ system it’ll be very important for players on Detroit’s roster to practice Blashill’s philosophy and earn their keep. Blashill is well aware of what he has coming up from Grand Rapids from his tenure as their head coach and he will not hesitate to allow those kids to earn their own roster spot when their time comes.

Jeff Blashill’s “earn this” philosophy is the perfect battle cry for a young and evolving team in one of America’s hardest working and most tenacious cities. “Earn this” is a motto that not only players can rally around, but one that fans can get behind too.

Next: Justin Abdelkader Named NHL's First Star Of The Week

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