Despite his retirement announcement, NHL insider predicts that Mike Babcock will coach in the NHL again
Nearly two weeks ago, former Toronto Maple Leafs coach Mike Babcock said he is ready to ride off into the sunset and retire. The announcement came after he stepped down from his volunteer coaching position at the University of Saskatchewan. However, on his "32 Thoughts" podcast, NHL insider Elliotte Friedman predicted a different scenario.
At around the 30-minute mark, Friedman said he would not be surprised to see Babcock coach in the NHL again. He just thinks it will happen after his contract with the Toronto Maple Leafs expires. Friedman's full quote on the topic is below.
- Elliotte Friedman
Back on May 15th, 2015, Mike Babcock signed a bar setting contract (8 years worth $50 million) with the Toronto Maple Leafs. Of course, Babcock was fired by the Leafs in November of 2019. However, Toronto is still on the hook to pay Babcocks salary unless he finds other employment. The contract is set to expire in June of 2023, which could line up with a potential NHL return.
After Babcock was dismissed as the Leafs head coach, multiple stories began to surface regarding his poor treatment to the players he coached. Perhaps most notably, asking a rookie Mitch Marner to produce a list ranking his teammates in order of who gives the best and worst efforts. Marner did produce a list, and Babcock shared it with the rest of the team.
Despite all the negative stories, Babcock does have 17 seasons of NHL coaching experience. This includes two years in Anaheim, ten in Detroit, and four years plus 23 games here in Toronto. In that time, his teams only missed the playoffs twice. His career highlights include a Stanley Cup with the Detroit Red Wings in 2008, as well as coaching team Canada to two Olympic gold medals in 2010 & 2014.
| POLL | ||
8 SEPTEMBRE | 271 ANSWERS Despite his retirement announcement, NHL insider predicts that Mike Babcock will coach in the NHL again When will we see Babcock return to the NHL as a head coach? | ||
| Never! | 152 | 56.1 % |
| Sometime this season | 43 | 15.9 % |
| After this season | 76 | 28 % |
| List of polls | ||
