The Columbus Blue Jackets apparent new coaching hire has generated strong reactions across the NHL world.
Mike Babcock, who last coached with the Toronto Maple Leafs in 2019, is reportedly in waiting to replace Brad Larsen as the 11th head coach in Blue Jackets history.
Per TSN, the Blue Jackets are waiting on Babcock’s eight-year, $50 million contract he signed with the Maples Leafs in 2015 to expire at the end of June. After the contract’s expiration, Babcock is able to sign with a new team without interference from his former team.
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Even with three Stanley Cup Final appearances, 700 NHL wins and leading Canadian national teams to two gold medals in Vancouver and Sochi, Babcock has developed a reputation as a “bully,” and as a great coach on the ice, but a “terrible person.”
But to former NHL goalkeeper Martin Biron, Babcock is the right fit for a Blue Jackets team that finished 16th in the eastern conference and 31st overall in the NHL in 2022-23.
“I like the fit in Columbus,” Biron, a TSN hockey analyst, said on ESPN. “I think this is a team with a lot of established players — they went and got Johnny Gaudreau. But they also need somebody with experience that is able to guide them in the right direction Listen, Mike Babcock is a fantastic hire. And there was the thing with Mitch Marner in Toronto. But that’s always been the way Mike Babcock has been. He’s been a confident, borderline cocky, type of coach from his days in juniors.
“I totally love him as a coach… When I retired from the NHL in 2013, I got a few text messages from friends and family members, teammates and whatnot. And I got a text from Mike Babcock. I never had him as a coach in the NHL. And he says ‘Marty, congratulations on a fantastic career. You are one of the best.’ That goes a long way. I understand that, along the way, as a coach you play some games — and obviously it went the wrong way with the Toronto Maple Leafs. But I still think he’s a great person, he’s a great coach and he’ll be better off for the experience he’s had the last few tears away from the game returning to the Blue Jackets.”
Many Blue Jackets and NHL fans do not feel similarly to Biron about the reported Babcock hire.
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This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Columbus Blue Jackets, NHL fans react to reported Mike Babcock hire
