Detroit Red Wings Roundtable: Will you miss Mike Babcock?

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May 21, 2015; Toronto, Ontario, Canada; Toronto Maple Leafs president Brendan Shanahan (left) and new head coach Mike Babcock share a laugh during a media conference to announce Babcock signing with the club at Air Canada Centre. Mandatory Credit: Dan Hamilton-USA TODAY Sports

Will you miss Mike Babcock? As we sit a week away from opening night and the Detroit Red Wings prepare to face Babs in their next three contests. The fan base is pretty divided in terms of how they feel, and we’ll be sure to feature the voice of fans as threw it out Twitter.

The writers and our followers weighed in. Here are the answers.

Nate Francis – Octopus Thrower Editor

I won’t–and yet I will. I once compared the Babs-Red Wings relationship one that was like a courtship flickering after being together for too long. You both want to move on–but neither person really knows how.

Apparently it takes $50 million.

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Look, the success the Red Wings had with Babcock is something 28 other teams would kill for. Sustained success, a Stanley Cup, nearly another, and never falling off despite being hampered by injury during several seasons. That’s why you loved him.

But as the seasons drew on, Babcock could make baffling decisions. And worse, there are a number of players who were not his biggest fan. If you read between the lines and look into the articles written, many Wings absolutely loved the fact that he left. To wit:

Actually, they seem to like him mostly, even if they allow some reading between the lines that suggests life with Babcock did not always resemble Kumbaya moments around the campfire. “Obviously, it’s a big part of some of our careers; we had him for 10 years,” said Red Wings captain Henrik Zetterberg, who occasionally reined in his coach. “(Today) is the first time Mike comes back, but I think following Friday will be bigger. “The preparation was the first thing I noticed when he came in. Every day, practicing and before games. You knew the game plan before every game, the players. That was a step up from what I was used to before. “Just a level of competitiveness, I think, every day.” Asked to describe Babcock in a few words, Zetterberg paused and proclaimed it difficult. When it was suggested he might have trouble coming up with words polite enough for publication, he said, “That you can print?” And then he laughed, along with the media. “No, but I would just say that he is a competitive guy,” he said. “And I always come back to the preparation, the amount of hours he spent on hockey. “A lot of it was at the rink. But I don’t think that when he left the rink the off switch was off.”

For me, I love what Babcock did for the Wings. But like anything in life, the voice goes stale, the message weakens, and the animosity increases. Unless it’s a player’s coach, a tough personality is going to grind on anyone after a while. Think about your best, but most demanding boss. Or even your parents.

I will miss the Pierre Maguire interviews the most. But like the players, I’m ready to move on and see how Blashill takes this team to a new level. I think it’s going to be a lot of fun. But we can’t forget it was Babs that kept this team afloat for Blashill.

From our Fans on Twitter:

Next: Jack sums it up with two words: Hell. No.

Feb 21, 2015; Dallas, TX, USA; Detroit Red Wings head coach Mike Babcock watches his team warm up prior to the game between the Dallas Stars and the Red Wings during the first period at the American Airlines Center. Mandatory Credit: Jerome Miron-USA TODAY Sports

Jack Mullen – Octopus Thrower Staff Writer

Hell. No.

Detroit Red Wings fans need to be honest: We loved Mike Babcock. No other fanbase in the past decade has had such admiration for its coach, and no matter what the circumstances were, we made sure to ultimately honor and support his authority, even if we didn’t necessarily agree with his decisions.

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However, we did it because, unless your coach is absolutely tanking your team, you don’t want to bash him. You’ll go to great lengths to defend the face of your team, and that can overshadow errors that a coach makes. We can finally admit that Mike Babcock, although possessing a great hockey mind, is a tad overrated. His career was built by talented rosters at the NHL and Olympic levels. He has never been asked to coach a poor team until now – Toronto.

His unfathomable preference of lackluster veterans over young talent, coupled with an already-weak roster that is on thin ice, will likely expose Babcock’s weaknesses that were eclipsed by the outstanding tools he was given during his time in Anaheim and Detroit, and Jeff Blashill seems like a much better fit for Detroit’s young and developing players.

From our Fans on Twitter:

@OctopusThrower_ A resounding NO
— 🐋Something went wrong. Try reloading.🐋 (@DrHavocPhD) October 1, 2015

Next: John has mixed feelings

Apr 16, 2015; Tampa, FL, USA; Detroit Red Wings head coach Mike Babcock reacts against the Tampa Bay Lightning during the first period in game one of the first round of the the 2015 Stanley Cup Playoffs at Amalie Arena. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports

John Curran – Octopus Thrower Staff Writer

Will I miss Mike Babcock? Of course I will, that is until Jeff Blashill starts to shake things up and usher in a new era for Detroit Red Wings hockey, which in my own personal belief, won’t take long. Don’t get me wrong, Mike Babcock was, and still is a great NHL coach and fans of the Red Wings have grown very comfortable to seeing the Babcockian death-stare for the last decade. But like all comfortable and worn in things in life, there comes a time when you have to upgrade to something new.

From Our Fans on Twitter:

@OctopusThrower_ yeah but not enough to wish he was back, if that makes sense
— John Evans (@Jtevans0) October 1, 2015

Next: Mike went through the 5 stages of grief

Mandatory Credit: Rick Osentoski-USA TODAY Sports

Mike Laybourne – Octopus Thrower Staff Writer

It’s been a few months since Mike Babcock deserted us for the dreaded Maple Leafs. Since then there’s been a freight train of emotions. At first denial set in, it couldn’t be true that Babs would leave us. Especially to go to the damned Leafs, a team whose fans are so unhappy that they’ve been reduced to throwing jerseys on the ice. Why leave a team that makes the playoffs for a team that doesn’t? That’s crazy talk. Babs wasn’t gonna leave us.

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Anger and confusion then set in, what did we do wrong? So were so many questions. Was it because of all those negative things we wrote about Danny Cleary? Did the team not meet his expectations? In what universe was Toronto a better option than Detroit? What would happen to the team? Would Babs take Cleary with him?

Then came panic, fuelled by the belief that we needed Babs to carry the team, to get that next Stanley Cup. Plus countless teams have made coaching changes in the last few seasons, with negligible results. The last thing we want is to see Detroit slip down the table.

Feeling like the guy who got stood up at the prom quickly passed when it became clear that Coach Blashill would take over. It was a given that the Grand Rapids Griffins coach would take the reins at the Big Team, even before it was officially announced. There was a light at the end of the tunnel and it brought the promise of a new, progressive Detroit Red Wings.

Will Babs be missed? Of course he will. The EPL missed Jose Mourinho when he left Chelsea because he’s a fun character, not unlike Babcock. Will he be missed on the bench? I don’t think so. He had his time with the organization and we’re now better off with Blash.

Next: Natalie is ready for the change

May 21, 2015; Toronto, Ontario, Canada; Toronto Maple Leafs head coach Mike Babcock speaks at a media conference to announce his signing with the club at Air Canada Centre. Mandatory Credit: Dan Hamilton-USA TODAY Sports

Natalie Longroy – Octopus Thrower Staff Writer

We are ready to face the music. Mike Babcock is coaching the Toronto Maple Leafs now and he will be back at the Joe next Friday. Friend has turned foe. But I think in some way, shape, or form we will miss Babs even if we hated the decision he made. He was a good coach for Detroit for ten years. He was the winningest coach in Red Wings history and currently the highest paid coach in the NHL. His W-L-OTL record with us was 458-223-105.

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