kipwinger

Here's a fun fact, Babs' last contract extension was in October, 2010. By that time he'd already won an Olympic gold and gone to the finals twice. And all those accomplishments could/should have been used in the negotiations for that contract. What's he done since 2010 that would nearly double his last contract? Win one Olympic gold and two playoff series?

Ahhhh gotcha. Yeah, I'd agree that financially the investment would pay off pretty quickly. Hell, in Buffalo's case it would be financially successful if he never made the playoffs but increased attendance by 50% for every home game that he ever coached. I guess I was speaking more about the expectations that this kind of hiring brings with it. I agree with your points regarding Minnesota and Toronto though.

I'd certainly agree that throwing money around can (initally) legitimize a franchise. It's worked pretty well in Minnesota up to this point. But eventually you're going to have to deliver on those expectations. Suter and Parise flat out legitimized Minnesota's organization. Buying those guys instantly made them a credible player in the league's "power structure" (my term). But if that's all the signings ever accomplish, I think you'll have a hard time arguing that it was a success. Toronto is already as high profile as it can possibly get. Everybody already knows they're willing to spend more money than anybody else to get what they want. The only thing keeping Toronto from credibility is the fact that they can't seem to win when it matters. If they give Babs 5+ million, they'll be expecting him to do exactly that. If he doesn't, I don't see how they can consider the deal a good one.

He's certainly a very successful coach. But given how different the leagues are (NCAA vs. NHL), I'm not sure he'll be as good. Think about Steve Spurrier trying to coach in the NFL. It would have been smart to see if he could translate his success to the AHL first. The NCAA is a tough league, but in a lot of ways that's because there isn't all that much high end skill in it. So every game is decided by banging, crashing, garbage goals, and play around the net. Goalies in the NCAA aren't that great (because they don't need to be), and defenses have it pretty easy. Plus the schedule is much shorter, which effects how you coach. I'm skeptical that he'll be able to make the jump successfully at first. He may come back again and be good (Pete Carroll), but he'll struggle initially.

They use the same system, but not the same "style", if that means anything. Line combinations, player usage, matchups, and zone emphasis (my term), can all make the product of the system look dramatically different. The fact that the run the same system really only affects where you should be in the ice at a particular time, and what you should be looking to do once you get there. For instance, Mclellan and Babcock run very similar systems. The outcomes don't seem overly similar however (with the exception of the fact that they're both successful).

I imagine they'll be seriously regretting the 5+ million dollars they gave him to do exactly that. You don't give somebody that much money to gradually improve your team and (if the stars align) perhaps bring you success. You don't pay forwards 7 million bucks for 50 points seasons either. If you give a guy (roughly) twice what the highest paid coach (Quenneville) is currently making, you're not expecting mediocre results. I spoke about this the other day. If you offer 5 million bucks to Babcock, and he accepts it; you're both implicitly agreeing that he's A) going to give you the best possible chance to win a Cup, and B) that he'll deliver on that. If he doesn't, then the entire process will be exposed for the hype driven debacle that it is.

Worse, imagine if Babs signs for a year, Blashill leaves, and then Babs goes someplace else because that prospect obviously intrigues him? I sure hope it's implied that if he stays, he signs long(ish) term, because Kenny could get caught without a seat on this one.

**Two Calder Cups in 3 years, with two totally different groups of guys. Edit: If Babcock re-signs with Detroit, and Jim Nill doesn't steal Blashill from us, I'll be completely blown away.

Columbus' beat writer is reporting that Kerby Rychel is available. Scouting reports say he's a power forward with scoring upside. He's a first round pick (19th overall) and has had pretty solid AHL, Junior, and international experiences. I don't know much about the kid, but seems interesting.

Why's that?

Who could blame him? Have you been to Philly?

Lol. Classic Flyers. Enjoy the cellar for another couple of years you losers. There are more quality head coaches available than at any point in recent memory and they pick a guy who's never coached a single game of professional hockey. Are they "too smart" or too cheap for their own good?

Well good thing it's not about the money, it's about winning, so it shouldn't matter if Buffalo offers him 20 million.

Here's a couple of fun facts that nobody seems remotely interested in following and/or giving any special credence to... There are four teams left in the playoffs (which are still going on): If Anaheim wins, Bruce Boudreau has a better winning percentage AND as many Cups as Mike Babcock. If Chicago wins Joel Quenneville has the second most all time wins AND three Cups If New York wins Alain Vigneault has take two different teams to the Cup finals and won with one of them (just like Babs) If Tampa wins Jon Cooper won a Cup in his second year full year as coach, after beating Babcock, the top team in the division, the top team in the league, and whichever team he beats in the West. There are a TON of really good coaches out there. Some as good, or better, than Mike Babcock. However the story of the day, every day, revolves around a guy who hasn't made it out of the second round since 2009 and who's team isn't even playing anymore. And acknowledge it or not, he's had ALL SEASON to decide whether he wants to stay with Detroit. But of course he hasn't had all season to get flown around the world, and interviewed, and wined and dined, and written about extensively. And that obviously doesn't appeal to a guy who wants to be thought of as the best coach of his generation. Nope. Oh by the way, if you wanted to be the best coach of your generation, why would you interview with Buffalo, and Toronto, and Philadelphia? Because those teams are all going places and we aren't? If all he cared about is winning (like he says) then he would have signed with Detroit already. There aren't any other positions available which have the track record, the future, the money, and the will to win. But he hasn't. Why? Definitely not because he's enjoying this. Not at all.

Because he was forced to sit down with Dreger? Because he didn't know that dragging out the decision all year rather than signing an extension would add to the scrutiny? If you think his ego getting strokes isn't a big turn on for him you're nuts.

Isn't Babcock still employed? Haven't his teams underwhelmed since 2010? Did Bylsma get this much attention the day after he was fired? Nope. The hype is getting absurd. One way or another he needs to make a decision. Obviously I don't want the guy back. I make no pretenses otherwise. But more than that I'd like for the process to come to an end. I don't give a s*** whether he's taking his talents to Buffalo or otherwise. This is obnoxious.

Why don't they care about these other guys? McClellan has a higher winning percentage. Bylsma has a comparable winning percentage AND as many cups. Hitchcock has as many Cups and has 700 wins. But Mike is the story for some reason. Presumably because hype builds on itself.

I didn't see Darren Dreger having sit down interviews with Hitch, Bylsma, McClellan, and Carlyle to discuss their decision making process. There are also not up to the minute twitter posts and articles discussing the very latest developments regarding everybody else. If you think they're the same thing, you're obviously not looking too hard at all the hype Babcock is garnering.

What the hell has Nylander done aside from look smug and play like a *****?

You're the one who made the accusation.

I was just coming to post this. It's Lebron 2.0. What a primadonna. I'm soooooo tired of this crap. Just sign a ******* contract or don't, like every other person (GM, coach, or player) does in the NHL.

Have you ever talked to me? Surely you don't think I was on here trying to make a point about how great Babcock is? I'm just not sure that I'd think too hard about advice given by a guy who never won anything, only coached for six seasons, and is most famous for his off ice antics (including his super duper wacky outfits). He's not altogether different from Lady Gaga. He's played one more game of professional hockey, has exactly as many Stanley Cups, and has a devoted fan following. I'd argue she has better taste, but they're not too far off otherwise.

He chooses not to write anything at all. Writing was invented by foreigners.

And who better to give Mike Babcock advice than a guy who never won anything of note in his entire coaching career. If you want advice on how to be a xenophobic, blowhard, dinosaur, ask Don Cherry. If you want advice on how to be a successful coach, ask somebody who has been one. John Tortorella and Marc Crawford were more successful NHL coaches than Don...so maybe start with them.

Very classy move. This speaks volumes about the decency of the organization, but also about the profound impact that social media, the internet, non-traditional information outlets, and data oriented analysis have had on the sports landscape. Only a short time ago, a guy like Matt would have been considered a diehard fan, and nothing more. Naming the Cup after him seems to suggest that someone like Matt can have a substantive impact on sports decision-makers, not because of his position within an organization, but because the quality of his work and his commitment to transparency and objectivity change the way average fans access and interpret information about their team. I don't think you can stress enough the importance that Matt had on our own organization. I remember when Datsyuk and Zetterberg entered the league, nobody knew a thing about them. Coming off years with the same core of guys, and suddenly we had these two new guys who really looked like they could play, and who came out of nowhere. That could never happen now. There's just too much demand for information about our drafting, prospects, and development. Today Red Wings fans demand as much information about their team, at every single level, as any of the Canadian teams despite huge differences in the attention the sport in given in each country in traditional media outlets. That level of expectation, knowledge, and attention is the direct result of all the hard work Matt Wuest put into making a good product. The name of the Matt Wuest Cup is well deserved. Kudos.