NHL Transactions, Injuries & Rumours

[Arian The Insider]

Love the signing. I just hope they don't try to do a half ass rebuild now since they got him.

[dave1959]

Leafs sign head coach Pat Quinn-----yay

Leafs sign head coach Paul Maurice----yay

Leafs sign head coach Ron Wilson-----yay

Leafs sign head coach Randy Carlyle-yay

Leafs sign head coach Mike Babcock----yay


....and so it goes

[Arian The Insider]

Lol Dave, you just seem angry that nobody cares about the Sens.

[The BBKL Insider]

Leafs sign head coach Pat Quinn-----yay

Leafs sign head coach Paul Maurice----yay

Leafs sign head coach Ron Wilson-----yay

Leafs sign head coach Randy Carlyle-yay

Leafs sign head coach Mike Babcock----yay


....and so it goes

HOld up here Dave

we cared about Quinn and now Babcock. I wasn't thrilled about any of the rest you've listed.

[Lee]

PMO is actually a good coach.

[dave1959]

nope....not at all


For the sake of all the die-hard fans, I hope it's the beginning of the Leafs being relevant again.

Develop things slowly and don't try to win overnight like they always do.


I hope to see some more Leafs-Sens playoff matches in the future.

[The BBKL Insider]

Just trade kessel and eat half of lupuls salary and take any pick for him.

[Lee]

Someone on HF offered Oleksiak and DAL 1st 2016 for Dion, I'd take it.

[Nick]

Pretty amazing news.


Lots of attempts at raining on a good day here. Leafs just got the uncontested best coach on the planet.


No one should care what he got paid, it's outside the cap system.
Doesn't change the need for change, we just have an all-world hockey-mind giving specific player and system advice.
Doesn't mean we're suddenly going to be good, but anyone saying it doesn't change the outlook is a lier or an idiot.



So the Leafs paid for an amazing coach, if you think high end thinking is expensive , you should see the cost of ignorance!





Some random thoughts:
Babs supposedly was one of the pushers for Dion to DET. Potentially increasing the chance that we keep Dion on as a veteran leader presence. No doubt he plays hard and trains appropriately.

Dubas + Babs leads to some amazing and consistent views of puck possession and puck location hockey.


Shanny + Babs gives instant creditability when speaker with UFA's or young players


IMO this is the 2nd best thing that could have happened to the leafs this off-season (lottery #1).

[Tony]

Thank God. Didn't want SJ to give an absurd contract to a coach thst plays Dan God damn Cleary over Nyquist.

[Nick]

Would hate to have developed players like Nyqvist, Tatar, etc.

[kyuss]

Thank God. Didn't want SJ to give an absurd contract to a coach thst plays Dan God damn Cleary over Nyquist.

well said god damnit!

[Shoalzie]

I'll be curious to see what becomes of the Leafs' veterans. I don't think I'd be as quick to unload them without seeing what they could do under Babcock. You'll probably find out quickly how unfit they are for his system. He can coach star players but he seems to speak to star players who are committed to both ends of the ice. If a star player is lazy, they're hopeless. He spoke glowingly about Hank and Pavel and Kronwall in his time in Detroit. His leaders were his best players. I don't know who you can point to in Toronto right now and say they're his kind of leaders.

[Tony]

Would hate to have developed players like Nyqvist, Tatar, etc.

It's not SJ's direction right now. Doug Wilson has said so publicly.

I'm hoping for Dave Lowry personally.

[KapG]

Leafs sign head coach Pat Quinn-----yay

Leafs sign head coach Paul Maurice----yay

Leafs sign head coach Ron Wilson-----yay

Leafs sign head coach Randy Carlyle-yay

Leafs sign head coach Mike Babcock----yay


....and so it goes

None of those guys are on Babcock's level...

[KapG]

Also, kessel and Dion still better be on their way out. Won't even really be interested in watching the leafs if they are still part of this team...

[kyuss]

I'd expect Dion to stay so you'll probably have more time to watch other teams next season, which is a good thing BBKL wise

[The BBKL Insider]

i also expect there's a good chance dion stays.

Kessel on the other hand has pretty much been traded already. The only issue being, none of us know the team or return yet, and i'm not sure shanny does either.

[CAM]

After watching the presser, its hard not to love Babcock and what he stands for. Leafs actually look like they are going all in on a proper rebuild with the right people at the helm.

[Shoalzie]

Babs is charismatic and confident without being over the top. If the Leafs continue to lose, he's not the reason. You put the best coach behind the bench and now the pressure falls on the players and management to give him a winning group. He can only do so much with a team. He got just about as much as he could from this most recent addition of the Wings. They've got aging stars, a bit of a goalie controversy, good young talent but no one emerging as the "next Yzerman" or "next Lidstrom" et al and his defense is average. Now that he's coaching Toronto...he's truly Canada's coach.