The Maple Leafs are looking to rebuild, and with the hire of Detroit Red Wings head coach Mike Babcock, the turnaround could happen sooner than expected. Babcock is one of the most decorated coaches in the NFL right now. He is the only coach to have won the hockey Triple Gold (winning the World Championships and Olympics with Team Canada and the Stanley Cup with Detroit). After years of mediocrity and stumbling around the bottom of the standings, the Toronto Maple Leafs are going to making a push towards their former greatness this offseason.
With the Maple Leafs being one of the original six teams of the NHL and only trailing the Montreal Canadians for most Stanley Cup wins, the owners knew they had to make a big splash to turn around this club that hasn't won the Cup in almost 50 years. Just last year, the Leafs hired a former Babcock player as their president, Brendan Shanahan. Shanahan tells ESPN he can sense the change in culture in Toronto:
"We have good people here. We're going to acquire good people and we're going to make them better."
Acquiring Babcock as coach for the next eight years is an indicator they are moving in the right direction. Babcock spent ten seasons at the helm of the Red Wings, winning only one Stanley Cup but finished with an impressive overall record and brought the team to the playoffs every season. Red Wing fans are going to miss having Babcock on the bench as much as he will miss coaching for Detroit.
The Detroit Free Press was on hand for Babcock's farewell press conference, with the coach getting choked up and emotional:
"Don't get me wrong. I love it here. But I also think it was time for me, I wanted a different challenge. When I got it in my head: I'm coaching an Original Six franchise, the model of the NHL, if I'm going to leave, I have to go to an Original Six franchise. I just have to."
How do you think Babcock will do in Toronto? Who will the Red Wings replace Babcock with as new coach? Tell us your thoughts below.
