There would be no stronger stench of desperation than the Edmonton Oilers interviewing Mike Babcock for their vacant head coaching job.

This is not a hot take, and I don’t even think it should be controversial. Mike Babcock has lost the right to be an NHL coach. His actions, spread out over multiple teams, are why he shouldn’t even be mentioned as a possibility. If you are a believer in second chances, Babcock had his second chance in 2023 when Columbus hired him on July 1st, 2023. They hired him after knowing about the Mitch Marner story from Toronto. Babcock didn’t even make it to training camp before he resigned on September 17. That was his second chance. The NHL doesn’t need him and the Oilers surely don’t need his antics.

He resigned because once again, his thirst for control and the need to show players he had all the power came through. Ex-NHLer Paul Bissonnette, co-host of Spittin’ Chiclets podcast, broke the story on their pod when he said he was told by an unidentified player that the veteran coach asked players during one-on-one meetings to see photos on their phones and would then stream them on his television.

The same day Babcock resigned, the following statement came out.

“Our players deserve to be treated with respect in the workplace. Unfortunately, that was not the case in Columbus. The club’s decision to move forward with a new head coach is the appropriate course of action.”

Those were the words of the executive director of the NHLPA, Marty Walsh. Columbus hired Babcock because they believed he’d changed. But they were wrong, and once again his natural instincts emerged. Babcock didn’t just make mistakes with the Blue Jackets and Marner. He has a history of it.

Mike Commodore

Former NHLer Mike Commodore has been very public in his disdain for Babcock for years. He’s spoken openly about it for over a decade. He has outlined how he feels Babcock tried to ruin his career on two separate occasions, the first when he was trying to break into the league with Anaheim. Here is a snippet of his conversation from a 2019 interview on 97.1 The Ticket in Detroit regarding the Anaheim situation.

”I don’t know who Mike Babcock is. I’ve never heard of him, I’ve never had a run in with him, nothing when I was in Anaheim. There’s no previous history whatsoever. I show up to camp, fight everybody in camp, I’m supposed to play (when the season starts). I’m penciled in, but he has someone else he wants to play. Sends me down to the minors, carves me in the papers, says I showed up out of shape.

“I swear to God, I never showed up out of shape because I wasn’t talented........

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