It’s important to remember that there is still no actual evidence for us to pass judgement on, and the podcast guys swear and use dirty words. They even said mean words about a PR release that a player had his name attached to… that’s basically abusing the player. Who is the real bad guy here? A hardworking father from the prairies, just trying to provide for his family? Or a couple of toxic clowns that remind me of guys that made fun of me in high school?
I’m not saying it’s Paul Bissonette, but I’m not not saying it is Paul Bissonette. Something to consider.
Also remember that Bissonette threatened to rape Babcock. Even worse, no lube.
That tweet rattled me so hard I had to go home from work.
The Following 3 Users Say Thank You to The Fonz For This Useful Post:
More details on what actually went down in CBJ on Spittin Chicklets podcast this morning…. Babs invited a rookie player over lunch in the off-season, which turned into Babs taking the kids phone and scrolling through texts and photos. He then gave it back and said they were done here, no lunch required. WTF?
On top of all that Babs pulled this whole phone stealing thing in Toronto, which caused 2 players to demand a trade away from Babs, which was the final reason why he was fired from Toronto. And there was a designated player in Toronto that's job was to let all the new/young players know that Babs would pull this stunt so they could clean their phones before their intro meeting.
Crazy ####.
I'm sure there's going to be all sorts of storeys come out now of all the other stupid stunts he's pulled.
Just looking at that roster in Toronto in 2019/2020 (babs fired Nov 2019). Tyson Barrie stands out as a guy who is friend of Biz and an older player from that roster. He had just been traded to TO that summer for Kadri, so the coach didn't know him. Wasn't a great year for Barrie and was gone the next season.
__________________
.
"Fun must be always!" - Tomas Hertl
This quote from Babcock published on September 12 tells you everything you need to know. He was so arrogant and confident in his power that he thought none of the other players would dare speak up and contradict this:
“(Bissonnette’s version) couldn’t be anything further from the truth,” Babcock told The Athletic. “They sit in my office, their phone in their hand, and they scroll through.”
Asked directly if they shared only the pictures they chose to share, Babcock replied, “100 percent.”
The Following 9 Users Say Thank You to sureLoss For This Useful Post:
At 29:30 in that SC vid. So a young player was invited to Babcock's house under the auspices of a lunch to get to know him, Babs asks for the phone, flicks through the photos, hands the phone back and says "you are good to go" without any lunch and a chat?
__________________
.
"Fun must be always!" - Tomas Hertl
This quote from Babcock published on September 12 tells you everything you need to know. He was so arrogant and confident in his power that he thought none of the other players would dare speak up and contradict this:
I have stated as much in the past - even before he got hired in Toronto - but I think Babcock is an overrated coach anyway. He has always coached behind great teams. He did make it to the finals with them, but then got fired the following season. Then the Ducks won the cup. Detroit should have probably won more cups with that lineup. Toronto should have had more playoff success if he was such a great coach - I wouldn't say that they should have won a cup, but the team under him either didn't qualify, or were bounced in the 1st.
I think the Babcock hype train all got started back when Brent Sutter was hired. IIRC, there was a lot of noise about Team Canada that year and who they wanted to coach the team, and there were only two names - Brent Sutter and Mike Babcock. I bet that if Sutter got the job instead, Team Canada would still have run over everyone else, and that would have propelled Sutter (who is NOT a great coach) suddenly into the conversation of "Best Coach in the NHL".
I think Kekalainen bought into the hype as I do think his job is on the line. I think it was a bad gamble to take, and now it has blown up in his face, and I do think that unless Columbus makes the playoffs this year, he is probably out (though I do think he will be snapped up quick as he is a fairly good GM in my opinion, but this was a big mistake on his part).
I don't even blame him for coming out initially the way he did defending Babcock. Babcock is a master manipulator, full-stop. Of course he has to manipulate and deceive those above him as well.
Here is what I think about Babcock. I don't think he is a better coach than Hartley. I think they are both coaches who won exactly 1 Stanely Cup. The difference was that Hartley has only coached one team that was any good and won his cup before his toxicity poisoned the team. Hartley has a notable history of joining an organization and making them exceed expectations (or righting the ship), and he wins at every level. I can't say the same about Babcock. That's where I rate him anyway - I don't think he is a terrible coach, but I do think he is INCREDIBLY overrated.
I think there are three good things that will come out of this:
1) No more Babcock. Period. No way anyone gives him another NHL job.
2) Probably closes the door on other coaches with a history too - so this will help get some new blood in the league, which will help hockey evolve as well.
3) Everyone in the entire hockey world has been reminded that we are living in a world where the tables have turned somewhat on people who have a position of power over someone else and use it maliciously. It is easier to identify them and expose them. These things are much more difficult - if not impossible now - to sweep under the rug and keep it quiet.
Good riddance forever to the most overrated coach in NHL history and his general 'horribleness' that he seemed to have brought to the lives of so many people.
The Following 10 Users Say Thank You to Calgary4LIfe For This Useful Post:
I have stated as much in the past - even before he got hired in Toronto - but I think Babcock is an overrated coach anyway. He has always coached behind great teams. He did make it to the finals with them, but then got fired the following season. Then the Ducks won the cup. Detroit should have probably won more cups with that lineup. Toronto should have had more playoff success if he was such a great coach - I wouldn't say that they should have won a cup, but the team under him either didn't qualify, or were bounced in the 1st.
I think the Babcock hype train all got started back when Brent Sutter was hired. IIRC, there was a lot of noise about Team Canada that year and who they wanted to coach the team, and there were only two names - Brent Sutter and Mike Babcock. I bet that if Sutter got the job instead, Team Canada would still have run over everyone else, and that would have propelled Sutter (who is NOT a great coach) suddenly into the conversation of "Best Coach in the NHL".
I think Kekalainen bought into the hype as I do think his job is on the line. I think it was a bad gamble to take, and now it has blown up in his face, and I do think that unless Columbus makes the playoffs this year, he is probably out (though I do think he will be snapped up quick as he is a fairly good GM in my opinion, but this was a big mistake on his part).
I don't even blame him for coming out initially the way he did defending Babcock. Babcock is a master manipulator, full-stop. Of course he has to manipulate and deceive those above him as well.
Here is what I think about Babcock. I don't think he is a better coach than Hartley. I think they are both coaches who won exactly 1 Stanely Cup. The difference was that Hartley has only coached one team that was any good and won his cup before his toxicity poisoned the team. Hartley has a notable history of joining an organization and making them exceed expectations (or righting the ship), and he wins at every level. I can't say the same about Babcock. That's where I rate him anyway - I don't think he is a terrible coach, but I do think he is INCREDIBLY overrated.
I think there are three good things that will come out of this:
1) No more Babcock. Period. No way anyone gives him another NHL job.
2) Probably closes the door on other coaches with a history too - so this will help get some new blood in the league, which will help hockey evolve as well.
3) Everyone in the entire hockey world has been reminded that we are living in a world where the tables have turned somewhat on people who have a position of power over someone else and use it maliciously. It is easier to identify them and expose them. These things are much more difficult - if not impossible now - to sweep under the rug and keep it quiet.
Good riddance forever to the most overrated coach in NHL history and his general 'horribleness' that he seemed to have brought to the lives of so many people.
Never forget in 2010 when the greatest coach of all time tried to turn Jarome Iginla into a 4th line grinder at the Olympics. This was even before the start of the tournament.
Still one of the elite players in the game told to go hit on the 4th line.
Felt like he had a axe to grind and probably did, but Jarome and the team overcame that idiot and struck gold with Crosby.
I know players play roles on stacked teams like that but it was disgraceful.
Good riddance Babcock.
The Following 6 Users Say Thank You to Paulie Walnuts For This Useful Post:
Also, instead of Babcock being grateful that he's being given another opportunity in this league that he doesn't deserve, he goes out and does the exact same thing that got him fired in Toronto?
The man is a sociopath. I hate that he's associated with the 2010 and 2014 Olympic teams.
Most people having gone through what Babcock went through, getting kicked out of a gig that pays very well to do something he apparently has a passion for would have realized they hit the jackpot to be given a second chance and smartened the eff up... Except for a sociopath, like you mentioned. So crazy to me! Literally threw away millions!!
Never forget in 2010 when the greatest coach of all time tried to turn Jarome Iginla into a 4th line grinder at the Olympics. This was even before the start of the tournament.
Still one of the elite players in the game told to go hit on the 4th line.
Felt like he had a axe to grind and probably did, but Jarome and the team overcame that idiot and struck gold with Crosby.
I know players play roles on stacked teams like that but it was disgraceful.
Good riddance Babcock.
I was just about to post this from an HF thread where coaches were wrong and fans were right.
Quote:
Originally Posted by walkingthroughforest
Another Babcock
Refusing to play Iginla with Crosby at the 2010 Olympics, and sticking him on the fourth line or benching him.
Iginla was the best Canadian RW and goalscorer in the game at the time and Babcock had a petty grudge against him due to something that happened during the Flames/Wings playoff series in 2007.
It was clear in Team Canada training camp over the summer that Iginla and Crosby had a ton of chemistry and all the media slotted the two of them together on the top line.
When Jarome landed in Vancouver, Babcock took him to the side and said "We don't need you here to score goals". He said this to the guy who was walking into the Olympics with 436 goals in 1004 games, and a season removed from 50 goals and 98 points.
The 2006 Tornino Olympics were a disaster for Team Canada, as their non-existent offence caused them to bow out in the quarterfinals to Russia 2-0. The 2010 team had an immense amount of pressure to rid themselves of those ghosts on Canadian ice.
First game against Norway, Canada is having an unexpectedly difficult time. The game is tied 0-0 after the first, despite Canada outshooting the Norwegians 14-4. The players started gripping their sticks too tight and overplaying the puck, as flashbacks to 2006's anemic offence, where Team Canada was shutout three times in six games including an embarrassing 2-0 loss to Switzerland, begin to creep in. An underlying feeling of dread begins to wash over fans and media alike.
As the second period begins, tension is mounting. Canada is able to draw a penalty two minutes in and attempts to finally break Grotnes, who was standing tall in net for Norway. Shot after shot is turned away and it looks like Canada is going to waste their best opportunity to exorcise the ghosts of Torino. A silent meltdown is starting to take hold of the nation.
However, with 13 seconds left on the powerplay, Crosby finds Iginla floating to the top of the high slot and dishes a perfect saucer pass. Jarome Iginla proceeds to rip a one timer to the back of the net and the crowd at GM Place explodes. You could feel the collective sigh of relief throughout the nation as the scoreless tie was broken. This opened the offensive floodgates and Iginla ended up getting a hat trick with Crosby assisting on all three goals in an 8-0 Canada win.
However the next game against the Swiss, Babcock drops Iginla off the Crosby line halfway through the second period and benches him in the 3rd, replacing him with Staal on the top line and PP. Hillar nearly stole the game for the Swiss, stopping 47 shots, while Canada barely won the game in a shootout 3-2. The guy who had a hat trick last game sat on the bench for most of it. Iginla played a total of 12:03 that game, including 2:00 in the 3rd period and 0:00 in the OT.
Fans and media are confused. Everyone is speculating that Iginla must be hurt, as there couldn't be any other reason for their best scorer to play so little in a game so tight. However, in the post game press conference Babcock confirms that Iginla was fine, and that he chose to remove him from the ice.
Even though Canada won the game, most fans are concerned about this decision. Calgary fans are especially not taking this news well. It made very little sense replacing Iginla with Staal/Toews/Richards, as it seemed like a clear downgrade. Suddenly the top line and PP didn't have a pure goal scorer to rely on, and the line that Babcock seemed to begin relying in the most, the Shark line (Heately, Thornton, and Marleau), seemed to be getting worse as each game went on.
The next game is when the wheels start falling off. The game against the USA is massive, as the winner gets a bye into the quarterfinals. Iginla starts the game with Morrow on the 4th line. As the tempo started to pick up, Canada was not looking sharp in the biggest game of the tournament so far.
Miller was playing to the level of his dominating Vezina winning season, while an aging Martin Brodeur was struggling in net over a prime Roberto Luongo, who was sitting as the backup. Canada was outshooting the US by a wide margin but nothing is going in, while the best goal scorer on both benches was getting zero PP time and having to play with two guys who are not offensive first players. It almost felt as if Babcock was putting his own ego ahead of the success of the team.
Midway through the 3rd period Langenbrunner scores to make it 4-2 USA. Late in the period with the stark realization that the game is slipping away, Babcock reluctantly puts Iginla back with Crosby. Almost immediately they start producing chance after chance. With Iginla on the ice, Crosby scores with 4 minutes left to bring Canada within a goal, however it's too little too late and Kesler sealed the deal to make it 5-3 with 45 seconds remaining in the period. When asked about his decision to put Iginla back on the top line with the game on the line, Babcock is dumbfoundedly quoted as saying "I thought Richards played well in the first period, but I'm just looking for more of a shooter in the third period. That's why we went to (Iginla)."
Canda matches up with Germany in the qualification round and there was a lot of media pressure and talk about who was going to start on that top line, with many people being flabbergasted at Babcock's decision to keep Iginla and Crosby separated. Most Canadian fans are incensed, as they can't understand why their star 50 goal scorer is riding the bench. Prior to the game, Babcock even stated to the media that Iginla may not play with Crosby. However, Team Canada was a pressure cooker at this point and I think Babcock was starting to feel the heat from management about his use of Iginla. I don't think he was given a choice but to start him on the top line the next game.
Iginla responded with 2 goals and a +2 in an 8-2 win against Germany to move Canada to the quarterfinals. That cemented his spot as the top line RW on the team for both ES and PP.
Iginla stayed on the top line with Crosby for the rest of the tournament and nearly ended the Gold Medal game himself in OT before famously assisting on Crosby's Golden Goal, giving Canada it's 2nd NHL era Olympic Gold medal.
Iginla led the entire tournament in goals with 5 in 7 games, and was tied for 2nd in points for Team Canada. Who knows how the 2010 story would have ended if Babcock had his way and kept Iggy buried on the 4th line.
__________________
The Following 35 Users Say Thank You to Cole436 For This Useful Post:
Yeah that post sums is up pretty well. What a complete loser he was trying to show he is some type of genius coach he isn't even close to that and almost destroyed our goal medal chances.
He is lucky that 2014 team was able to lock in and play that grinder hockey or he would have looked like a complete fool taking one of the most talented teams and asking them to grind out 1-0 wins.
Yeah that post sums is up pretty well. What a complete loser he was trying to show he is some type of genius coach he isn't even close to that and almost destroyed our goal medal chances.
He is lucky that 2014 team was able to lock in and play that grinder hockey or he would have looked like a complete fool taking one of the most talented teams and asking them to grind out 1-0 wins.
Wasn't Mike Babcock still with the Ducks then? Wasn't Dave Lewis the coach of the Wings at the time?
Lewis was the coach of the wings in 04. Ironically, the Flames beating Lewis and the Wings in 04 probably opened up the job for Babcock after the lock out. 07 was when Noodles went on his rampage and Flames lost in 6.
The Following User Says Thank You to Robbob For This Useful Post:
I find this whole thing quite interesting in today's day and age of smart phones, videos, social media, cancel culture and coddling.
When I see Bruce Boudreau, what immediately comes to mind is the HBO documentary on the Road to the Winter Classic years ago which I think was one of the first times we saw behind the scenes in an NHL locker room - he dropped F Bomb after F Bomb in a tirade.
So what happens now when any player, pro, college, or minor leaguer pulls out a phone and tapes a coach ripping on another player for a bad game, lack of effort, no heart, whatever? It gets leaked to the podcasters or posted.
Coaches, teachers, anyone in any position of authority in sports, pro or amateur, are going to be treading very carefully going forward.
