In the end, it was all about the money for Mike Babcock. He could have taken the Buffalo job for the largest contract a National Hockey League coach has ever gotten while coaching this year’s No. 2 pick (presumably Jack Eichel) and last year’s No. 2 pick (Sam Reinhart). Or he could have stayed with the comfortable choice in Detroit. Or moved back to the Western Conference with San Jose or St. Louis.
Instead, he picked the worst situation of all his suitors: the Toronto Maple Leafs. 
If he wins in Toronto, he’s a legend. The contract is reportedly for eight years at $50 million, although according to Bob McKenzie at TSN, it may pay as much as $8 million per year for the first three years, and there may be an out after five years, per Elliotte Friedman of Hockey Night In Canada. Can he do it in those first three of five years? With that roster?
Unless Brendan Shanahan can work miracles, it isn’t happening.
For all the people in Detroit wondering how the Red Wings and GM Ken Holland could let this happen: He earned the right to be a free agent after 10 seasons in Detroit. He was offered a huge contract after last season and he chose to decline it. You can’t make a guy sign a deal Babcock’s job in Detroit wasn’t easy. He took a team post-lockout that massively underachieved in the postseason in the two years after winning the 2002 Stanley Cup, while still maintaining huge expectations. It paid off in 2008 with a Stanley Cup title, and then he got the team to Game 7 in 2009, falling to Pittsburgh.
But there is plenty of downside to the Babcock era also. Game 7 in the 2009 Final was at home, the team hasn’t gotten out of the first round in three of the last four years and blew a 3-1 lead to Chicago in the second round of 2013. They haven’t closed out a series at home since 2009 against Anaheim in the Western Conference Finals, despite having chances to do just that in 2009, 2013, and this year against Tampa.
He had a challenge in the locker room as well, helping the team transition from the Steve Yzerman era, to the Nicklas Lidstrom era and now to the Henrik Zetterberg era. But by all accounts, the room may have been ready for new voice.
That new voice, by all accounts, will likely be Jeff Blashill. Blashill coaches the Red Wings’ AHL affiliate in Grand Rapids. He has the Griffins in the Western Conference finals for the second time in three years, winning the Calder Cup two years ago.
The Red Wings are staring at some roster uncertainty in the next couple of years. Stephen Weiss’ contract has proven to be disastrous; Johan Franzen may be forced to retire due to repeated concussions; Zetterberg hasn’t topped the 20-goal mark for three years — but remains at nearly a point-per-game scorer for his career; Pavel Datsyuk has two years left on his contract when he will likely retire or finish his career at home in the KHL.
Blashill will need to work with Ken Holland to see how the young players will fit with Detroit. Fortunately, since he’s currently coaching them, he knows their strengths and weaknesses well. It doesn’t guarantee success, but it will at least help in putting together a roster he’s comfortable working with.
In winning the Calder Cup, he coached Petr Mrazek, Gustav Nyquist, Joakim Andersson, Tomas Tatar, Tomas Jurco, Landon Ferraro, Riley Shehan, Luke Glendeining and Danny DeKeyser — all who are in Detroit now. Teemu Pulkkinen, Alexey Marchenko and Xavier Ouellet are all Grifins who are poised to make the leap next.
The organization still is among the best at scouting and drafting late round talent. Whether it’s Datsyuk in the sixth round, Zetterberg in the 7th or Tomas Holmstrom in the 11th round in 1994, Holland and his scouts have gotten it done. Axel Holmstrom (no relation to Tomas), was drafted in the 7th round last year and was the Swedish hockey Junior Player of the Year despite being rated the 90th best European skater by Central Scouting last year. The prospect well hasn’t dried up for Detroit yet.
Babcock moves on from the job he called “the best job in hockey,” to one where he will be constantly under the magnifying glass. He leaves Detroit as the franchise’s all-time leader in wins with 458, but ultimately decided it was time for a change. I think the team he’s leaving needed one, too.
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