Mike Babcock appeared on the show Tuesday.
The first question asked was why? Why would he want to come to back to coaching in Columbus? Babcock said his son leaving the University of Saskatchewan is what fired him up to coach again. He also spoke to the fact that he has ties to Ohio, owning a couple farms in Southwest Ohio and coaching in Cincinnati.
When asked about the roster Coach Babcock said that the fact the Jackets went out and got Provorov and Severson, and already having Zach Werenski, that should make the D better, which in turn should make the goalies better. Babcock mentioned that by adding those pieces, along with Fantilli, could cause a “real jump”.
He states that he wouldn’t have come to Columbus if he didn’t have existing relationships with Jarmo Kekalainen and John Davidson. The CBJ seemed to be excited to hire him, and that makes this coming back from retirement easier.
Speaking on his time away from the NHL, he stated that TV was not the right fit when appeared on NBC covering hockey. He left U of S so the coaches who were there could focus on themselves.
It sounds like Mike Babcock worked on his communication skills during his time away.
Check out the show here