'Didn’t Enjoy My Last Year And A Half': Former Maple Leafs Coach Mike Babcock Assesses Previous Tenure Ahead of Return To Toronto

The Toronto Maple Leafs are hosting the Edmonton Oilers on Saturday to complete their six-game homestand. This game isn't just crucial for the Maple Leafs because of their current five-game losing streak in regulation, but it will be a special night because Mike Babcock is returning to Scotiabank Arena.

This is the first time Babcock will set foot in Toronto again as an NHL head coach, this time with the Oilers.

Babcock spent parts of five seasons as the Maple Leafs' head coach, from 2015-16 to 2019-20. He was behind Toronto's bench for 351 regular-season games, earning a 173-133-45 record

"I loved it," Babcock said of his time with the Leafs at the Oilers' practice on Friday. "I worked with real good people. I enjoyed the heck out of my first three years, worked with good hockey men. I didn’t enjoy my last year and a half as much. But that’s the business. I really enjoyed my time here."

His first three years with the organization were under GM Lou Lamoriello. After that, the one-and-a-half years that he references at the end of his tenure were with Kyle Dubas.

In November 2019, Dubas fired Babcock after a 9-10-4 start to the season, replacing him with Sheldon Keefe. On top of that start to the campaign, Babcock had never led the Maple Leafs past the first round in his three tries in the post-season.

"We didn’t have enough success in the playoffs, but that is often what happens with young teams," he said. "In the end, they gave me a five-year holiday, which I really enjoyed.”

Current Maple Leafs head coach, Jim Hiller, was part of Babcock's coaching staff in Toronto as an assistant.

So going into this matchup, Babcock knows what coaching the Maple Leafs is like, and the type of bench boss Hiller is. Put that together, and the veteran head coach has some idea of what Hiller is going through in the Toronto market as the team struggles, and how Hill handles it.

"This is what I know about Jim Hiller -- he's a real good man, he's a real good person," Babcock said. "He's going to work hard and do his best every day and try to help the guys win... the NHL, some days, isn't kind to you, but you got to be kind to yourself. You got to enjoy what you're doing, and shut off your apps or whatever the heck you got on your phone and get on with your life. The people (whose) knees hit your kitchen table matter. The rest don't much matter."

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