Should Leafs Fans Really Worry About Babcock & Matthews?

It was mentioned in a recent PHR post that rumors of friction between Toronto Maple Leafs bench boss Mike Babcock and star Auston Matthews carried over into the postseason, a rift that was discussed at length by Sportsnet’s Nick Kypreos who appeared on Sportsnet’s Starting Lineup. Kypreos believes that Babcock “lost” Matthews because, as Kypreos notes, Matthews went from being the “guy” for Babcock, and in what he calls a “Freaky Friday” situation, Mitch Marner emerged as Babcock’s “go to guy.” In addition to losing Matthews, Kypreos believes that there is “no trust” between the two, which of course, ignited a swell of stories regarding the relationship between the Leafs’ superstar and the man considered one of the best coaches in the game.

An Associated Press story refuted any sort of rift, quoting Babcock after he received a text from a friend asking if the stories were true. Along with taking a shot at the speculation, Babcock indicates he went straight to the source–Matthews:

“I said, ’What’s going on?’” Babcock told reporters of his conversation with Matthews. “It’s interesting in Toronto, you (media) do such a good job. You’re everywhere. You’re under the bench, you’re in the crack in the door, you’re in the car, you’re in the parking lot. You’re everywhere, and any time anybody does anything there’s a big story.

“I asked him flat-out, ‘Do we have any (issues)?’ He was sitting right there. We don’t seem to.”

Matthews responded as well:

“I don’t know what that’s all about,” he said. “Our relationship’s fine. Obviously, you guys can speculate all you want, but I think it’s pointless. Stuff happens, people speculate. I can tell you right now it’s not the case.”

If history is any indicator, this is likely much ado about nothing.

The Leafs just finished off their season in the most excruciating of ways: rallying from a 3-1 series deficit, holding a 4-3 lead heading into the third period of Game 7, and then watching Boston blow past them with four goals to seal the game, series, and Toronto’s season. Emotions from the players to the front office are going to be raw. Factor in that the Maple Leafs are under a microscope from local and national media, and you have a perfect platform for finger pointing.

Conflict with players is hardly new when it comes to Babcock. Known for his background in psychology and tough love, news has always followed the coach that players were either passing on a contract to play for him or that he was alienating players on his current roster. Chris Chelios famously came out after Babcock went to Toronto and said on a Detroit radio show that the Red Wings would have a better shot at free agents because Babcock was “a tough guy to play for.” Chelios was speaking more for veterans, as he commented that younger guys benefitted from Babcock because he held them “accountable.”  Captain Henrik Zetterberg, in comments to MLive’s Ansar Khan back in 2015, spoke about how both the team and Babcock were ready to move on from one another. Though he never came out and spoke poorly of Babcock, many inferred from his words that players were tiring of him.

The claims weren’t unique to Detroit, either. Jeremy Roenick, back in 2009, argued that Babcock didn’t like American players.  Going all the way back to 2003, the New York Post’s Larry Brooks insinuated that former Ducks Teemu Selanne and Paul Kariya bolted Anaheim for Colorado because of Babcock’s “unforgiving system.”

Mike Babcock is a tough coach to play for. That has been chronicled since he first came up with Anaheim. So why fret as a Leafs fan about friction between its star player and coach? History has revealed that any team with Mike Babcock will certainly see some kind of conflict with his players–as well as the success that has followed Babcock from Anaheim, to Detroit, and finally, to Toronto.