Despite the drama that ensued over former bench coach Mike Babcock’s departure to Toronto, Babcock did provide accolades to his boss of 10 years that few can argue.
“They had real good scouts, they have the best general manager in hockey, a great owner [Mike Ilitch] who let the GM run a real good program, and they kept good people and they kept building,” Babcock told the Maple Leafs website. “When they made mistakes they didn’t dwell on it, they just went ahead and kept building. They hired good people and let them do their jobs.