Many have wondered what the “Mike Babcock Effect” will have on the futures of Phil Kessel and Dion Phaneuf.
Could one or both turn around their sagging Maple Leafs careers amid the new optimism on Bay St. that followed Babcock’s hiring as coach?
Or has Babcock’s arrival marginalized the pair even further with “For Sale” signs around their necks until a suitable deal for their long-term contracts is found.
The most recent dispatches from the hockey office say Babcock thinks Phaneuf can be salvaged, but shares the disdain that Shanahan is said to have for Kessel.