“Defeating” the likes of the Detroit Red Wings, Buffalo Sabres, St. Louis Blues, and San Jose Sharks to acquire the services of the game’s “premier” coach made a great consolation prize for the Toronto Maple Leafs as the third round of the playoffs was nearing completion.
On May 20th, Mike Babcock was introduced as the 30th head coach in the history of the Toronto Maple Leafs and said all the right things during his press conference. He spoke of “the plan” and the commitment from the board to “stick to it” through the bad and the good times.