In Red Wings Land

Detroit Red Wings mailbag: Mike Babcock, trades and more - Freep

Helene doesn’t think the Wings are interested in making a coaching change or a particular free-agent coach would be interested in rejoining the team anyway. She also weighs in on Fabbri, veterans’ trade value, and gets a nice little shot-not-pass in on Val Filppula.

Apparently the @DetroitRedWings prospect Jonatan Berggren left the SHL game with @skelleftea_aik with a shoulder injury (according to a swedish newspaper).#LGRW #NHL

— Lars Thorsell (@LarsThorsell) November 23, 2019

‘I have to step up’: Jimmy Howard takes blame for Detroit Red Wings’ recent struggles - The Detroit News

In terms of what exactly you’d like to hear Jimmy Howard say, I think the Wings’ netminder came pretty close to hitting that. He takes blame but isn’t bending over backwards to beat himself up for the press over it. Actions gotta follow the words though...

Around the League

The NHL’s stance hasn’t changed and the NWHL isn’t folding. Where does that leave the PWHPA? - TheHockeyNews

The PWHPA is set to hit the road again in January with its biggest Dream Gap Tour stop yet, but the NHL’s unchanging stance and the NWHL’s growth have left some wondering what the future holds.

Anyone who thinks @commie22 needs to lay off Babs just doesn’t understand how much hate players have for him. It’s beyond him scratching @commie22 or saying he was out of shape. #NHL players are a very very small population of athletes and people.

— Mark Fraser (@MarkFraser02) November 23, 2019

We share stories throughout the years with each other and for those outside the locker rooms, you will never truly understand some of the terrible undeserving things Babs has done to his some of his players. You don’t have to like all your coaches, but he is one

— Mark Fraser (@MarkFraser02) November 23, 2019

who 95% of his players can’t say a good thing about. With the ability to end players careers, he’s chosen to do so to long serving vets that have resulted in all his players turning against him. He’s used his power to turn teammates against each other, and choose to continuously

— Mark Fraser (@MarkFraser02) November 23, 2019

lie to his players. @commie22 may have strong public opinions of Babs, but in our fraternity of #NHL and former #NHL players, he’s speaking for the masses. He’s speaking for countless players who have personally told me their terrible stories of Babs just being a bad guy.

— Mark Fraser (@MarkFraser02) November 23, 2019

He’s speaking for all the #MapleLeafs who wouldn’t dare speak the truth right now, but damn sure want to. @commie22 has so many players respect. If only the outsiders in the hockey world knew the truth.

— Mark Fraser (@MarkFraser02) November 23, 2019

I’ve always felt that there was enough truth in Mike Commodore’s vendetta against Mike Babcock to support the rest of the whispers about how Babcock was more than just “hard to get along with”, but that’s also been terribly colored for me by what a big baby Commodore has been.

The claim that there’s a large portion of current (and even former) players who keep these kinds of thoughts to themselves makes a lot of sense too - hockey is still an old boys’ club and it’s not worth the trouble for most of them to upset the apple cart by taking these things to the court of public opinion.

I still think Commodore tweeting a picture of Babcock loading up his truck crossed the line from jovial grave-dancing to exhuming the corpse for a waltz... but I’m also not real spun up about it. Mike Babcock’s ego should be able to survive this too.