Babcock hired as Oilers coach, replaces Knoblauch

EDMONTON -- Mike Babcock was hired as coach of the Edmonton Oilers on Tuesday, saying a meeting with forwards Connor McDavid, Leon Draisaitl and Zach Hyman made him want to return behind an NHL bench. 

"When I knew I was going to get together with Connor, Leon and Zach, that was worth the drive," Babcock said. "I've got to tell you, that kind of changed everything. ... It was very evident there was an alignment there. We went back and forth on what we have to do to get to be championship material and you left that meeting thinking, 'This is pretty good.'

"The interaction with star players who want nothing more than to win and tell you how they're willing to change and adjust to make that happen, that's pretty exciting for a coach. I went through in detail the changes that would have to be made for us to have success when it mattered. And when they said they were all in, the next step was to get together with ownership."

The 63-year-old replaces Kris Knoblauch, who was fired May 14 after three seasons and two appearances in the Stanley Cup Final.

It's the first time Babcock was hired to coach in the NHL since the Columbus Blue Jackets on July 1, 2023, and first time he will coach in a game since being fired by the Toronto Maple Leafs 23 games into the 2019-20 season. 

Babcock's first head coaching job in the NHL was with the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim in 2002-03. He guided them to the Stanley Cup Final, a seven-game loss to the New Jersey Devils.

"Today feels to me like it did in 2002 when I joined Anaheim," Babcock said. "You're joining the best league in the world, you have a feeling of gratitude. It's an unbelievable place, I'm a Western Canada guy, the Oil has fans like nobody, so it's a special, special thing."

Edmonton general manager Stan Bowman said Babcock checked two significant boxes.

"The last two coaches that the Oilers had hired were first-time coaches," Bowman said, referring to Knoblauch and Jay Woodcroft, who replaced Dave Tippett during the 2021-22 season, "and I think at the time that they were brought in, it made a lot of sense, and it was a really good fit. 

"I think you have to look at where the organization is right now, and at this moment in time, I think we need something different than we had before. This is a hockey market here, the fans are passionate, the expectations are high, so we were looking for somebody that clearly had experience and also had a winning pedigree. That was important."

Babcock is 12th in NHL history with 700 wins and 17th with 1,301 games in 17 seasons with Anaheim, the Detroit Red Wings and Toronto. He coached Canada to the gold medal at the 2010 Vancouver Olympics and 2014 Sochi Olympics and helped it win the World Cup of Hockey 2016.

The Maple Leafs hired Babcock prior to the 2015-16 season, qualifying for the Stanley Cup Playoffs three times during his tenure but not winning a series. He was fired Nov. 20, 2019, after going 9-10-4 in 23 games.

Babcock resigned from Columbus before even coaching a game, a decision that came five days after the "Spittin' Chiclets" podcast reported that he asked players to share personal photos on their private mobile devices. 

The situation was investigated by the NHL Players' Association before Babcock and the Blue Jackets on Sept. 17 agreed to begin the process for him to step down as coach.

When word surfaced earlier this month that Oilers were exploring hiring Babcock, the NHL held an investigation into his time in Columbus. 

The NHL on June 18 said in a statement that: "The League has completed its review of Mike Babcock's tenure in Columbus, and of certain alleged conduct associated therewith. Our investigation has concluded that, even in a light least favorable to Mr. Babcock, there is no current basis to restrict his employment in the League."

On Tuesday, NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman was asked about Babcock being hired by the Oilers following a meeting of the Board of Governors.

"Based on our investigation, we concluded there was no basis upon which he should be prohibited from coaching, and his ability to coach depended on an NHL team wanting to have him coach and sign him, which is what Edmonton did," Commissioner Bettman said.

Commissioner Bettman was then asked if there were things that gave the NHL pause on Babcock coaching.

"I mean, we looked at what was alleged to have happened and drew our conclusions as to what did and did not happen and whether or not any of those should disqualify him from being able to be in the League," Commissioner Bettman said. "Having said that, we do, and Mr. Babcock knows it because I spoke to him. I expect a certain level of decorum and conduct among all NHL personnel, especially head coaches."

When asked Tuesday about his time in Columbus, Babcock said it was his wife who told him to resign. 

"Anytime you make anybody feel uncomfortable in your life, you should take a look at yourself and say, 'How could I do that better?'" Babcock said. "And I think that's what you do as a person, is you try to always be better at what you do. The situation in Columbus, they had a full review and I'm thankful to the NHL and the NHLPA for doing that. It didn't work out for us. We're excited about making it work here.

"I'm real comfortable with the group we're going to have here surrounding me, I'm real comfortable with the management team, I'm comfortable with the interaction I've had with the players, and we walked through how the interaction is going to be, and how straight forward. And obviously they're comfortable or I wouldn't be here. And I thought that was important to have that happen so a week in, they can't be suddenly uncomfortable. I'm excited about the opportunity."

Babcock becomes the 19th coach in Oilers history and sixth since McDavid was selected with the No. 1 pick in the 2015 NHL Draft. Edmonton's captain is a five-time Ted Lindsay Award winner as most outstanding player voted on by the NHL Players' Association (including this season) and is entering the first season of a two-year, $25 million contract (average annual value of $12.5 million) he signed Oct. 6, 2025.

McDavid is eligible to become an unrestricted free agent July 1, 2028.

The Oilers (41-30-11) finished second in the Pacific Division this season and lost the Western Conference First Round in six games to the Ducks. They reached the Cup Final in 2024 and 2025, losing to the Florida Panthers each time. They lost in seven games in 2024 after trailing the best-of-7 series 3-0 and in six games last season.

"There's going to be lots of hard communication," Babcock said. "But as long as that communication is straightforward, and behind closed doors and respectful of one another, we have a chance to improve the organization and get better.

"Obviously, a lot of things have changed since when I talked about '02. It's '26 today, the League's changed, the players changed and you have to change and grow as a coach. You just have to. I know from experience what won in the Olympics (in Vancouver) in 2010, what couldn't win in Sochi in 2014. You have to adjust, you have to get better. You have to change. And that's the process that starts here tomorrow."

D.J. Smith was hired as an associate. The 49-year-old went 11-6-6 as coach of the Los Angeles Kings after Jim Hiller was fired March 1 and was Ottawa Senators coach from 2019 until he was fired 26 games into the 2023-24 season. The Kings were swept by the Colorado Avalanche in the first round.

Smith was an assistant for Babcock for four seasons in Toronto (2015-19).

"Once Mike was excited to join our staff, we started talking about how we could make this an elite coaching staff," Bowman said. "And D.J.'s experience as a head coach as well as an associate coach, he's done a little bit of everything. He's got a great track record."