5 candidates to replace Bruce Boudreau as Minnesota Wild coach
4. Mike Babcock
Babcock was fired by the Toronto Maple Leafs back in November after a 9-10-4 start, and his record (apart from any sullied reputation) makes him an automatic candidate for openings looking toward the offseason. He has over 1,300 regular season wins, with a Stanley Cup and two other Final appearances on his resume.
If Guerin is pressured at all by Wild owner Craig Leipold to find a big-name coach, Babcock will stand out. The Maple Leafs made him the highest-paid coach in the league when he was hired in 2015, so Babcock could just sit out next season unless he sees the right opportunity out there this summer. On the idea of waiting and/or taking part in setting a culture, the expansion franchise in Seattle stands out as a possible landing spot for Babcock.
Add in the prorated portion of his salary for this year, Toronto owed Babcock around $23.25 million at the time of his firing. There is surely some offset language, but Babcock could just sit and wait for the ideal landing spot while collecting checks from the Maple Leafs in the meantime.
Mike Babcock has been relieved of his duties as the head coach of the Toronto Maple #Leafs
— CapFriendly (@CapFriendly) November 20, 2019
At the time of firing there were still 3 years remaining on his 8 year, $50M contract
His total time with the #Leafs clocked in at 4 years and 6 monthshttps://t.co/rGdABmKVsQ pic.twitter.com/Ze52vo3x9Q
Everything considered, Guerin still would not be undertaking a full search without considering Babcock. The overall fit in Minnesota is a different, yet to be answered, question that both sides should be willing to pursue an answer to.