Even though there’s a mutual respect between Bruce Cassidy and Mike Babcock, it will be a chess match of hockey IQs when the Bruins face the Maple Leafs in the first round of the Stanley Cup playoffs starting Thursday.
After 10 seasons and a championship with the Detroit Red Wings, there was a reason why Babcock was the biggest offseason acquisition for the Maple Leafs in May 2015. Toronto wants to win a title, something it hasn’t done since 1967. Along with a Stanley Cup, Babcock, 54, has won two Olympic gold medals, a World Cup, a World Championship and a World Junior Championship with Team Canada.
Cassidy, 52, hasn’t won -- yet.
“Toronto is going to push the Bruins hard,” said a former NHL coach. “I believe they can beat them. It should be a great series, and Babcock might be the difference.”
Cassidy and Babcock both coached in the AHL earlier in their respective careers; Cassidy in Grand Rapids and Babcock in Cincinnati. Cassidy remembers the pace of those games and described it as clean, hard hockey.
“I’ve always enjoyed watching his teams play,” Cassidy said of Babcock. “For the most part, this year, they’ve been good games, so that’s what I anticipate in this series. Of course, there will be some unknowns but we’ll see where it goes. It’s a tough matchup for me. He’s a great coach, well-accomplished, but I’m looking forward to it.”
When reading about Babcock’s accomplishments, it’s evident he’s coached some world-class players, both in the NHL and internationally. When a coach has players at his disposal like Sidney Crosby, Patrice Bergeron, Brad Marchand, Steven Stamkos, Jarome Iginla, Joe Thornton and Martin Brodeur, then that team should win, right? How much coaching needs to be done?
“A lot of people would say, ‘Not much’ but he establishes his game plan, his system and he wants us to respect him, no matter who you are. And that speaks a lot about the type of coach he is,” Bergeron told BostonSportsJournal.com. “He’s a great coach, obviously, and we all know that. He’s very demanding of his players and he’s very meticulous with his system. He does have an impact whether he’s coaching (Team Canada or) the Leafs.”
This is Babcock’s system: His teams play hard and fast. They move the puck and are on the attack. They put pressure on the opposition in every area of the game. They are always detailed. His will permeates throughout his players, and that's seen in how they attack and compete.
On the bench, Babcock is a master on matchups. He can make adjustments quickly. There is no panic in his decisions -- he has everything under control.
“It’s a very interesting system that they play, and you can see why he’s been successful everywhere he’s gone,” said Marchand. “He expects a lot out of his players, and he’s a great coach to play for. It was nice to get a taste of it, his coaching style, and the way he handles his team.”
When it comes to in-game matchups, the opposing coaches have different philosophies. It’s going to be interesting to see how Cassidy handles the challenge.
“Everyone has their own school of thought. Mike’s been a very successful coach, and we’ve had our success this year, trying to keep the flow of the game and asking certain guys to handle certain responsibilities to make them better players so they can handle it at this time of the year,” Cassidy said.
That’s not to say he won’t go with the hard matchup, but he prefers to have a rhythm to his line changes.
“We look for (matchups), but we don’t chase it,” said a confident Cassidy.
Logan Couture, Steven Stamkos, Brad Marchand, Ryan O'Reilly, Patrice Bergeron, and Alex Pietrangelo of Team Canada huddle around head coach Mike Babcock during a timeout during the World Cup of Hockey game at the semifinal game during the World Cup of Hockey tournament at the Air Canada Centre on September 24, 2016 in Toronto. (Photo by Dennis Pajot/Getty Images)