After the Capitals’ 4-2 loss to the Red Wings Wednesday, Pierre McGuire spoke to Detroit head coach Mike Babcock during NBCSN’s post-game show. There was one response from the Stanley Cup-winning bench boss that was particularly interesting to me. Babcock was asked about his long history with Barry Trotz in the Western Conference and if that gave him any insight into the game.
Babcock, considered to be one of the best coaches in the league, instead went out of his way to praise how good of a coach he thinks Trotz is.
He also briefly gushed about Andre Burakovsky, once Pierre told him what his name was.
This seemed really genuine to me, so I had to share.
Did knowing the other coach help [tonight]? You’ve coached so many years against Barry Trotz.
Mike Babcock: Well, I would say this is it. I know Trotz is a real good coach. He knows how to go and take a culture to an organization. He’s done it before and he’s got instant credibility when he walks in the door. He’s won over 500 games in the league. That doesn’t happen by accident. So sure I know him real good, but I didn’t know the players. 65– how do you say his name?
Andre Burakovsky.
Mike Babcock: We’re all going to know his name in a hurry, aren’t we? Like I mean he’s flying. These kids that I don’t know– Latta I didn’t know who he was, Kuznetsov. I didn’t really know who those kids are. That’s three of their four centermen. So until you see them live– I can watch them on TV all you want– but it’s hard until I see them.
Babcock brings up a good point. The Caps are super young up the middle. Three of their four centers last night were rookies, and they are learning how to play the right way from Trotz. This may be an explanation for some of the Caps’ struggles lately, but overall, judging by possession stats (the Caps dominated Detroit), this is a good team that will only get better.
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