A day after being eviscerated by the normally non-confrontational Mark Messier, Mike Babcock responded to the Hockey Hall of Famer’s criticism after the Oilers’ training camp skate on Thursday.
In ESPN’s 2026 NHL Opening Night media conference call, Messier said he was “horrified” both about the Oilers’ hiring of the disgraced head coach and the hiring process, which featured Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl meeting with the veteran bench boss and holding sway over the decision. Messier added further that he was “shocked” that the Oilers would still let him behind the bench despite “the stories that I heard from very good, reputable, character people about the way they were treated.”
Babcock chuckled when he was first asked if he had seen the comments. “Yeah, I mean, the media guys here, they helped me out. They sent it to me yesterday, so I just sent it to my family.”
Babcock then shifted to praising Messier and his legacy in Edmonton.
“So, one of these teams is Team Messier, right?” Babcock said, referring to one of the Oilers’ training-camp groups being named after the icon. The other is Team Gretzky.
“So, he won four Cups here,” Babcock continued, apparently forgetting one of Messier’s five championships with Edmonton (1984, 1985, 1987, 1988, and 1990). “I’m younger than him. When I’d watch him, hard leader, two-way competitive, went to New York, hard, two-way competitive, real leader. I’ve dealt with him two times in my life. One time, we were getting presented Olympic gold medals here, and he ran on. I think my daughter was seven or eight then. He treated us great. Another time was at the Hall of Fame thing. He treated me great.
“Like I said, Team Messier, (he) is a legend here. Is it ESPN that he does? Is that the one? He does great on that. I have nothing but respect for him.”
So in summary: Babcock did not dispute Messier’s accusations, defend the hiring process, or criticize Messier back. His response was essentially: I saw what he said; I respect what he accomplished; my personal experiences with him were positive; and I respect him, trying to move forward from the controversy as quickly as possible.
When asked if he was aware of how much the media was talking about him, the avid bowhunter spoke about what he focuses on when at home: going through through overnight trail-camera photos of whitetail deer, sorting and deleting them.
“You know, I got up this morning, my deer pictures were right there,” Babcock said. “I had like about a thousand of them I had to delete. That’s my social media. My dad had this unbelievable line. He said, ‘Son, if your knees hit my kitchen table, I probably care what you think.’ In other words, it’s your family and the people around the rest is just noise.”
Babcock’s hiring continues to draw attention and negative feedback across the NHL due to the long history of complaints about how he treated players at previous stops. Former Red Wings forward Johan Franzen accused Babcock of verbal abuse and later called him “the worst person I have ever met,” while Mitch Marner said Babcock made him privately rank his Maple Leafs teammates by work ethic before sharing the list with the room.
Daniel Winnik said that Babcock was “the only guy that has ever made me hate hockey,” describing him as a “bully.”
Babcock’s last NHL job also ended before he coached a single game. Babcock resigned from the Columbus Blue Jackets in 2023 — he later said that was due to his wife — after reports that he had asked players to show him personal photos from their phones, prompting NHL and NHLPA scrutiny. When Edmonton began pursuing him this summer, the NHLPA pushed for the league to revisit that conduct before he was hired. The NHL ultimately said there was “no current basis to restrict his employment.”
Recently, Oilers captain Connor McDavid said he would step in if Babcock crossed the line, like the veteran bench boss did at his other coaching stops.
“It was pretty clear that he was content with where his life was at, and he wanted to make sure that this is what we really wanted.” McDavid said. “And we wanted to make sure that he wanted to come back and work and match the level of intensity that us players have. And, obviously, both sides felt that it was a good match.”
While this may be what both sides wanted, the continuing controversies and daily distractions could wear thin inside the locker room as Edmonton tries to return to the Stanley Cup Final for the third time in four seasons.
