This is the first kind of whooping that you?ve taken this year. What?s different on the day after the team doesn?t play well as opposed to, arguably, the first five games, in which they gave up leads but overall were pretty good?
Mike Babcock: What I would tell you is I really liked us until last night. And I even liked lots of things about last night, to be honest with you. But I couldn?t believe how rattled we got. We gave up two goals early. We made mistakes watching the puck and chasing the puck that we haven?t been making. Part of it is the intent. I remember the start of last year, when I coached my first couple of nights here, I couldn?t believe what the guys felt in the building ? the heat they felt. We haven?t felt anything like that this year because we think we?re a good team. Last night, when it came unraveled quick for us ? and obviously, we?re playing a real good team too, so you?ve got to give them a little respect ? I didn?t think we managed that very good. In the end, obviously, today for our group ? because we feel like we?re going in the right direction ? today we were going the opposite direction. I think that?s a lot like life. You?ve got to pick yourself up and get at her.
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You suddenly find yourself with two, three, maybe more players that have significant offensive skills. There is no expectation that these kids are going to score 40 or 50 goals ? maybe they will ? but there is no expectation of that; there?s no pressure to do that. We think, eventually, they have the chance to be those kind of guys. I wonder, as a coach, how flexible you are as a coach, in your teaching methods and philosophy, of how to play. Do you have to adjust to the talent you have, or do you have a regimen and you want everybody to be the square peg in the square hole?
Babcock: No, no, no. You have really elite players and they?re allowed to do different things at different times than other people because they can. They make decisions at the offensive blueline that other guys can?t because they can?t. In saying all that, they all have to know the score and the time, because that?s boss. Period. There?s a team time of your career and an individual time of your career. The individual time of your career is right at the start. You?re trying to make the team. You?re trying to become what you?re capable of becoming. These guys are all high-end players, though. They want to win. You think Auston Matthews or William Nylander or Mitch Marner like getting tattooed at home last night? They don?t. They don?t like turning the puck over and they don?t like being poor defensively and they don?t like making mistakes. None of them do. They want to be very good. We have a group of young guys like that. Today is a lesson, and I?ll tell you sometimes ? no, not sometimes; probably most of the time ? those lessons are better learned when things go bad than when things go good. That stung last night, anyway you look at it. We expected to come in and we wanted to push them. We thought we were capable of doing it, and we didn?t. They made us look bad.
Usually, high-end young players come into the league as solo acts. In other words, they?re not really surrounded by other high-end young players. They have guys that may come in with them that have a different skillset. They may go to a team that has one or two very good offensive players. But you?re in this unique situation where this little group of very highly skilled offensive players is coming into together. Tell me what you perceive to be the advantages and/or disadvantages of that happening. It doesn?t happen very often.
Babcock: I think they?re really lucky. The whole crew of young guys ? everyone is focused on three of them, but to me Brown and Hyman are a special plus to the group because of their drive train, because of their work ethic, because of their work habits. They?re part of that group as well. You can include Carrick and Zaitsev in that group as well. Even Morgan Rielly is just as a kid, for crying out loud. There is a whole bunch of kids to hang out with and grow up with. They look at each other and they know they?re not going anywhere for ten years. They?re going to make this their home. The other thing is they look around the room and they say, ?we?re going to be good.? That?s a special feeling in itself.
I don?t know who was talking before I got on. You were talking about Nylander, and he?s better than you expected. He?s way better than I expected. Even today in practice, when he learns to compete everyday?. His edges; he?s an unbelievable skater. His turn backs and his power game down low? He?s been more of a rush player and a skill player, but as he evolves and becomes a heavy player ? because his edges are so good ? he?s special to watch. Now, they?re all unique in their own way, but he has a chance. You put the shot in there with it, and I think he has a chance to be a real good player.
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We?ve talked a bit about Nylander. Everybody knows about Matthews, and they?re the top two scorers on your team. The other young man, Marner, is a kid that John and I watched a lot of last year in London and through the Memorial Cup. I, for one, said he really is an impressive player and I think he was flying below the radar a little bit. Tell me what you?ve seen in him and what you like about him.
Babcock: He might?ve made the most plays so far of anybody. He works. That?s what I like. He competes every single shift. He?s good offensively. He?s good defensively. He?s right there leading the team in blocked shots, if you can believe that. I didn?t think he was as good last night as he has been, but every night he makes three or four plays that send in Bozak or van Riemsdyk past a D-man for a clear cut [breakaway]. He could easily have a tonne of points. It hasn?t happened for him. I don?t think that?s the end of the world right now. He?s another guy who I didn?t know ? I mean, I knew he was a star; you can?t do what he did last year in junior hockey and not be a star that way ? but I didn?t know if his size was going to be a real issue for him and affect him so much. It?s obviously not. He doesn?t get touched. He?s way stronger on the puck than you expect. He can drive the line as a winger. Most wingers can?t drive a line. He has the ability to do such.
