Mike Babcock - Head Coach
Mike Babcock enters his fifth season as the head coach of the Red Wings. Over his first four campaigns in the Motor City, he has compiled an impressive 213-77-38 record (.765 points percentage) including a league best 101-46-17 on the road. Babcock is the first coach in NHL history to guide his team to four consecutive 50-win seasons in his first four seasons with a team. Under his watch, the Red Wings have twice captured the Presidents’ Trophy as the NHL’s regular season champion. In 2005-06, Detroit finished with a league best 58 wins, including an NHL record 31 road victories, and 124 points. The Red Wings again topped the NHL standings in 2007-08 with 54 wins, 115 points and added the Jennings Trophy allowing the fewest goals against. Those win totals (58, 54) represent the second and third highest respectively in franchise history. Babcock was named head coach of the Western Conference for the 2008 NHL All-Star Game after leading the Red Wings to a Conference best 30-8-3 first-half record. The 30-wins marked the best first half win total ever in Red Wings’ history. Babcock was a finalist for the 2008 Jack Adams Award as the NHL’s Coach of the Year and was the winner of the Sporting News’ 2008 NHL Coach of the Year as voted on by his peers. Last season, he guided the Red Wings to their eighth consecutive Central Division title with a 51-21-10 record and helped the team establish a new NHL record with their ninth consecutive 100-point season. He was named as an assistant coach at the 2009 NHL All-Star Game in Montreal. His overall record through six NHL seasons is 282-139-71 (.717 points percentage), giving him the most regular season wins among NHL head coaches since 2002-03, his first season in the National Hockey League.
Babcock’s NHL postseason success is just as impressive. He guided the Red Wings to the 2008 Stanley Cup championship in only his third season with the team, securing his first title in the National Hockey League and the 11th in Red Wings team history. Since he entered the league in 2002-03, Babcock has coached in 90 NHL postseason games, 34 more than any other coach during that span. He has won 58 postseason games, the most in NHL history for head coaches through their first six seasons in the league. His .644 postseason winning percentage is tops among NHL coaches since 2003. Babcock has led his teams to the Stanley Cup finals three times and the conference finals four times through his first six seasons as an NHL head coach.
Prior to joining the Red Wings, Babcock spent two seasons with the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim (2002-04), where in his first season as an NHL head coach he led the Ducks to their first ever appearance in the Stanley Cup Final. With four straight wins over Detroit in the first round of the 2003 playoffs, the Ducks became the first team to sweep a defending Stanley Cup champion since 1952 when the Red Wings swept the Toronto Maple Leafs.
In 2002-03, Babcock led Anaheim to their then best regular season in club history, totaling 40 wins and 95 points (40-27-9-6). Anaheim was the most improved team in the NHL that season, finishing 26 points ahead of their total from 2001-02. The Ducks also set club records for lowest goals-against average (2.32) and fewest goals allowed (193).
Prior to stepping behind the bench in Anaheim, Babcock spent two seasons as head coach of the Cincinnati Mighty Ducks (2000-02), at the time the primary American Hockey League affiliate for Detroit and Anaheim. He led the club to a combined 74-59-20-7 record, including a franchise-best 41 wins and 95 points (41-26-9-4) in 2000-01. Cincinnati qualified for the Calder Cup Playoffs both seasons under his direction.
Babcock moved to Cincinnati following a successful six-year run as the head coach of the Spokane Chiefs of the Western Hockey League (1994-95 through 1999-2000). He had a regular season record of 228-173-29 in Spokane. He was twice named WHL Coach of the Year, in 1996 and 2000, and was named head coach of the 2000 WHL West Division All-Star Team.
In 1993-94, his only season with the Lethbridge Pronghorns of Canadian Interuniversity Sport, Babcock guided his team to a national championship winning the CIS University Cup and was named CIS Coach of the Year.
Babcock has also represented his native Canada at several international competitions. In 2004, he led Team Canada to the gold medal at the World Championships in Prague. Under Babcock's direction, the Canadians posted a 7-1-1 overall record and defeated Sweden 5-3 in the tournament final. In 1997, he earned the honor of coaching Team Canada at the World Junior Championships in Switzerland. Under his guidance Team Canada secured gold with a 2-0 win over the United States in the championship game. He became the first Canadian coach to serve as bench boss for both the Canadian World Junior team and Canadian World Championship team. Because of his success at both the NHL and International levels, Babcock was again tabbed by Hockey Canada to serve as Head Coach of the Canadian men’s ice hockey team at the upcoming 2010 Winter Olympic Games in Vancouver.
Away from the rink Babcock is involved in several charitable causes. Most notably, he serves as a spokesman for the Jeffrey Thomas Hayden Foundation which was created to increase awareness about pediatric brain tumors and provide education and support to affected families. The JTHF was started by Tim and Cindy Hayden after losing their 12-year old son Jeffrey to a pediatric brain tumor in September 2004. A passionate supporter of the fight against pediatric cancer, he hosts a child battling the disease at each Red Wings home game.
Mike and his wife, Maureen, reside in Northville with their three children: Allie, Michael and Taylor.
Mike Babcock enters his fifth season as the head coach of the Red Wings. Over his first four campaigns in the Motor City, he has compiled an impressive 213-77-38 record (.765 points percentage) including a league best 101-46-17 on the road. Babcock is the first coach in NHL history to guide his team to four consecutive 50-win seasons in his first four seasons with a team. Under his watch, the Red Wings have twice captured the Presidents’ Trophy as the NHL’s regular season champion. In 2005-06, Detroit finished with a league best 58 wins, including an NHL record 31 road victories, and 124 points. The Red Wings again topped the NHL standings in 2007-08 with 54 wins, 115 points and added the Jennings Trophy allowing the fewest goals against. Those win totals (58, 54) represent the second and third highest respectively in franchise history. Babcock was named head coach of the Western Conference for the 2008 NHL All-Star Game after leading the Red Wings to a Conference best 30-8-3 first-half record. The 30-wins marked the best first half win total ever in Red Wings’ history. Babcock was a finalist for the 2008 Jack Adams Award as the NHL’s Coach of the Year and was the winner of the Sporting News’ 2008 NHL Coach of the Year as voted on by his peers. Last season, he guided the Red Wings to their eighth consecutive Central Division title with a 51-21-10 record and helped the team establish a new NHL record with their ninth consecutive 100-point season. He was named as an assistant coach at the 2009 NHL All-Star Game in Montreal. His overall record through six NHL seasons is 282-139-71 (.717 points percentage), giving him the most regular season wins among NHL head coaches since 2002-03, his first season in the National Hockey League. Babcock’s NHL postseason success is just as impressive. He guided the Red Wings to the 2008 Stanley Cup championship in only his third season with the team, securing his first title in the National Hockey League and the 11th in Red Wings team history. Since he entered the league in 2002-03, Babcock has coached in 90 NHL postseason games, 34 more than any other coach during that span. He has won 58 postseason games, the most in NHL history for head coaches through their first six seasons in the league. His .644 postseason winning percentage is tops among NHL coaches since 2003. Babcock has led his teams to the Stanley Cup finals three times and the conference finals four times through his first six seasons as an NHL head coach.
Prior to joining the Red Wings, Babcock spent two seasons with the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim (2002-04), where in his first season as an NHL head coach he led the Ducks to their first ever appearance in the Stanley Cup Final. With four straight wins over Detroit in the first round of the 2003 playoffs, the Ducks became the first team to sweep a defending Stanley Cup champion since 1952 when the Red Wings swept the Toronto Maple Leafs.
In 2002-03, Babcock led Anaheim to their then best regular season in club history, totaling 40 wins and 95 points (40-27-9-6). Anaheim was the most improved team in the NHL that season, finishing 26 points ahead of their total from 2001-02. The Ducks also set club records for lowest goals-against average (2.32) and fewest goals allowed (193).
Prior to stepping behind the bench in Anaheim, Babcock spent two seasons as head coach of the Cincinnati Mighty Ducks (2000-02), at the time the primary American Hockey League affiliate for Detroit and Anaheim. He led the club to a combined 74-59-20-7 record, including a franchise-best 41 wins and 95 points (41-26-9-4) in 2000-01. Cincinnati qualified for the Calder Cup Playoffs both seasons under his direction.
Babcock moved to Cincinnati following a successful six-year run as the head coach of the Spokane Chiefs of the Western Hockey League (1994-95 through 1999-2000). He had a regular season record of 228-173-29 in Spokane. He was twice named WHL Coach of the Year, in 1996 and 2000, and was named head coach of the 2000 WHL West Division All-Star Team.
In 1993-94, his only season with the Lethbridge Pronghorns of Canadian Interuniversity Sport, Babcock guided his team to a national championship winning the CIS University Cup and was named CIS Coach of the Year.
Babcock has also represented his native Canada at several international competitions. In 2004, he led Team Canada to the gold medal at the World Championships in Prague. Under Babcock's direction, the Canadians posted a 7-1-1 overall record and defeated Sweden 5-3 in the tournament final. In 1997, he earned the honor of coaching Team Canada at the World Junior Championships in Switzerland. Under his guidance Team Canada secured gold with a 2-0 win over the United States in the championship game. He became the first Canadian coach to serve as bench boss for both the Canadian World Junior team and Canadian World Championship team. Because of his success at both the NHL and International levels, Babcock was again tabbed by Hockey Canada to serve as Head Coach of the Canadian men’s ice hockey team at the upcoming 2010 Winter Olympic Games in Vancouver.
Away from the rink Babcock is involved in several charitable causes. Most notably, he serves as a spokesman for the Jeffrey Thomas Hayden Foundation which was created to increase awareness about pediatric brain tumors and provide education and support to affected families. The JTHF was started by Tim and Cindy Hayden after losing their 12-year old son Jeffrey to a pediatric brain tumor in September 2004. A passionate supporter of the fight against pediatric cancer, he hosts a child battling the disease at each Red Wings home game.
Mike and his wife, Maureen, reside in Northville with their three children: Allie, Michael and Taylor.
