It’s no secret that Detroit Red Wings coach Mike Babcock does a great job wherever he goes. He took a low seeded Mighty Ducks of Anaheim team to the Stanley Cup finals in 2003, has made two finals appearances with the Red Wings and won a Stanley Cup in 2008. He also was head coach of the Olympic gold medal winning Team Canada in Vancouver this year. It’s no wonder then that one goal of the Red Wings this summer is to get a contract extension worked out with Babcock as the Freep’s Helene St. James tells us.
“I’d like to keep him, so we’re going to sit down and talk,” general manager Ken Holland said Saturday at the 2010 NHL entry draft at Staples Center. “He likes it in Detroit, and I enjoy working with him. I think he’s done a tremendous job since he came here in 2005. I anticipate this is going to take most of the summer, but hopefully by the time we get to training camp, we’ve got something in place.”
It shouldn’t be hard, given both want the same thing.
“I’m staying if they’d like to have me,” Babcock said. “But I haven’t really even thought about it -- I just assumed I’m staying.”