The Toronto Maple Leafs sold off much of their veteran players, which is something of a front office white flag.
On the other hand, this means that the roster is stocked with hungry young players trying to make an impression for next season, so that scrappy nature fits Mike Babcock’s fiery attitude quite well.
Babcock was not happy with the officials during a 2-1 loss to the Minnesota Wild, seen in the game itself when he was tagged with an unsportmanlike conduct penalty.
Babcock fumed after the loss, too, as you can see:
Mike Babcock says the #leafs got "ripped off" tonight. Adds that fans paid to see the players, not the referees.
— Chris Johnston (@reporterchris) March 4, 2016
Babcock not happy with officials: "I thought we got ripped off big time."
— James Mirtle (@mirtle) March 4, 2016
"It's a joke."
Not a big joke: the Babcock death stare.