How Much More Accountability Do the Oilers Really Need?
There is an interesting lesson hidden in the Edmonton Oilers’ decision to hire Mike Babcock. For years, the conversation around the Oilers has been pretty simple. They have Connor McDavid. They have Leon Draisaitl. They have enough talent to win. The question has never really been whether this team is good enough. The question has been whether they can consistently play like a championship team when things get difficult.
That’s where this Babcock story gets interesting. According to reports, during his interview with the Oilers’ leadership group, Babcock challenged them. He reportedly questioned whether they were doing everything necessary to become champions.
It’s hard to imagine that McDavid and Draisaitl have been called out very often.
That is not usually the kind of message superstar players hear. And maybe that is exactly why it mattered. The easy thing for a coach to do is protect his best players. Give them extra minutes. Give them the benefit of the doubt. Assume that because they are great players, they will eventually solve every problem themselves.
But championship teams are usually built on a different idea: everyone is accountable. The best players in the world are still human. They make mistakes. They force plays. They have bad shifts. The difference is that great teams find ways to address those moments rather than pretend they don’t happen because the player involved is a superstar.
That doesn’t mean McDavid or Draisaitl are the reason Edmonton hasn’t won a Stanley Cup. That would be ridiculous. They are the biggest reason the Oilers have been close. But being close is exactly why this conversation matters.
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What’s the Next Step for Edmonton?
When a team has already proven it can score goals, the next step is usually harder. It requires uncomfortable honesty. It requires asking whether everyone is doing the little things needed to win when the games become tighter and the pressure increases. The most encouraging part of this story isn’t that Babcock criticized the leadership group. It’s that the leadership group apparently listened.
That might be the biggest change in Edmonton this summer. The Oilers don’t need someone to remind them they have elite players. They already know that. They need someone willing to ask whether they are doing everything necessary to become champions.
And sometimes, the hardest thing for a great team to hear is also the thing it needs most.