Tyson Barrie's Curious First Meeting with Mike Babcock

There was a time when Mike Babcock was widely considered one of the NHL's elite coaches. With a career spanning 1,301 games across Anaheim, Detroit, and Toronto, and a 700-418-19-64 record to show for it, he earned a Stanley Cup with the Red Wings in 2008. He joined the Triple Gold Club by also winning Olympic and World Championship gold with Team Canada. For years, his reputation as a disciplined, innovative coach went largely unquestioned.

Babcock’s Reputation Shifted Amid Player Reports

That perception began to shift in the years after his tenure with the Toronto Maple Leafs. Reports from former players surfaced, describing methods many now call bullying or humiliating, including asking 19-year-old Mitch Marner to rank teammates by effort — a list later shared with others, putting him in an awkward and vulnerable position. Similar stories have emerged from Babcock’s days in Detroit, including comments from Hockey Hall of Famer Chris Chelios about repeated verbal attacks on players like Johan Franzen.

Yet amid the controversy, some moments are less about judgment and more about sheer curiosity — such as Tyson Barrie’s first encounter with Babcock. Barrie, now retired and currently an analyst for the Vancouver Canucks, shared the story recently on the Empty Netters podcast.

Barrie Was Traded from the Avalanche to the Maple Leafs for Nazem Kadri

Barrie, part of the multi-player July 1, 2019, trade from the Colorado Avalanche to Toronto, recalled a meeting with Babcock in which the coach offered a blunt assessment of the trade. “I won’t speak too much on it, but one of the first things he said to me was, ‘You know, I wouldn’t have made this trade. Naz is a big part of the team,” Barrie said, laughing. “And I was like, oh, okay, sick. This is going to go well. It was an interesting start.”

For Barrie, the interaction was less about tension and more about absorbing the idiosyncrasies of a coach who had operated in a very different era — one where personalities and methods that would now be deemed unacceptable were commonplace. Barrie spent just one season in Toronto, scoring five goals and 39 points in 70 games, before moving on to Edmonton, Nashville, and Calgary.

Barrie Is Now a Vancouver Canucks’ Analyst

As a Canucks analyst, Barrie now reflects on that first meeting with a mixture of amusement and perspective. It’s a reminder of how players navigate the quirks of the bench, the personalities of coaches, and the sometimes curious customs of professional hockey. For fans of Vancouver and the wider NHL, it’s a glimpse into the game's culture and how those early encounters can leave lasting impressions — even in a season, even with a coach as polarizing as Mike Babcock.