His NHL coaching career began with Anaheim in 2002-03 and he guided the Mighty Ducks to the Cup Final that season, a seven-game loss to the New Jersey Devils. He left after Anaheim failed to qualify for the Stanley Cup Playoffs the following season and was then hired by Detroit, where he coached the Red Wings for 10 seasons, won the Stanley Cup in 2008 and reached the Final in 2009, when they lost to the Pittsburgh Penguins in seven games.
The Maple Leafs hired Babcock prior to the 2015-16 season, qualifying for the playoffs three times during his tenure but not winning a series. He was fired by Toronto on Nov. 20, 2019, after going 9-10-4 in 23 games.
Babcock had been out of the NHL prior to getting hired by Columbus. He worked as a volunteer adviser at the University of Vermont in 2020-21 and coached at the University of Saskatchewan in 2021-22.
His decision to resign from the Blue Jackets came five days after the "Spittin' Chiclets" podcast reported that Babcock, who had been hired July 1, 2023, asked players to share personal photos on their private mobile devices. The situation was investigated by the NHL Players' Association before Babcock and the Blue Jackets on Sept. 17 agreed to begin the process for him to step down as coach.
The NHL on June 18 said in a statement that, "The League has completed its review of Mike Babcock's tenure in Columbus, and of certain alleged conduct associated therewith. Our investigation has concluded that, even in a light least favorable to Mr. Babcock, there is no current basis to restrict his employment in the League."
Blue Jackets president of hockey operations John Davidson and then-general manager Jarmo Kekalainen said after Babcock's resignation that it was a mistake to hire the veteran coach.
"I am very disappointed," Davidson said the day after Babcock resigned. "We went through a process earlier this summer prior to hiring Mike Babcock as our head coach, but we got it wrong, and that's on us.
"I can promise you we will learn from this moving forward. I also understand the criticism we are getting. It is deserved. All we can do now is learn from it and do everything we can to help our players and coaches get ready for the season."
Babcock becomes the 19th coach in Oilers history and sixth since center Connor McDavid was selected with the No. 1 pick in the 2015 NHL Draft. Edmonton's captain is a five-time Ted Lindsay Award winner as most outstanding player voted on by the NHL Players' Association (including this season) and is entering the first season of a two-year, $25 million contract (average annual value of $12.5 million) he signed Oct. 6, 2025.
McDavid is eligible to become an unrestricted free agent July 1, 2028.
The Oilers (41-30-11) finished second in the Pacific Division this season and lost the Western Conference First Round in six games to the Ducks. They reached the Cup Final in 2024 and 2025, losing to the Florida Panthers each time. They lost in seven games in 2024 after trailing the best-of-7 series 3-0 and in six games last season.
D.J. Smith was hired as an associate. The 49-year-old went 11-6-6 as coach of the Los Angeles Kings after Jim Hiller was fired March 1 and was Ottawa Senators coach from 2019 until he was fired 26 games into the 2023-24 season. The Kings were swept by the Colorado Avalanche in the first round.
