Mike Babcock: The Oilers are considering hiring him

The Edmonton Oilers are currently in a… precarious situation. The team has fired Kris Knoblauch, and it really seems like their plan was to hire Bruce Cassidy to replace him.

Except that the Golden Knights still haven't given Cassidy permission to talk to other teams… and there's no indication that's necessarily going to change anytime soon.

This means the Oilers, for now, have to consider other options. Peter Laviolette, who was just hired in Los Angeles, was clearly one of them… but Darren Dreger just broke a major story: Mike Babcock is reportedly being considered by the Oilers.

According to Dreger, the Oilers are currently consulting with the Players' Association to see if there would be any issues with hiring Babcock.

And you wouldn't take such steps if you weren't thinking about hiring him, you know.

Sources: The Edmonton Oilers are consulting with the NHLPA to see if there are objections that must be resolved before potentially hiring Mike Babcock. Amid allegations of invading players' privacy, Babcock resigned as head coach of the Blue Jackets in 2023. Further investigation may be required.

— Darren Dreger (@DarrenDreger) June 8, 2026

It's worth noting that Babcock was named head coach of the Blue Jackets in 2023. That said, the coach was forced to resign before coaching a single game after a story about invading players' privacy surfaced.

And the Oilers, right now, want to know if steps in that direction should be taken.

We know Babcock has had a lot of success in the league, but it's been a long time since we've seen him behind the bench. He's become a pretty controversial figure… and we have to wonder if the Oilers, who need to make sure Connor McDavid is happy, really have any interest in considering Babcock.

Public pressure had already gotten the better of Babcock before he even coached a single game in the small market of Columbus: good luck in a market like Edmonton, which everyone is watching closely because of the McDavid situation.

Extension

It's worth noting that according to Pierre LeBrun, in a scenario where Babcock ends up in Edmonton as head coach, we can expect to see DJ Smith join him as an assistant.

The man who was interim head coach in Los Angeles didn't get the full-time job: he could therefore find work as an assistant within a potential coaching staff led by Babcock in Edmonton.

If Mike Babcock does end up as coach in Edmonton, wouldn't surprise me if DJ Smith joined up with him again. But we'll see where all this goes. https://t.co/xIKSwUj8lJ

— Pierre LeBrun (@PierreVLeBrun) June 8, 2026