Mike Babcock is expected to make a decision on his NHL future Wednesday.
The list of potential suitors has been sufficiently whittled down far enough that all Babcock needs to do is return to Detroit Red Wings GM Ken Holland with all of his offers and talk through the options.
Detroit, obviously, is very much in contention to retain him. The Buffalo Sabres are ready to throw something in the vicinity of $6 million per season at Babs, per Frank Seravalli of The Philadelphia Daily News. The Maple Leafs are out, according to TSN's Bob McKenzie. The Oilers went with Todd McLellan and McLellan's old team, the Sharks, have interviewed just about everyone under the sun.
The St. Louis Blues, who still employ Ken Hitchcock as their bench boss, have been mostly silent throughout the Babcock process, but, per Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet.ca, they may be a dark horse to potentially land the intense head coach.
"There have been several reports Ken Hitchcock will return with a new contract, but we now know the Blues have spoken to Babcock," writes Friedman.
"The silence on Hitchcock's status is deafening, and that's not a coincidence while we don't know the futures of Babcock and/or Dave Tippett."
Rumors have been swirling in NHL back channels that Hitchcock may have grown tired of the coaching lifestyle - not true, per Friedman.
"There are rumors Hitchcock may prefer a consultant/front office role with St. Louis. He was unavailable for comment, but word is that's not correct - he wants to coach. The longer things remain unclear; however, the harder it is for him to apply for openings. That's a rough Catch-22."
The Blues have a big, talented, deep pool of forwards - they were considered a sure-fire playoff contender even before Vladimir Tarasenko went all Mario Lemieux all over everyone - and a number of high-quality defensemen. It's really somewhat mind-boggling that a roster as talented as St. Louis' hasn't been able to make it past the Western Conference semifinals since 2011-12.
Much of that failure seems to fall at the feet of Hitchcock, a coach notorious for alienating his players the longer he remains in one spot.
Still, the biggest impediment for the Blues to landing Babcock is likely money - he wants to be the highest-paid coach in the NHL and would likely command at least $4.5 million per season if not more. As noted above, the Pegulas, the Sabres owners, are reportedly ready to open their pocketbook pretty wide in order to land Babs.
The Blues may not be able to offer the money, but they do provide a situation that Babcock could step into and win right away -something the notoriously competitive Babcock may find incredibly alluring.
