The NHL is moving ahead with its investigation of former head coach Mike Babcock following a request from the NHL Players’ Association, according to TSN Hockey Insider Pierre LeBrun.
The investigation is in regard to allegations Babcock invaded players’ privacy during his brief time with the Columbus Blue Jackets in 2023.
TSN Hockey Insider Darren Dreger adds there is no timeline for the Babcock investigation to be completed as members of the 2023 Blue Jackets will need to be interviewed.
Dreger reported on Monday that the Edmonton Oilers were consulting with the NHLPA to see if there were any objections that needed to be resolved before they could potentially hire Babcock as their new head coach.
If Babcock happens to back out at his stage, there would be no reason to investigate further.
Babcock was hired as the Blue Jackets’ head coach in July of 2023, but resigned before the season started after a report from the Spittin’ Chiclets podcast indicated he had asked players to share personal photos from their mobile devices.
The situation was investigated by the NHL Players’ Association before Babcock announced his resignation.
Babcock owns a career regular-season head coaching record of 700-418-164 with 19 ties. He also coached Team Canada to Olympic gold medals in 2010 and 2014, as was at the helm for gold at the World Junior Championship (1997), Men’s World Championship (2004) and World Cup of Hockey (2016).
