Former Leafs head coach Mike Babcock finally confirms a rift between he and GM Kyle Dubas

It's been almost two years since the Maple Leafs have relieved former head coach Mike Babcock of his duties in Toronto, following a tough 9-10-4 start where it became apparent that the veteran coach had lost the room.

After his dismissal in Toronto, Babcock had taken some time away from the sport before ultimately deciding to return to his roots in Saskatchewan, where he took on a job as the head coach of the University of Saskatchewan Huskies.

While we've heard from Babcock in short bursts since leaving the Maple Leafs organization, he had mostly dismissed how his time had ended in Toronto. On Sunday, Sportsnet's David Singh reveals that Babcock and Leafs GM Kyle Dubas did have a bit of a rift after all.

«I think it's important for every general manager to have his coach,» said Babcock during his interview with Singh. «All the general managers I worked with over the years are lifelong friends. I've only got one situation that didn't work that way. In saying all that, it worked spectacular for me. Got [to Toronto], we ended up getting Auston Matthews. We improved the franchise drastically. [But] there wasn't a fit for myself and the new general manager,» he said of Maple Leafs GM Kyle Dubas. «Move on. That's it. But you want to work for people that want you to work for [them].»

Babcock was ultimately replaced by rookie bench boss Sheldon Keefe on November 20th, 2019, with whom Dubas has a long history, dating back to their time together with the OHL's Soo Greyhounds.

While Babcock holds the franchise record for most points in a season by a Leafs head coach, Keefe leads the franchise in points percentage after last season's 35-14-7 record, giving him a .688 points percentage. How he will fare over a full 82-game season remains to be seen, but he is off to a 7-4-1 start in 2021-22.

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