Mark Messier torches Oilers for controversial Mike Babcock hiring

As part of their desperate desire to win a Stanley Cup with Connor McDavid, the Edmonton Oilers have made a lot of controversial decisions over the past few years. This offseason has been no exception, and the hiring of head coach Mike Babcock has been an especially large lightning rod for criticism. 

That criticism continued on Wednesday when Hockey Hall of Famer Mark Messier, who also won several championships in Edmonton as a player, absolutely unloaded on the team's decision to hire Babcock.

Mark Messier is "horrified" by Edmonton Oilers decision to hire Mike Babcock

Messier, who now works as an analyst for ESPN, pulled no punches during a conference call to promote the start of the regular season.

Along with saying he was "horrified" by the decision, he also went into the process on how Babcock was hired, which reportedly included a substantial involvement by the best players on the team, including McDavid.

First, on the decision, via ESPN's Greg Wyshynski:

"I am absolutely shocked they hired him. I'm absolutely shocked from the stories that I heard from very good, reputable, character people about the way they were treated. It's been no secret."

There's no shortage of stories regarding Babcock's treatment of players and how often he has crossed the line.

Some of the most well-known examples include:

• The emotional abuse and verbal assault of former Detroit Red Wings forward Johan Franzen that was so bad, it prompted one of Franzen's teammates, Chris Chelios, to say it was the worst thing he had ever seen in hockey.
• His handling of a then-rookie Mitch Marner with the Toronto Maple Leafs when he asked Marner to rank the work ethic of teammates, and then sharing Marner's ranking with the rest of the team.
• His decision to go through the phones of Columbus Blue Jackets players shortly after his hiring. That invasion of privacy led to Babcock's eventual resignation before even coaching a single practice with the team.

Several other players have spoken out repeatedly about Babcock's treatment of players and other members of the organization, with one of his most vocal critics being former Red Wings defenseman Mike Commodore, who has often spoke in vulgar and profane terms about his opinion of Babcock as a person. 

But it's not just Babcock getting another chance that irks Messier. It's also the process behind his hiring and how much of a role the team's best players had in it. 

"I think there has to be a separation of powers on the structural level of any team. I think from the management to the coaching to the players, there has to be a divide. The leadership of your team has to protect the players inside the dressing room. How can you do that when you're directly involved with the decisions they're making at the management level and hiring of the management and coaches?" he said. "If it does go bad and players are having difficulties, who do they turn to? Because if they turn to the leadership, the leadership is management. There's no separation there."

It's a fair point. If lower-level players feel like they are being bullied or abused by the coach, the leaders on the team and in the locker room are the people who created the environment, while management went along with it. It certainly removes safeguards and creates a potentially hostile situation. 

There is a sense of hypocrisy from Messier on this point given the way he urged the Vancouver Canucks to hire Mike Keenan when he was a player, but that doesn't make his point any less valid. 

It's also quite telling that players like Chelios and Messier have shared the stories they have about Babcock. They are two of best examples of toughness and old-school hockey mentality in the modern NHL, and if they find issue with Babcock, that should be eye-opening.

What makes all of this even more maddening is Babcock has not even been a successful NHL coach in nearly 15 years. Since winning a Stanley Cup with the Red Wings in 2007-08, his teams have mostly underachieved in the playoffs and regular season, regularly finishing in third place in their own divisions and losing in the first round. 

Babcock is not the only recent controversial addition to the organization.

The Oilers also faced criticism for hiring general manager Stan Bowman after he resigned from the Chicago Blackhawks in disgrace following his handling of the Kyle Beach sexual assault situation. 

Earlier this month, the team also signed forward Alex Formenton. Formenton is one five players who were acquitted as part of the Hockey Canada sexual assault trial that came from 2018 allegations. 

Just as is the case with Babcock, neither person seemed worth the hassle. Bowman's late tenure with the Blackhawks was some of the worst roster management in the league, while Formenton has not played in the NHL in years and was the fifth-leading scorer on his Swiss team this past season. 

Not that being a good executive, coach or player would make people like any of this, or make it right. But the fact they aren't even successful just adds to the absurdity of it all.