One on one: Mike Babcock coach, Mighty Ducks - Interview

TSN: Your team got off to a terrible start. Why?

MB: We felt we were terrible on opening night in Dallas. Then we didn't score enough goals. We did not have the same kind of jump or work ethic, and that's why we were behind the eight ball. The reality of this league is it's all about winning games.

TSN: How do you balance making changes or keeping status quo during a slump?

MB: You do what you do. We're not trying to reinvent the wheel here, but we have to work harder and work smarter. All of that aside, let's be honest--we're desperate to win games.

TSN: You won the Western Conference last year. Is there a difference between being the hunted as opposed to the hunter?

MB: When you look at the good teams in the league, they have always been good. They're always the hunted. That's the way it should be. We want to become one of the best teams in the league like Detroit or Colorado. It's all a mind-set.

TSN: Are you a better team with Sergei Fedorov and Vaclav (Vinny) Prospal than last year's team, led by Paul Kariya?

MB: Paul was the cornerstone of the organization. We think we have a good collection of players, but I don't think we're good enough yet. However, I think you're about to see Vinny and Sergei really take off.

TSN: How big was the loss of defenseman Keith Carney, who was injured?

MB: I'm a big believer in the it-doesn't-matter-who-wears-the-uniform, you-put-it-on-and-you-play-hard theory. However, there are some guys who have the ability to calm your whole team and set the tone, and Carney is that guy. It's been a challenge, but sometimes it opens an opportunity for someone else to step up, and it might be a positive in the end.

TSN: With the run to the Stanley Cup finals, how hard was it to part with Paul Kariya?

MB: It was nerve-wracking. We want to become one of the franchises that (the media) talks about. In order to do that, you have to continue to get better. When Paul decided to leave, we tried to do the right thing. We felt the offers we made were right. Then we moved on. Our G.M. Bryan Murray always says, "You do good things, and good things will happen to you."

TSN: When you took this job, were you scared to fail?

MB: I'm afraid of failing right now. There isn't one coach who isn't dying to be successful. None of us wants to fail. I want to be considered one of the upper-echelon coaches in the NHL. However, one good season does not make a coach or a franchise.

TSN: You came up the term "playing greasy." What in the world does that mean?

MB: It's like being on the playround. You draw a line in the sand, and you decide who wants it more. The guy with the most grease wins every single time. It's about will. It's about who wants to hold on to their territory more. The guy with the most grease is usually slippery enough to get it done.

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TSNumber 700

The Penguins' Mario Lemieux (683), the Rangers' Mark Messier (683) and the Red Wings' Steve Yzerman (669) all have a shot at their 700th career goals this season. Yzerman (on pace for 41 goals) and Messier (36) are both scoring at a rate to make it to the milestone. Six players have more than 700 goals, and the Red Wings' Brett Hull is the only active player among them.

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