Messier's shot at the Oilers is about the org chart, not the coach

Mark Messier didn't take a shot at Mike Babcock's system or his record. He took a shot at how Edmonton made the hire, and that's the part the Oilers can't answer with a win streak.

On ESPN's Open Night media call Wednesday, Messier said he was "absolutely shocked they hired him" and, a little later, "I am just horrified about the whole thing, to be honest with you." He said the stories he'd heard came from "very good, reputable, character people."

That's the headline. The better point was the quieter one.

The separation of powers

Messier's real argument was structural. "I think there has to be a separation of powers on the structural level of any team," he said. "The leadership of your team have to protect the players inside the dressing room."

Here's why that stings. The Oilers had their leadership group interview Babcock before they hired him in June.

Connor McDavid said as much to Elliotte Friedman and Kyle Bukauskas last week: "We pressed him on some things and he pressed us on things." McDavid also said the room would "step in" if it ever had to.

I believe McDavid means it. But Messier's question is the right one. If the captain helped pick the coach, who does the 14th forward go to when something feels wrong? That's not a Babcock question. It's an org chart question, and Edmonton hasn't answered it.

What the Oilers are betting on

The facts of the hire are on the record. Babcock, 63, resigned in Columbus in September 2023 before coaching a game, after reports that he asked players to show him personal photos on their phones. An NHL investigation cleared him in June.

The man he replaced, Kris Knoblauch, took the Oilers to back-to-back Stanley Cup Finals and was let go after a first-round exit.

So the bet is simple. McDavid and Leon Draisaitl are in their prime, two Finals didn't produce a ring, and management decided a harder voice was worth the noise. McDavid said it himself: "I want to be coached."

The read

File under: Hot seat. Not because Babcock is in trouble, but because he starts the season with the loudest Oiler of them all against him. Messier isn't a radio caller. He's the last captain to win a Cup in Edmonton, and in that market his word carries.

This one doesn't go away with a quiet October. It sits there. The first three-game losing streak, the first healthy scratch that becomes a story, and Messier's quotes are back on every panel in Canada.

My call: if the Oilers are under .500 at American Thanksgiving, the Babcock question becomes the only story in Edmonton, and it's the front office that has to answer it, not the coach.