He last coached in the NHL in 2019-20 when he was fired by the Toronto Maple Leafs only 23 games into the season. However, after his dismissal by the Maple Leafs accusations of bullying and verbal abuse were levied against Babcock by some of his former players, including Johan Franzen and Chris Chelios. An incident involving then-rookie
Mitch Marner also brought to light some of Babcock's questionable coaching tactics.