Reports this morning said that Mike Babcock was leaning towards returning to Detroit. As the day went along, reports began to conflict. The tide turned, moving more and more in favor of the Sabres. Now, it sounds like Buffalo is incredibly close to getting their man.
John Vogl of the Buffalo News reports that the Red Wings and Sabres are the final two candidates, and a coaching source tells him he is very confident that the Sabres high money offer will win Babcock over. The Sabres are reportedly offering something in the range of $5 to $6 million, while Detroit is sitting at about $3.25 million.
John Wawrow of the Associated Press reports that it is not just hearsay, as the Sabres (Tim Murray to be exact) and Babcock have been in contract talks today.
It isn’t concrete just yet, but things are looking up for Buffalo.