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Sundin Finally Reveals Reason For Denying Leafs' Trade Request Ahead of '08 Trade Deadline
Photo credit: Mike Lynaugh Photography
Amid the release of his new book, entitled "Home and Away", Leafs legend Mats Sundin finally reveals why he didn't allow the Maple Leafs to trade him in 2008.
Sundin, who typically prefers to maintain a low profile, has jumped back into the Toronto spotlight to begin this season, including spending a week at Maple Leafs training camp. His recently released book, "Home and Away", details his journey to the Hockey Hall of Fame, beginning in Sweden and being the first European player drafted first overall and leaving the Leafs following the 2007-08 season.
On Wednesday, Sundin joined Gord Stellick on NHL Network Radio and discussed his decision to leave the Leafs and revealed why he turned down the Leafs' trade request ahead of the 2008 trade deadline.
"I remember being on the road and Cliff Fletcher called me up to a meeting in, I think we were in Carolina, he said 'Mats I want to see you. Can you come up to my hotel room?' and I knew right away, I don't know about this meeting in the middle of the road trip... He said 'What do you think about going to a contender before the deadline?'.
I was having one of my best years in the last three years there, I was really playing well on the ice and I think we were 3 or 4 points out of a playoff spot and that was hard to not take it personally. I said 'Cliff, we're 3 or 4 points out, we've got 20 games to go'. Obviously, the Leafs were already thinking about the future, and I have no regrets about it. I understand the business side of the game. Toronto wanted to do what was best for the future of the organizaiton and the fans, but at the same time, personally, it was hard to take that.
I told him, 'You know what Cliff, I don't want to leave the team right now and we have a chance to make it in and I do want to finish my career as a Maple Leaf,'" Sundin explained with a bit of a laugh. "We left the meeting and it was a great meeting and then it got to the media and it was a media circus."
I was having one of my best years in the last three years there, I was really playing well on the ice and I think we were 3 or 4 points out of a playoff spot and that was hard to not take it personally. I said 'Cliff, we're 3 or 4 points out, we've got 20 games to go'. Obviously, the Leafs were already thinking about the future, and I have no regrets about it. I understand the business side of the game. Toronto wanted to do what was best for the future of the organizaiton and the fans, but at the same time, personally, it was hard to take that.
I told him, 'You know what Cliff, I don't want to leave the team right now and we have a chance to make it in and I do want to finish my career as a Maple Leaf,'" Sundin explained with a bit of a laugh. "We left the meeting and it was a great meeting and then it got to the media and it was a media circus."
As Sundin noted, once the media and fans found out about his meeting with Fletcher, it turned into a circus and many fans, for lack of a better term, turned their backs on the then captain for a short period. The context Sundin provides in his book and sit down with Stellick, will certainly make fans understand why he declined a trade out of town and hopefully offers some closure to that chapter of the Leafs' franchise history.
Following the end of the season that saw the Leafs miss the playoffs, Sundin and the Leafs made the decision to part ways, which led to the Swedish superstar signing a deal with the Vancouver Canucks with the hope of finally capturing the Stanley Cup. Ultimately, Sundin was unable to capture that elusive Cup, but following his retirement, was welcomed back to Toronto with arms wide open where he had his jersey raised to the rafters.
In 1346 career games (1305 with the Leafs), Sundin tallied 564 goals and 1349 points to go along with 1093 penalty minutes and a spot in the Hockey Hall of Fame in 2012.
| POLL | ||
OCTOBRE 24 | 1838 ANSWERS Sundin Finally Reveals Reason For Denying Leafs' Trade Request Ahead of '08 Trade Deadline Who do you think is the greatest (past) Leaf of all time? | ||
| Clark | 374 | 20.3 % |
| Sundin | 437 | 23.8 % |
| Salming | 602 | 32.8 % |
| Other | 425 | 23.1 % |
| List of polls | ||