On Saturday, Dion Phaneuf will make his return to the Air Canada Center for the first time since he was traded to Ottawa.
You can’t say Phaneuf’s new teammates don’t have a sense of humor. Senators players booed Phaneuf every time he touched the puck during the team’s morning skate on Saturday.
Why would they do such a thing?
Well, it sounds like they expect the fans in Toronto to give him a hard time.
Everytime Dion Phaneuf touches the puck during the morning skate his teammates boo him. #Sens
— Bruce Garrioch (@SunGarrioch) March 5, 2016
Phaneuf on being booed by teammates this morning: "Well, the guys, they were having fun with it & for me it makes it a little bit lighter."
— Mark Masters (@markhmasters) March 5, 2016
The 30-year-old spent parts of seven seasons with the Leafs. Phaneuf was one of the better players on a mediocre team, but unfortunately he’ll be remembered most for the contract he was never able to live up to.
Playing against many of his former teammates might be strange for Phaneuf. There’s already been some friendly jabs from both sides. Nazem Kadri, in particular, wants to make his former captain look silly.
Kadri on Phaneuf: "I told him I was going to try & dance him tonight & he said he was going to try & line me up if I did."
— Mark Masters (@markhmasters) March 5, 2016
Phaneuf is known for his stern look, but it’ll be interesting to see if he shows any kind of emotion at some point during the game.
Phaneuf expecting it to be emotional night? "(Smiles) You may not think I have emotion, but I’m an emotional guy."
— Mark Masters (@markhmasters) March 5, 2016