Fan In Van

A Leaf For Life

I think Dany Heatley put it pust when he said that despite the fact Mats Sundin was wearing a Vancouver Canucks uniform, Mats Sundin would be a Leaf for life. And few - even this West Coast writer - would disagree.

The fact is that Mats Sundin is arguably the greatest player to ever wear the Toronto Maple Leafs uniform, and that’s in the company of some real legends: Borje Salming, Doug Gilmour and Darryl Sittler, to name a few. The Bromma native of Sweden holds numerous Leaf records and has had a number of fond memories at the centre of the Universe, spending over 13 years with the club.

Now that he’s returned back to Toronto for the first time since signing on with the Canucks in December, the prodigal son of Toronto is met with mixed emotions.

Should he be booed or cheered when he steps back onto the ice at the Air Canada Centre?

For Leaf fans, the legacy of Mats Sundin was tainted when he refused to waive his no-trade clause for a Toronto team in shambles and in clear need of a rebuild. A return for a player of Sundin’s calibre would have been high; a high draft selection, a budding prospect and a roster player would’ve stocked a Leafs youth cupboard which had been stripped bare over the last few years.

But Sundin’s decision to take the high road has left a lot of Blue-and-White fans tearing down the Sundin posters that hung on their walls over the years. Furthermore, his decision to turn his back on the Leafs franchise and sign with Vancouver only twisted the knife that had been plunged into the hearts of fans. As a result, it seems likely many will be booing Sundin upon his return.

All that said, let’s not forget that it was the Leafs head office who offered Sundin a no-trade clause in the first place. It was management who wanted Sundin to be a Leaf for the rest of his career. And suddenly, when things turn sour for the club and they opt to rebuild, they change their standpoint, begging and pleading for the big Swede to waive said no-trade clause.

And let’s also not forget what Sundin has done for this team over the years. He has loyally soldiered on for the Leafs despite years and years of failure without speaking a word, spending so much time during a Hall-of-Fame career with a team that was never a Stanley Cup contender when he could have demanded a trade.

So Leaf fans, don’t blame Mats for wanting a legitimate chance at winning a Stanley Cup and sticking it to a franchise that, in all honesty, did nothing to appease him; they did not give him capable scoring linemates, yet he still put up big numbers for the club.

Whether Leaf fans will cheer or boo Sundin tomorrow night will be a statement of their character. Rightfully, Sundin deserves to be cheered for all of the years he put into the club. However, it will not surprise anyone to hear a smattering of boos rain down on him.