In the wake of Taylor Hall‘s highly anticipated return to Edmonton to face his former team, we take a look at other memorable moments when NHL players returned to the cities they once called home.
DAVID BACKES: JAN. 10, 2017 – ST. LOUIS, MO.
It’s not often that a team allows their captain to get up and leave, but that’s just what the St. Louis Blues did this past off-season. They were unwilling to commit time and money to 32-year-old David Backes, so after 10 seasons with the team (the latter five as the captain) he moved on an signed a five-year $30-million contract with the Boston Bruins.
On Tuesday, Backes returned to Scottrade Center for the first time and fans gave him an expected, emotional and heartfelt return with an accompanying video tribute.
But that’s where the niceties ended.
In a surprising turn of events, he dropped the gloves with old teammate Joel Edmunson after he hit new teammate David Krejci. Backes ended racking up 17 penalty minutes in the game.
At the end of the game, it was Backes and his Bruins who walked away with a 5-3 win.
DANY HEATLEY: DEC. 2, 2010 – OTTAWA, ONT.
In the heyday’s of the Ottawa Senators, it was the Daniel Alfredsson, Jason Spezza and Dany Heatley show. Year after year, the trio was among the highest scoring in all of the NHL. Heatley was the most prolific scorer of the three.
In a bizarre turn of events, Heatley demanded a trade from the Senators at the end of the 2008-09 season. After Ottawa set up a deal to move their two time 50-goal scorer to the Oilers, Heatley refused to waive his no-trade clause, forcing the Senators to set up another deal that ultimately sent him to the San Jose Sharks.
Needless to say, Senators fans were furious and showed it in his return in 2010.
He was serenaded with chants of “Heatley sucks” and “traitor” from the moment he hit the ice for the pre-game warm up. The then-Scotiabank Place (now Canadian Tire Centre) erupted in Cheers when Spezza landed a hit on Heatley early in the game, knocking him to the ice.
But it was Heatley and the Sharks that got the last laugh to a tune of a 4-0 victory. Heatley recorded one assist.
DANIEL ALFREDSSON: DEC. 1, 2013 – OTTAWA, ONT.
Alfredsson was the captain of the Senators from 1999-2013 and left a lasting impression on the entire city of Ottawa. He was a fan favourite, no doubt Hall of Famer and current leader of numerous all-time scoring categories for the Senators organization. His time there culminated in a Stanley Cup Finals appearance back in 2007, where he saw his team fall short, losing in five games to the Anaheim Ducks.
But all good things have to come to an end at some point.
Alfredsson signed a one-year deal with the Detroit Red Wings for the 2013-14 season in a last-ditch effort to win a Stanley Cup. (However, they wouldn’t make it out of the first round of the playoffs.)
As predicted, he made a very emotional return to the city he called home for over a decade. The fans treated him with the respect he deserved (and earned) and he topped off the night by scoring a goal in Detroit’s 4-2 win.
MATS SUNDIN: FEB. 21, 2009 – TORONTO, ONT.
Alfredsson’s fellow Swede Mats Sundin shared a similar experience across the province in Toronto.
The long-time Maple Leafs’ captain led his team through thick and thin over the 13 seasons he spent there, registering at least 70 points in all but one season he spent in the blue and white.
But at the end of his contract, he, like Alfredsson, had a decision to make. The Leafs had not made the playoffs since before the 2004-2005 lockout and things looked like they would only be getting worse in Toronto. If Sundin wanted a chance at a Stanley Cup, he would have to take his talents elsewhere.
In his first year as a free agent in July 2008, Sundin seemed unsure as to what he was going to do. He had numerous suitors, but come the start of the 2008-09 season he had yet to come to any agreement. In fact, Sundin did not sign with any team until the end of Decemeber 2008, and it was with the Vancouver Canucks.
Sundin made his season debut on Jan. 7, 2009, and just over a month later the Canucks and Maple Leafs were set to clash in Toronto.
Upon his return to the Air Canada Centre, the fans welcomed back Sundin with a deafening standing ovation, bringing tears to their former captain’s eyes. The reception lasted so long that the referee’s had to back off and wait for things to die down before resuming play.
As for the game, it ended in true fairy tale fashion, etching the moment into the memory of all Leafs fans’ who witnessed it. After both regulation and overtime ended with the team’s deadlocked at 2-2, the team’s would go to a shootout. Mikhail Grabovski tied that shootout at 1-1 with the Leafs’ final shot, setting the stage for Sundin, who Canucks head coach Alain Vigneault sent out with the game on the line.
As Sundin skated down the ice towards Vesa Toskala, Toronto and Vancouver fans alike were standing and cheering. With a quick move from forehand to backhand, Sundin roofed the puck passed the diving goaltender and the fans at the ACC went nuts. They cheered for their old captain, despite him handing their team a loss.
