Jonathan Drouin‘s relationship with the Tampa Bay Lightning has been a tense one, to put it lightly. But following a trade that sent the 2013 third-overall pick to his hometown team, the Montreal Canadiens, Drouin took to Twitter to offer up a note of appreciation to his former club.
The young offensive dynamo was shipped to Montreal on Thursday in exchange for blue-chip defensive prospect Mikhail Sergachev, with conditional draft picks included on both sides of the swap.
Though a deal involving a player of Drouin’s calibre doesn’t come around often, seeing the former junior hockey standout move on from Tampa Bay didn’t come as much of a surprise given the history between the two parties.
Drouin and general manager Steve Yzerman were a tumultuous pair, at best, with the former requesting a trade at one point, while in search of a bigger role at the NHL level. However, the drama seemed to come to a close during the Lightning’s 2016 playoff run, as Drouin broke out with a dominant 14 points through 17 post-season tilts. He continued that effort in 2016-17, racking up 53 points in 73 games for Tampa Bay.
Now on a new squad that figures to give Drouin ample opportunity to flex his offensive muscle and prove his all-world worth, it seems the 22-year-old holds no ill will towards the club that brought him into the big leagues.
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