It was an emotional weekend for former Toronto Maple Leafs captain Mats Sundin.
Sundin’s No. 13 was raised to the rafters at the Air Canada Centre on Saturday, prior to Toronto’s 5-0 loss to the Montreal Canadiens. Sundin said it was a great honour — one that capped off an emotionally-draining week.
“I’m still missing parts of my voice but it’s been a great week,” Sundin told Brady & Lang on Sportsnet 590 The Fan on Monday. “I’m so thankful for what the Leafs organization and the fans did for me over the weekend … a very emotional weekend all around.”
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He added that the special weekend was a great opportunity to look back on what he accomplished during his time in Toronto.
“I think once you retire it’s only the first time you get to reflect on your career,” Sundin said. “You don’t really get the chance to take it in (when you’re playing).”
The 41-year-old said he wishes he could have played longer, but knew he made the right decision to retire back in 2009.
“Once you pass 35 (years) of age — hockey is a young man’s game — you just try to keep up by working out extra and just try to maintain your body,” said Sundin, who mentioned how much he admired players like Nicklas Lidstrom who continues to produce at the age of 41. “For me, I just ran out of gas.”
An Olympic gold medalist with Sweden in 2006, Sundin added that it was the travel and overall wear and tear on his body that led to his decision to hang up his skates.
For fans who miss seeing the eight-time all-star in a Leafs jersey, Sundin said he is looking forward to playing in the alumni game ahead of next year’s Winter Classic between the Leafs and Detroit Red Wings. He also hopes to see his idol and former Maple Leaf great Borje Salming join him on the ice.
“We (Sundin and Salming) have to be there for sure. If we’re not injured or sick or anything, we’ll go for sure.”
Sundin, the franchise leader in goals and points, sees a lot of similarities between the current Leafs squad and the team he captained to the Eastern Conference final in 1999. The team made a similar post-season run in 2002, but stumbled again at the same hurdle.
Having seen the excitement in Leafs Nation during those playoff runs, Sundin knows what it would mean to the hockey-crazed city and its fans if the team one day gets back to the Stanley Cup final, something the franchise hasn’t done since winning its last Cup in 1967.
“The $1 million question: when is it going happen? But there’s no doubt it will,” Sundin said.
“If you look at the current Maple Leafs, they remind me a lot of the team we had when we advanced to the conference finals the first time (against Buffalo in 1999) when we had a really young group. We had good skating players on all four lines and we had good goaltending. I like the way Brian Burke is building this team.
“The way the guys have been playing this year has been really strong and if they have a good push at the end they’ll make it into the playoffs and who knows what’s going to happen, so I’m excited about watching the Leafs.
“I think it’s going to be a big relief for all of us that have represented the Toronto Maple Leafs — and now are Leaf fans — to see when the Toronto Maple Leafs make it to the Stanley Cup because it will happen. It’s a matter of time and we’re all going to be really happy when it happens.”
Besides the warm reception he received from the Toronto fans, Sundin said the best part of the weekend was seeing former teammates like Bryan McCabe, Gary Roberts and Tie Domi who went out of their way to attend the ceremony.
