Nail Yakupov is set to make his return to Edmonton Thursday night, two weeks after he was traded to the St. Louis Blues.
This got us thinking: what are some of the most memorable performances by players returning to the cities they’d been traded from?
Here are just a few.
Roberto Luongo, Jan. 9, 2015
Luongo returned to Vancouver following a messy breakup with the Canucks and sparkled against his former club. The Panthers goaltender made 32 saves in Florida’s 3-1 victory over the Canucks and was given a standing ovation and video tribute for his time with the team. Luongo played eight seasons in Vancouver and was dealt to Florida following a benching in the Heritage Classic.
Patrick Roy, March 5, 1997
The Montreal Canadiens are known for honouring past greats with dignified ceremonies. But when Patrick Roy returned to Montreal, the Canadiens were in the Molson Centre after moving out of the Forum and Roy came back to claim this new territory.
Roy, of course, was unceremoniously dealt to the Colorado Avalanche after being shelled for nine goals at the hands of the Detroit Red Wings on Dec. 2, 1995, but he didn’t make his return to Montreal until the season after the trade. The Avalanche crushed the Canadiens 7-3 as Roy made 34 saves. Meanwhile, the goalie he was traded for — Jocelyn Thibault — was pulled after allowing six goals on 20 shots in only 31 minutes. Jose Theodore replaced him in goal.
The Montreal fans — who jeered him in 1995 — gave Roy a standing ovation after his first save and booed Habs coach Mario Tremblay.
Trevor Linden, March 24 1998
The Vancouver Canucks’ Trevor Linden, as much as he was the heart and soul of the team for most of his time in the city, was dealt a bad hand at the end of his (first) tenure there.
After being stripped of the captaincy in favour of the incoming Mark Messier and never getting in step with hard line coach Mike Keenan, Linden was traded to the New York Islanders on Feb. 6, 1998 for Bryan McCabe and Todd Bertuzzi.
“I can’t say enough about the time I spent here,” he said at the time. “The people have been tremendous. On the other hand, I knew something was going to happen.”
When Linden returned to Vancouver for the first time just over a month later, his number 16 was already taken by Zigmund Palffy. The former Canucks captain finished pointless with a minus-2 rating in that game.
Linden did finally return to the Canucks organization in 2001 when GM Brian Burke acquired him from the Washington Capitals. He played parts of six more seasons in Van City.
Wayne Gretzky, Oct. 19, 1988
The Great One didn’t disappoint in his return to Edmonton after an off-season blockbuster deal saw the Oilers send him to the Los Angeles Kings. Gretzky received a hero’s welcome in his first game back at Northlands Coliseum, receiving multiple standing ovations. He provided the fans with two assists, four shots and a minus-two rating in an 8-6 loss to the Oilers.
Gretzky helped Edmonton to four Stanley Cups over his nine seasons with the team. The NHL’s all-time leading scorer returned to the club earlier this month in an executive role — being named partner and vice-chairman of Oilers Entertainment Group.
Milan Lucic, Feb. 9, 2016
Lucic’s return to his long-time home rink in February 2016 was emotional for both the player and the fans who cheered him on throughout his eight years with the Boston Bruins. Lucic even penned a letter to his former city on the eve of his big return as a member of the Los Angeles Kings.
The power forward, who personified the “Big Bad Bruins” image to the point of being a fan favourite in Boston, was traded to the Kings on the day of the 2015 NHL Draft in exchange for goaltender Martin Jones, defenceman Colin Miller and the 13th overall pick.
The Bruins honoured Lucic with a video tribute as well as several fan ovations and hearty cheers throughout the game, but the hosts didn’t fare so well on the scoreboard. Lucic and the Kings walked away from the matchup with a big 9-2 win, thanks in part to Lucic’s three-point game (one goal, two assists).
