“Whole City Wanted Me Out,” Ryan Reaves Opens up About Being Traded to Sharks from Maple Leafs

Ryan Reaves was traded away by the Toronto Maple Leafs on Thursday to the San Jose Sharks, bringing an end to a 2-year stay in Toronto.

“Whole City Wanted Me Out,” Ryan Reaves Opens up About Being Traded to Sharks from Maple Leafs

Ryan Reaves (Image via X/@BR_OpenIcE)

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In a stunning development on Thursday, the Toronto Maple Leafs traded away veteran forward Ryan Reaves to the San Jose Sharks. Following his move away from the Canadian team, the 38-year-old opened up about his move and expressed that the whole city wanted him out at once stage.

Reaves has been a controversial figure in the NHL in recent years. The player has taken up the enforcer role in teams and has found himself getting criticized for landing some big hits on his opponents.

The Canadian international did have one year and $1.35 million remaining on his contract. After playing just 35 games last year and having just 2 points (0 goals, 2 assists), Reaves was placed on the waivers towards the end of the season.

He would then spend some time with the Maple Leafs’ AHL affiliate, the Toronto Marlies. This week, he was then officially traded away to the San Jose Sharks in exchange for young defenseman Henry Thrun.

As per TSN’s Mark Masters, Reaves claimed that there was some lack of trust among the team regarding him. He pointed how after one bad game, he was out of the lineup for several games.

Just a lack of trust very early … I had one bad game & I was out of the lineup for 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9 games. I’d come back in, have a good game, but taken right back out. I really could never gain any momentum.

Reaves also spoke on the fan reactions regarding the performance of the team. He admitted that the pressure of performing in Toronto was more than in other cities.

Things were going really wrong & all of a sudden this whole city wanted me out & I don’t think you see that in other organizations … It definitely is different, but it’s nothing too crazy.

Reaves joined the Maple Leafs in 2023 and was expected to provide offensive support to the team. However, his career never really kicked off with the team.

The 2005 draft pick managed to play just 84 games with the team across his 2-season stay. During this tenure, the forward managed just 2 goals and 6 assists (8 points) and racked up 77 penalty minutes.

Ryan Reaves hoping to reach 1,000 game mark in NHL

Ryan Reaves will be starting a new chapter in the upcoming 2025-26 season. He will be representing a 7th team in the NHL as he gears up to suit up for the San Jose Sharks. Before this trade move, Reaves expressed his desire to reach the 1,000-game mark in the NHL.

Ryan Reaves
Ryan Reaves (Image via X/@Sportsnet)

The 38-year-old has played 912 regular-season games with teams like the St. Louis Blues, Pittsburgh Penguins, New York Rangers, Vegas Golden Knights, Minnesota Wild, and the Toronto Maple Leafs. During this, he has managed to score 63 goals and pick up 74 assists (137 points).

He is currently 88 games away from reaching that historic 1,000-game mark. This means it is technically not possible for him to reach that mark in the next season as a regular season only has 82 games. Reaves will need to play 2 more years to cross that mark.

With him now on the Sharks, he could reach close to this figure next season. The Sharks, who are in the rebuilding phase, would love to use the experience of Reaves in their young core team. Last season, the team finished bottom of the standings with a 20-50-12 record and managed just 52 points with a -105 goal differential through 82 games.

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