Max Pacioretty is not the first Montreal Canadiens star to join the Toronto Maple Leafs, here is a list of other notable names
This past training camp the Toronto Maple Leafs signed former Montreal Canadiens star forward Max Pacioretty to a professional tryout which led to a one-year contract with the team.
Pacioretty was not just a five-time 30-goal scorer for the bleu, blanc et rouge, but he served as the franchise captain for three seasons. But now he’s playing for the enemy – the Toronto Maple Leafs.
Pacioretty played ten seasons and over 600 games in Montreal collecting 226 goals, however, with a retool in the process he was traded to Vegas and after a couple of stops found himself in Toronto. It had to be painful for some Canadiens fans to watch one of their beloved players wear the Toronto Maple Leafs jersey, which led to him receiving some unpleasant “boos” from the crowd during their season open.
He was not the first former Canadiens star to play in Toronto and he won’t be the last, so to dig the knife a little deeper here is a list of other turncoats to come wear the blue and white.
Max Pacioretty Joins Toronto Maple Leafs list of Ex-Habs
Kirk Muller
While he did not start his career in Montreal, Kirk Muller had his most notable seasons playing in Quebec including his 1992-93 season where he tied his career high with 94-points and helped the Canadiens win the Stanley Cup. He earned the name of “Captain Kirk” because of his leadership skills that earned being named the captain of the team at the start of the 1994-95 season. He would be part of a blockbuster deal later that year with the New York Islanders finishing with 267 games in a Canadiens uniform, including 33 wearing the “C” on his jersey.
Less than a year later, Muller would be traded to Toronto along with Don Beaupre for Damien Rhodes and Ken Belanger part way through the 1995-96 season. The Kingston, Ontario native would be a fan favorite in his short time in Toronto thanks to his work ethic and collecting 20-goals to start his 1996-97 season in 66 games, however with the Maple Leafs struggling, he was traded to the Florida Panthers. Canadiens fans got to see their former captain wearing the Maple Leafs jersey for over 100-games.