NASHVILLE – A hard revelation swallowed up Travis Dermott as he sat in the gut of the Bridgestone Arena Saturday night.
Eyes moist and a touch red, the boy from Newmarket, Ont., Who grew up fantasizing about pulling a Toronto Maple Leafs sweater over his head, understands that he did it for the last time.
The trading deadline is near, and Dermott has already been changed a million times on the Internet.
Boy Player. Movable Contract.
He has fallen out of favor with coaching staff, has struggled to keep a third-team role, and needs a change of scenery. The management was able to use the cap room for who would join the locker room the next day and a half.
Emotionally, the defender tried to cling to clichés and his availability after the game – “that’s hockey,” “whatever happens, happens” – but Dermott was always as sincere as he was when he laughed quickly.
His heart, it could not help flying on its sleeves.
“It was surreal to be worked out by the Leafs and all that stuff that leads to it. But how many guys play their entire careers in the same team? So, there’s something that … there’s always there. There’s always an opportunity out there. “I wish everything worked out as well as it could, but that’s hockey,” said Dermott.
He recalled June 27, 2015, how his life changed forever. For the best.
“It’s a dream. I’m sticking to myself to this day. Like, there’s no way. I’m still dreaming of draft day. They did not actually call my name. This is just a five year long dream. You’re trying to take it for all that it is and truly appreciate.
“But if it’s in the next week or 10 years, when I’m gone, I’ll definitely look back and remember some good times.”
Dermott accepts that “good teams are built on competition within the group”, but he has found himself on the outside world of the starting lineup more often than the two younger Blueliner, with whom he fights for ice age.
Rasmus Sandin played 51 games.
Timothy Liljegren turned 44.
Dermott only played his 43rdand possibly his last.
Starting with the Heritage Classic, he was crowned for three consecutive games after what his coach called his best hockey stick of the entire season. Keefe chose to give the Sandin-Liljegren pair a run for their money.
The outer scratches stood out.
“This is probably a game you’re asking yourself,” Dermott said diplomatically.
“You, of course, expect a lot of things when you set the hours. But nothing is promised. You should come in every day, do your work, be happy with the efforts you make and take the results as they come.
So, Demott poured his efforts and practices and tried to be proud to stay sharp. Easier said than done.
“Some days it’s hard, but that’s what I’m trying to focus on,” he said. “I love this group. I think you come every day and there is such good energy through the lineup. There is no guy who brings bad vibes and hurts the squad.
“Even though the media is hard on us and we have lost a couple, the boys are always hanging on to each other. And I think that makes it almost better for us – that you have to hang on to each other more because there is so much pressure from outside .
The external pressure, the swelling trade speculations, Dermott’s teammates swear it did not affect his optimistic attitude.
“That’s not easy to do. You’re not into games, and it’s hard to find your rhythm,” said Auston Matthews. “But he just comes to the piste every day. He works hard. Nothing really seems to come to him. He’s always happy, and he’s always a guy who brings a lot of really good energy to the group.
A trade will not be the dream, but as things go, it feels inevitable.
“I love playing hockey, you know?” Dermott said.
“Wherever that is.”
Add Comment