Skip to main content

Toronto Maple Leafs Jonathan BernierChris Young/The Canadian Press

Dion Phaneuf will return to the Toronto Maple Leafs lineup Thursday night against the Philadelphia Flyers after missing 12 games with a hand injury but the Leaf captain says he is not wondering if this is the start of his final chapter with the team.

"I have not had discussions with management [about] what the plan is," Phaneuf said after the Leafs' game-day skate. "There's business taken care of by them, our job as players is to play.

"I signed here for one reason and that was to win. I signed long-term because I believed in what we had and the pieces we had in place. There's been lots of speculation about a rebuild but my job is to play."

In the days since it became known Maple Leafs president Brendan Shanahan and general manager David Nonis received clearance from the owners to embark on a teardown and rebuild of the NHL team, defenceman Cody Franson and forwards Mike Santorelli and Daniel Winnick were traded for draft picks and a few prospects.

The latest addition to the roster is centre Zach Sill, who came from the Pittsburgh Penguins plus a couple of draft picks in exchange for Winnick. He will play against the Flyers but as a low-scoring fourth-line player known for a physical game there is no certainty Sill, 26, will be around for long.

One thing certain, though, was that Sill faced the biggest media scrum of his 62-game NHL career after Thursday's skate. That's just life in Toronto for hockey players even if they are only passing through.

Phaneuf, whose defence partner against the Flyers will be Korbinian Holzer, said the Leafs players know full well who is to blame for the uncertain times in the dressing room.

"We under-achieved as a team and when that happens change comes," he said. "It's extremely tough to lose guys, all three guys were a big part of our team, they were great in our room. It's sad to see them go but we put ourselves in this position as a team. As players we under-achieved and when that happens changes come."

Jonathan Bernier will start in goal for the Leafs, who have three wins in their last 22 games.

The Maple Leafs made a minor trade Thursday afternoon when they reacquired defenceman T.J. Brennan from the Chicago Blackhawks for minor-league forward Spencer Abbott. Brennan, 25, played for the Leafs' Toronto Marlies farm team last season and was their leading point-getter with 72. He also won the American Hockey League's Eddie Shore Award as the league's best defenceman.

Brennan had 36 points in 54 games for the Blackhawks' AHL team. But he has never been able to stick in the NHL with four different teams and will report to the Marlies.

Interact with The Globe