While the Toronto Maple Leafs gained an All-Star in John Tavares, they also lost a few notable pieces. Earlier today, Tyler Bozak bolted to St. Louis on a three-year $15 million deal and perhaps more importantly, James van Riemsdyk, who led the Leafs in goals in the 2017-18 season, jetted to the team that drafted him; The Philadelphia Flyers.
JVR will now join a stacked top six which includes Claude Giroux, Sean Couturier and Jakub Voracek, to name a few. To welcome his former teammate back to the city of brotherly love, Giroux referred to JVR as a “pigeon”.
According to The Hockey Writers, a Pigeon “describes a player that isn’t good enough to score goals by himself, so he picks up the trash of his more skilled linemates." The website also insists that the term has been made famous by Giroux.
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The term should ring a few bells for hockey fans. Who could forget Winnipeg Jets forward Patrik Laine’s hilarious rant involving Xbox and PS4?
We’re sure these pigeons are going to do some serious damage together again in Philly.
(H/T Claude Giroux)
