Bennett, who lives in Etobicoke during the offseason, says Leafs fans hate him and love him.
Sam Bennett is a Stanley Cup champion and the Florida Panthers forward was a guest on TSN's First Up with Aaron Korolnek and Carlo Colaiacovo on Tuesday where they discussed a whole bunch of topics including his day with the Cup last week from his hometown in East Gwillimbury, Ontario, to partying up with 200 friends and family in Downtown Toronto at night.
Bennett, who now lives in Etobicoke during the summer, is surrounded by Toronto Maple Leafs fans and explained that at times they aren't shy in expressing their love and hate for the talented NHLer.
“It's funny, though, because I'm here all summer, I walk by and fans see me all the time, and they actually always have, like, something to say," Bennett said. "They hate me, but they always end with, 'I want you to be a Leaf one day.'”
The hate can not only be from how much of a talented pest Bennett, but also a particular moment that happened in Game 2 of the Panthers' second-round playoff series with the Maple Leafs in 2023 when he took down Leafs rookie Matthew Knies behind the net as the Toronto forward sustained a concussion that kept him out for the remainder of the series.
The Panthers ended up winning that series in five games before heading the Stanley Cup Final where they ended up losing to the Vegas Golden Knights.
Bennett is an unrestricted free agent at the end of the upcoming season so you never know where the player may end up next. He did give a scouting report on Oliver Ekman-Larsson, whom the Leafs signed to a four-year, $14 million dollar contract on July 1.
“Yeah, he's a really good pick up for the Leafs, for sure. Yeah, I was honestly shocked with how good he is. I mean, obviously, everyone knew how good he was earlier in his career in Arizona, but last year for us, he was probably one of our unsung heroes of the year, how steady he was, how good he is. And he's a dog in the playoffs too. He'll get in there and he's got a little nasty to his game as well. So yeah, absolutely huge pick up for us last year.And he's a big part of us winning.”
