Tampa blueliner, who has been very critical of the Leafs, deletes his social media after constant harassment
During the summer, following a first-round series loss to the Maple Leafs, Tampa Bay Lightning defenseman Mikhail Sergachev said he was "pissed off" about losing to the Leafs and that the Lightning were going to be known as the team the Leafs ended their playoff slump against. Sergachev reiterated his comments ahead of the first meeting of this season against the Leafs, stating that how the Lightning felt in April is probably how the Leafs feel every year.
Whether it's karma coming back to bite him or not, the Lightning blew 3-1 and 4-1 leads against the Leafs in their two meetings so far this season, as the Lightning have not been their usual dominant selves to start the season. No doubt, a large part of that is the fact that Andrei Vasilevksiy has been out since training camp following back surgery, but the play of the Lightning is not helping matters either.
Tampa fans are not used to the team struggling so much apparently, as many have taken to social media to voice their displeasure and Sergachev has unfortunately taken the brunt of it. Yesterday, Sergachev deleted his Instagram account because he has received so many messages about his poor play.
In 15 games so far this season, Sergachev has yet to score and has just 8 assists, but is a team worst minus-14, good enough for second worst among NHL defensemen. Like Justin Holl when he was with the Leafs and now John Klingberg, Sergachev has quickly become the poster-boy for defensive miscues in his own market, which may have, in the past, been covered up by Vasilevskiy.
The 25-year-old blueliner is in the first year of an 8-year extension that he signed with the Lightning last off-season that sees him earn an average of $8.5M per season. By the sounds of things, the season could not have started worse for him.
| POLL | ||
NOVEMBRE 16 | 277 ANSWERS Tampa blueliner, who has been very critical of the Leafs, deletes his social media after constant harassment Do you think fans are crossing the line when they harass an athlete on their personal social media? | ||
| Yes, there are some lines that you don't cross | 166 | 59.9 % |
| No, they're fair game | 56 | 20.2 % |
| Don't care | 55 | 19.9 % |
| List of polls | ||
