Nick Ritchie benched in the minors?

Ritchie was already disappointed when he was placed on waivers by the Leafs last month, probably even more so because he was not claimed by another NHL club. Now, after being relegated to playing in the minors, the Orangeville, Ontario native appears to have a real chip on his shoulder.

Ritchie made his Marlies debut earlier this week and actually notched a power play goal, which would be exciting for most. Ritchie barely reached to the goal at all and was a man of few words during the post-game presser. So much so that even the Toronto Star's Kevin McGran had reported that Ritchie appeared unhappy.

On Friday, Ritchie reportedly did not take any shifts in the third period for the Marlies. He did take a bit of an awkward tumble, but if he was injured, why would he remain on the bench? This one feels like it was more performance-based. If that's the case, that's a very poor strategy for Ritchie. Getting yourself benched in the minors is not going to give other teams any reason to want to trade for you.

You'd figure that Ritchie would want to use this opportunity to play himself back onto the big club or play himself into a trade. Bringing a poor attitude to the rink isn't going to accomplish anything for him. The plot thickens.