The Father of Leafs Defenseman Chris Tanev Shreds the Vancouver Canucks Over Treatment of his Son
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Photo credit: Nick Turchiaro-Imagn Images
Mike Tanev, father of Leafs defenseman Chris Tanev, publicly blasted the Vancouver Canucks this week for how his son was treated by management.
After a season-long chase, Brad Treliving landed veteran defenseman Chris Tanev at this past NHL Entry Draft from the Dallas Stars.
While Tanev was skated to become a UFA on July 1st, Treliving got the blueliner signed to a six-year deal, likely marking the final deal Tanev will sign, given his age and the term of the contract.
Before joining the Leafs, Tanev made stops in Vancouver, Dallas and Calgary. The undrafted defenseman spent the first 10 seasons of his career with the Canucks where he established himself as a premier shut-down defenseman.
At the end of his entry-level deal, the Canucks played hardball with him and eventually got him to sign for $2M, which did not sit well with his dad, Mike.
Mike Tanev was on the Donnie and Dhali radio show on Friday, where he was asked about Tanev's tenure with the Canucks, specifically touching on that point which seemed to eventually sour the relationship between the two sides.
"Towards the end of it, I guess in the last year... I got Ross Gurney, who's a Vancouver guy to handle Christopher," said Mike. "Chris phoned me up one day and he says, 'I'm gonna sign in Vancouver for $2M'. I said, you're out of your mind, you're worth $2.5M all day long."
Mike went on to say that Canucks GM at the time, Jim Benning, took an unnecessary shot at Tanev's play style before taking a shot at the GM himself.
"I ended up phoning Ross and Ross said, 'Benning said Christopher is as soft as baby's poop...' I said tell Benning I'm old enough to remember when Benning played for the Leafs and he used to go in the corner with 12 eggs and come out with 13."
Mr. Tanev admitted there was a bit of a confrontation during a Canucks visit to Toronto, but ultimately nothing happened and he believed things were fine.
"There was a father's trip, everything was good until the last year when they didn't offer him a contract and Brad Treliving was the smart one when he was in Calgary."
Ultimately, had Benning not soured Mr. Tanev, and Treliving not approached him and forged a solid relationship five years ago, Tanev may not be a Maple Leaf right now.
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