LATEST | Former Canucks defenceman calls out one of his former teams

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Cooper Godin
December 6, 2023 (9:52)

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It's been a few months now since long-time National Hockey League defenceman and former Vancouver Canuck Michael Del Zotto has retired and this week, he sat down for an interview on Spittin' Chiclets.

While on the episode this week, Del Zotto opened up about his time with the Ottawa Senators and called out the organization for how he was treated there.

"During my time in Ottawa, I got sent down to the minors, because they wanted to wake the team up. I was told at the end of the season, 'Oh you were the scapegoat. Your teammates liked you and we had to send you down to shake things up'. In what world is that normal?" Del Zotto said.

It's good to see Del Zotto speak his mind about how he felt during his time in Ottawa and what happened to him, like he said on the podcast, isn't normal. It's understandable for a team to try and find a way to spark the roster by making a trade or call-up, but to send down a veteran who was well-liked by everyone, that's only going to bring down the moral of the entire dressing room.

The 33-year-old appeared in 736 games in the National Hockey League for eight different organizations, including 105 with the Vancouver Canucks between the 2017-18 and 2018-19 seasons.

Last season, the Stouffville, Ontario native split time between the Charlotte Checkers and San Diego Gulls in the American Hockey League last season, putting up 41 points in 65 games.