OTTAWA-"Once the puck drops, it'll be a game like any other game."
Surely, Mats Sundin doesn't believe that himself, even as the words leave his lips.
Not when the game in question has long been the most anticipated on the Leafs' calendar, circled back in December when Sundin came out of limbo to sign with Vancouver. Not when tomorrow marks the return of the former captain to his adopted city, the place where Sundin grew up as a hockey player, arriving in a deal for Wendel Clark; staying until he was the franchise's all-time leader in goals, points and, possibly, humility.
Not when even his fellow NHLers are curious about how Toronto will welcome him. Will he be feted by the fans, slow to embrace him in the early days, as one of the greatest to ever pull on the Leafs jersey? Or will the jurors at the Air Canada Centre jeer him for refusing to waive a no-trade clause that would have accelerated the team's rebuilding? After all, Sundin said he wouldn't become a rental player then essentially became one anyway? Is it the opportunity to say thanks or thanks for nothing?
"We're asking the same questions amongst ourselves," said Vancouver teammate Kyle Wellwood, who toiled with Sundin for three seasons in Toronto.
"He's been such a good, respectable guy, you hope that the fans in Toronto will cheer him on and give him a standing ovation when he steps on the ice but, playing there, you never know what to expect."
If they cheer Sundin, it will be for what he was, not what he is. This story isn't gaining momentum because the 38-year-old is ripping up the league again, having recaptured the beautiful mix of power and artistry that enthralled during his Leaf days. This Sundin looked nothing like that Sundin last night as he mostly laboured through his role as No.2 centre. He has but two assists in the last five games, the second on an empty-net goal last in Vancouver's 5-2 win here.
"Some nights I feel really good, some nights it's tough," said Sundin of his own game. "I knew it would be a process. I knew it would be tough coming in mid-season. It feels better but there's definitely room for improvement."
Sundin, after a practice in Ottawa today, will step back into the hockey maelstrom of Toronto where, because of media interest, teammate Sami Salo joked there may not be room for the players in the Vancouver dressing room.
"I don't know if you can ever prepare," Sundin said of the return. "I'm going to go out and play a hockey game. I can't worry about what's going to go on around the rink or before or after the game."
"I feel really good about going back. Toronto feels like home for me. I spent 13 years in the city with the Toronto Maple Leafs and the fans there. They were great years and it's always going to be part of my heart."
For the stoic Swede, that is the equivalent of laying his soul bare. But while Sundin is polished at keeping his public emotions in check, others in the hockey world understand tomorrow will be a difficult night.
"It's not just the fans, all the players also saw him as a Maple Leaf through and through," said Sens defenceman Brendan Bell, a former teammate in Toronto. "I know there'll be some extra emotion there for him but I don't know if he'll ratchet it up and score five goals or anything like that but I know he'll be good. Everybody is curious to see what happens."
Sundin's on-ice struggles won't dampen the interest tomorrow and here in the Capital yesterday, Sens forward Jason Spezza was asked which was the bigger story, the arrival of Sundin in eastern Canada or the whirlwind state visit of U.S. President Barack Obama.
"I think Obama," said Spezza. "He might be a little bit of a bigger deal. Maybe not in Toronto but here."
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