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Sabres' Gorges admits 'hate' of Maple Leafs compelled him to nix trade to Toronto

Tom Szczerbowski / USA TODAY Sports

As Josh Gorges settled in at the Buffalo Sabres' training camp on Friday, the defenseman was asked about a summer trade proposal that would have sent him from Montreal to Toronto. 

Gorges admitted the reason he nixed the deal - and subsequently ended up in Buffalo - was due to the "hate" he developed over the years for the blue and white.

“I've always played this game from my heart (and) with character," Gorges told the Toronto Sun. "And going to a team that you've learned to hate over a number of years, I don’t think it would have been fair for Toronto. And that’s one thing I told them right off the bat. I don’t think you’d be able to get the best of me. And I just thought it was fair to let them know that."

Gorges concluded, "I just felt that I probably wouldn't be the same player in Toronto that I was in Montreal."

The thought of playing with the Sabres clearly sat better with him: "We ended up coming to Buffalo. And I think it was a great move for me and my family.”

The Maple Leafs and Sabres are known to engage in emotionally charged affairs from time to time, and Gorges' presence in Buffalo's lineup will certainly be noticed during a regular-season visit to Toronto on Oct. 28. 

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