Dennis Wideman is excited to suit up and play against his former Bruins team, but the excitement isnt about revenge or getting back at the boo-happy fans.
Instead its simply about getting back into the playoffs after missing out on last season with a leg injury that went wrong for the puck-moving defenseman. The hematoma in his leg kept him hospitalized and away from the action after hed been traded to the Caps, so hes looking at this years playoffs as the chance to finally up for Washington as a difference-maker.
It isnt about proving the Bruins wrong for trading him away in exchange for players in Nathan Horton and Gregory Campbell that helped the Bruins win the Cup.
He understands thats a business and he turned in his first All-Star worthy season with 46 points as the main offensive defenseman for the Caps.
I dont know if Im motivated by proving anybody wrong. I was in a situation where they had a lot of defensemen and they needed a forward. I was the guy that went the other way. Thats the way I looked at it, said Wideman. When they lost Kessel to Toronto and they needed a top-end scorer.
Horton was the guy they went after and the guy they could give up was on defense. Its business. Thats the way it works. I dont sit there and say I cant believe they traded me because thats not how it is. Look around and watch the other sports. Thats just the way it works.
Its also not about gaining vengeance against a Boston fan base that turned Wideman into a Hal GillJoe Corvo-style whipping boy when the blueliner got off to a very slow start. It got pretty bad for Wideman once the Bs fans focused on each defensive zone misadventure, but he doesnt harbor any ill will towards Boston after two years away from the bad scene.
No. I didnt start off the year as well as I wanted to and the first half was a struggle, said Wideman. I was getting frustrated. Theyre knowledgeable hockey fans, so I assumed they werent too happy with the way I was playing.
They were just being Boston fans. They dont put up with that. Thats just the way it is.While Wideman wouldnt say that revenge was on his mind playing the Bruins this season, he did score a pair of goals in the four regular season matchups. But thats not the ultimate Wideman revenge: that would probably involve celebrating a Washington playoff series victory on the Boston ice that became his tormentor two years ago.