Former Maple Leaf makes a surprising confession about playing in Toronto

Roman Polak spent 6 years in the St. Louis Blues organization and dropped a bomb about the contrasts between the difference in management and attitudes in both cities.

Polak mentioned during a discussion about Max Pacioretty's situation with the Vegas Golden Knights on The Cam and Strick Podcast, how management in Toronto was very carefree and hands-off regarding pressure to win, from ownership to management, which may have changed since Mike Babcock's departure.

He also mentioned that the players don't care what the media has to say, which in many cases is understandable.


However, in St. Louis as a rookie, he felt enormous pressure from the top-down, from ownership to management, to compete for his job daily and win on the ice.

Polak stuck with the Maple Leafs until after the 2017-2018 season, where he ended up with the Dallas Stars for 2 seasons, before heading back to play in the Czech league.