Ex-Leafs forward David Kampf embarrasses himself in debut with the Canucks

David Kampf started the NHL season with the Toronto Marlies of the AHL, an assignment that he ultimately had a few problems with.

The forward decided to take some time away from the Leafs franchise, and as it turns out, this was all mutual. Both sides worked on a solution that would fit Kampf best.

While the Leafs wanted to trade the forward and get some assets back, his contract made this impossible. Teams were only willing to take Kampf if they could sign him at a cheaper price.

In the end, the Leafs put Kampf on waivers, and once he cleared, they were able to terminate his contract. Not long after, he was signed by the Vancouver Canucks.

Last night, Kampf made his Canucks debut in a game against the Florida Panthers, and unfortunately for him, his performance was embarrassingly bad.

He was on the ice for three goals against, which landed him a -3. Furthermore, he was unable to register any points, which is another knock against him.

In all fairness to the forward, this was his first NHL game of the season, and he hasn't been able to truly get acclimated to the Canucks' system.

Having said that, this is still not the type of performance you want to put up when you are trying to make an impression with a new team.

For the Toronto Maple Leafs, this performance is actually quite validating, as they can now justify why they refused to use him.

Only time will tell whether or not Kampf can bounce back, and prove to the fans in Vancouver that he is still an NHL-caliber forward.