Ex-teammate van Riemsdyk sees 'great fit' for Laughton and Maple Leafs
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While playing for the Philadelphia Flyers, James van Riemsdyk once woke up from a nap during a team flight, his face covered in Mike and Ike candy.
There could only be one culprit: Scott Laughton, his teammate at the time.
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Ex-teammate van Riemsdyk sees 'great fit' for Laughton and Maple Leafs Back to video
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“He’s always in the mix of every little thing,” van Riemsdyk said of Laughton’s reputation as a prankster. “He and TK (Travis Konecny) would be going back and forth with things like that all the time.”
Laughton and van Riemsdyk became teammates in Philly in 2018 when the latter signed with the Flyers following 5 1/2 seasons with the Leafs. Van Riemsdyk said Laughton became “one of my closest friends” and he was thrilled when Laughton was traded to Toronto in March.
“If he was to tell his 10-year-old self that he’d be here playing for the Leafs and on a team that’s in contention year in, year out, that’s something you dream about as a kid, especially him growing up here,” van Riemsdyk said. “I’m happy for him in how it worked out to come to a place like this. I know he’s got some familiarity with Chief (Leafs coach Craig Berube).
“He’s the type of guy that brings everybody together in a locker room. On the ice, he’s like a Swiss army knife in a lot of ways, he plays pretty much all 12 positions at forward. His value is pretty immense.
“From the outside, it seems like a great fit for the team and a great fit for him.”
Laughton is finding a comfort zone, both on and off the ice.
“I like messing around in the room quite a bit,” Laughton said. “I’m starting to do that a little bit more and finding my footing.”
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