Nick Foligno opens up about the injury that prevented him from playing his game in Toronto

A lot has been made about the Toronto Maple Leafs paying the price that they did to acquire Columbus Blue Jackets captain Nick Foligno at last season's trade deadline in an attempt to push the team over the top and snap the first round curse that has been haunting the team for the better part of two decades.

Toronto ended up giving up a 1st round draft pick and a 4th round draft pick for a handful of games of Foligno, who didn't seem like the same player that he was just one season earlier when the two clubs met in the Toronto bubble in 2019-20.

Foligno sat down with Sportsnet's 590 The Fan host JD Bunkis on Thursday and spoke about his time in Toronto and the debilitating injury that he suffered, which essentially prevented him from being able to play his brand of hockey - the type of feisty two-way play that leads to playoff success more often than not.

Foligno, first and foremost, wanted to make sure that the fans know exactly how much his time in Toronto meant to him - as limited as it was - and also to know that the two sides did attempt to get a deal done, but just couldn't make it happen, regardless of the mutual interest that existed between the player and management.

"I loved every minute of my time in Toronto and I think that's the bittersweet part, for sure," Foligno said of leaving the Leafs and signing with Atlantic Division rivals, the Boston Bruins during free agency this summer. "It's unfortunate sometimes how this business plays out."

Foligno inked a two-year, $7.6M deal with the Bruins as a free agent on July 28th, which carries a $3.8M AAV.

As far as the injury that Foligno had suffered early on in his tenure in Toronto, it was one that greatly impacted his overall mobility and his ability to play the hard-nosed game that he was accustomed to. It was something that did not sit well with the 33-year-old at the time - and, to an extent, still doesn't.

"My biggest disappointment was that we didn't get the job done and I unfortunately got hurt. Regardless of what Leafs fans think of me or whatever, I'm way harder on myself. The fact that I couldn't perform to the abilities that I felt like I was early on killed me inside and it's something I'll regret forever, probably - just that I couldn't come there and be the player that I expected to be and was until I got hurt.

"I was unfortunately dealing with a really bad back injury that was debilitating - there was nerve pain that shut down my whole right leg. It was really disappointing that happened at the time it happened because anything else, you can play through a lot of times. This, I couldn't. I tried, and I just couldn't be the player that I [am]. I'm a guy who likes to hit and likes to forecheck and get in and do the things necessary in order to win the hard minutes of the game - trying not to hurt the team instead of help the team, thats what it felt like - that bothered me a lot as a player because I knew I could give more. I just physically couldn't and that was frustrating."

Foligno did his best to battle through the injury towards the end of the season and even during the first round, but ultimately missed time in the postseason as well - but not before dropping the gloves with Habs forward Corey Perry, following an unfortunate accidental collision with Leafs captain John Tavares that saw Tavares carted off on a stretcher and sidelined for the remainder of the Leafs' playoff run.

Bunkis noted that it must have been agonizing for Foligno to have fought Perry while dealing with such a tough injury, but Foligno shrugged it off as something he didn't even have to think twice about. He just regrets not having more to give to help push them through to round 2.

"I'd do anything for those guys. The way they embraced me when I got there, that group - I have nothing but great things to say about that team. That's why I think it stung so much and I'm sure the fan base feels it just like we do. That's a group that really felt like they were ready and we were ready to take another step and we didn't get it done and that's on us."

Regardless of how hard Leafs fans have taken the loss, there hasn't been a lot of Foligno hate circulating on social media - likely because, when in the lineup, Foligno gave it everything he had. That's about all you can ask from any player. It's just unfortunate, as Foligno had stated on multiple occasions, that a deal could not be reached to bring him back for another kick at the can.

You can listen to the full interview below:

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