Toronto winger Joffrey Lupul isn’t mincing words about being left off Team Canada’s 47-man roster for August’s Olympic orientation camp.
“I was very disappointed,” Lupul told the Toronto Sun on Thursday. “In my mind, it’s a place I thought I would be.”
Despite missing 32 games last year with a broken forearm, concussion and suspension, Lupul still enjoyed a good amount of success.
He scored 11 goals and 18 points in 16 regular-season games, then scored three times against Boston in an opening-round playoff loss.
That, combined with 67 points in 66 games in 2011-12, was enough for Toronto to give Lupul a five-year, $26.25 million extension just days into the 2013 campaign.
Lupul admits that while he thought he deserved to be invited to camp -- and is aware he could still play himself into the mix -- he knows it’ll be tough making the final roster.
“There are so many talented players on the list that you can’t point at any names and say they don’t deserve to be there,” he explained. “Let’s face it, you could probably pencil in a lineup right now.”