When the Ottawa Senators roll into Philadelphia tonight to take on the Flyers, they'll see a very familiar face staring them down from between the pipes in the opposition net. It's a face that caused a lot of stress to Senators fans during a three-year love/hate relationship.
That face, of course, would belong to Ray Emery, a skilled goaltender during his time with the Sens from 2005-2008, but one whose on-ice performance was arguably outweighed by his reputation as a notorious trouble-maker off of it...and, well, yeah, on it, too.
Now the 27-year-old Flyers goalie will face his former team for the first time since leaving the Senators organization following a long, bizarre and dramatic soap opera that ended in 2008.
The Wachovia Center in Philadelphia will likely prove a much more supportive environment for Emery's first matchup against his old squad than if the game were taking place in Ottawa's Scotiabank Place, where it's quite probable the boos would reign down from the stands. Either way, tonight's game is a date the Hamilton, Ontario native has been looking forward to with great anticipation.
"I definitely had it circled on the calendar," Emery said. "It's a good way to ease into things. Not as hectic as Ottawa, getting them in our building."
You can watch the game on TSN and TSN HD at 7pm et/4pm pt.
Emery's time in the nation's capital might best be described as tumultuous. In a series of odd events both inside and outside of the arena, no one could accuse him of blending in with the scenery. Emery often had brilliant results for the Sens, but it was always amid rampant rumours of a super-sized ego and strange behaviour.
The first major incident of note involving Emery was a three-game suspension in early 2007 for hitting Canadiens' forward Maxim Lapierre in the face with his goal stick.
It was less than two weeks later that he was involved in a massive brawl with several members of the Buffalo Sabres. After fighting with Sabres goalie Martin Biron, Emery then challenged Andrew Peters and actually went toe-to-toe with the Sabres tough guy, a wide grin plastered across his face the entire time. Emery was given 22 minutes in penalties and a game misconduct.
Later that year, the Sens made the Stanley Cup Final, only to lose to the Anaheim Ducks. But Emery's strong play in the post-season had been enough of a factor that the team decided it overshadowed his sometimes "zany" activities, and the young goaltender signed a three-year contract extension with the Sens in the off-season.
The next campaign was plagued by injuries and reduced playing time, made worse for Emery by the strong play of Ottawa's other goalie Martin Gerber. Emery was suddenly a second-string goalie.
His behaviour became even more erratic after that. He was sent home from practice by head coach John Paddock after arriving late - he said he had slept in.
Emery was involved in two separate altercations with two different teammates during practice. Then there was the whole Mike Tyson-helmet episode (during which Emery was pressured to remove the controversial boxer's image from his mask), and the incident where Emery's Hummer was involved in a car accident and he was accused of driving away from the scene, saying he was in a rush. In June 2008, Emery was waived by the weary Sens and he became a free agent.
Emery's behaviour had caused so many headlines around the league that even his now-teammates on the Flyers couldn't help but be aware of his antics and his general status as one of the NHL's bad boys.
"We had all heard about what had happened in Ottawa and all the rumours, some true and some false, obviously," said Flyers forward Daniel Briere. "As a person off the ice, he's been a great teammate and I have absolutely no complaints there. And on the ice, he's doing the job.
"Everybody deserves a second chance and if that person is willing to work towards that goal, then I'm all for it."
Emery spent 2008-09 playing for Atlant Moscow of the Kontinental Hockey League in Russia. Even there, outside of the bright glare of the spotlight that comes with playing in the NHL, he was not able to avoid controversy.
After months of limited exposure to Emery's usual antics, North American hockey fans had their first glimpse of his KHL stint via a video of him getting into a physical altercation with his team's trainer. After being pulled from the net during a lackluster performance, the hot-tempered keeper got into a shoving match with the employee after refusing to wear a hat with the team's sponsor featured on it. Emery initially failed to report to the team after a mid-season break, but eventually returned to finish the season.
With that odd turn behind him, Emery now seems genuinely happy to have found a new home with the Flyers, with whom he signed in June of 2009.
"I've got a great opportunity here and you can't ask for much more," he said. "I've got a chance to play and we have a great team. Russia was all right but this is definitely better."
Emery was quick to note that his time with the Sens was not entirely unpleasant.
"I liked playing in Ottawa. We had a good team and I had a lot of good friends there," said Emery. "But it's great here (in Philadelphia). It's a different environment and I'm definitely happy to be here."
As for past regrets?
"You know, you learn from your experiences and if you don't, you don't last too long," said a calm, contemplative Emery. "You learn some difficult lessons and you try to correct the mistakes you made."
Flyers head coach John Stevens was quick to defend his goaltender.
"I think Ray's been misinterpreted the way he is," said Stevens. "I think when you get him here and you get to know him, it's not about Ray. Ray just loves being a part of the team, he wants to play hockey, he's excited about being a part of things here.
"I've had the philosophy that you give everybody a clean slate and you go see for yourself," Stevens said. "I've been pleasantly surprised by who he is, how he conducts himself, how team-oreinted he is, how hard he works. We all thought that he was capable of being an elite goalie and he's got a long way to go to prove that. It's only early in our season but his level of play right now is not surprising to any of us."
The game against the Senators will be a chance for Emery to prove he has matured as a player, and there's no doubt he has some extra incentive to have a strong game against his former team.
"Playing against your ex-team, you want to prove that you still have it, you're still a good player," said Briere of Thursday night's match-up. "If he plays the way he's played for us the last couple of weeks, we're in good shape."
"There's probably some extra motivation for Ray," added Stevens. "I think there is for any player when you play your old team, but I don't think it's anything more than that, as far as the team's concerned."
Of course, the Sens will most likely be charged with same adrenaline of facing an ex-teammate, meaning the game should have a special atmosphere to it when the puck drops on Thursday night.
Emery, picked 99th overall in the fourth round of the 2001 NHL Entry Draft by the Senators, is 9-3-1 with the Flyers so far this season, boasting an impressive 2.27 goals against average.