Former Washington Capitals and current Florida Panthers forward Matt Bradley spoke with reporters prior to Tuesday's game about his summer comments regarding the commitment of Alexander Semin and the rest of the team. Bradley said he regretted making those comments, calling them a "mental lapse." Via Sky Kerstein of 106.7 The Fan:
Bradley said "100 percent" he wishes he could take what he said about Semin back and that "as soon as I said it I knew I shouldn’t of said it and for whatever reason I had a mental lapse".
In an interview with an Ottawa radio station over the summer, Bradley said that Semin "just doesn't care" and that the Capitals' locker room culture was too "nonchalant." He also implied that coach Bruce Boudreau favored the big stars even when they were not playing well. Bradley signed a contract to play with the Panthers in the offseason.
Bradley already said he hopes to apologize to Semin for the comments at some point before or after the game. For full audio of Bradley's pregame interview with reporters, click here.