Former Toronto Maple Leafs goaltender Jack Campbell had nothing but nice things to say about his three-year tenure donning the Blue and White.

The 2022 All-Star recently announced his retirement from hockey after a 15-year career split between the Leafs, Dallas Stars, Los Angeles Kings, and Edmonton Oilers. In a video posted to Instagram on Sunday, Campbell revealed that he would be entering a new chapter of his life as a performance coach with Novus Global.

During an appearance on First Up on Wednesday, Campbell was asked about his time in Toronto, and it was hard for him not to smile about his days wearing the Maple Leaf.

“Toronto, I can’t stop smiling. Even though I would’ve wanted to be there forever, it’s just the greatest time of my life,” he said. “I met my wife there, the friendships I have there are incredible. Some of the hardest things I’ve gone through off the ice were in Toronto, but looking back it just adds to the power of what Toronto means to me because I was able to identify things there and begin to work on it.”

His Leafs tenure had some ups and downs, but his authentic and lovable personality made him a fan favourite. His best season was the 2021 COVID-shortened campaign, when he finished the year with a record of 17-3-2 along with a 2.15 GAA and a .921 SV%. He also set a franchise record for consecutive wins by a goaltender with an 11-game win streak, breaking the previous record of ten held by Jacques Plante, John Ross Roach, and Felix Potvin.

Campbell’s struggles with confidence, self-belief, and mental health as a whole were made public at points during his career. Yet despite those challenges, it did not stop him from wanting to play in a Canadian market and give it his all every single night.

“My answer may sound interesting, but it’s the truth – I was obsessed with playing in a Canadian market. Playing in Toronto was the coolest thing in the world. Waking up on game day and opening up the blinds, it just felt like Hockey Night in Canada every single game,” he said. “Then Edmonton, another massive market, an amazing team, but the hard part about it isn’t exactly what people think. Yes, it’s a lot of eyes on you and media and positives, negatives, things like that, but for me it was always what’s going on in between my ears. The media or the comments on social media would never be as bad as when I talked to myself. So, in that regard, playing in a Canadian market was never actually that big of an issue.”

When Campbell first arrived in Toronto partway through the 2019-20 season, he first served as a backup goaltender to Frederik Andersen before shifting to a tandem goalie. The aforementioned 2021 COVID-shortened season compiled arguably the strongest goalie tandem of the Auston Matthews era despite Andersen’s struggles that year.

The two formed a strong bond on and off the ice, a friendship that has remained intact over five years after they were last teammates.

“Freddie Andersen, what a tremendous human being. That’s just a guy I would run through a brick wall for any day,” Campbell said. “The way he carried himself was inspirational. It’s the standard I think of when you’re going through a tough time. Freddie Andersen comes to mind and how I would want to carry myself. I’m so happy he won the Stanley Cup and got married. We actually just chatted last week, and he’s doing great.”