Rumor: Patric Hornqvist trashes his Penguins gear following the trade.

There has been a ton of talk regarding the big trade made by the Pittsburgh Penguins this week, and this latest rumor certainly won't be doing anything to douse the flames. 

A picture has begun to make the rounds on social media and it purports to be an image of the driveway belonging to now former Penguins forward Patric Hornqvist. In the picture we see the driveway with a house in the background, but most notable of all is what can be seen on the ground in that driveway. There are no cars to speak of, but on the ground is a pile of equipment that looks an awful lot like the gear that would be worn by a player from the Penguins franchise. 

The image was published by Charles Tommarello, a man living in Pittsburgh, and although I have no reason to suspect he is lying I am labeling this as a rumor for now given that we cannot verify the veracity of the claims attached to the image. Certainly the way that Hornqvist left the team, and the comments he made on his way out, do make it seem possible that Hornqvist was angry enough on his way out to discard his gear in a pile of trash. Hornqvist told reporters this week that he had been "blindsided" by the trade, something that would make sense given the no-trade protection he had in his contract, and it seemed like there was some bitterness there. 

Given that the man played for the organization over a 6 year period and captured a pair of Stanley Cup championships while doing so I feel he has the right to be upset, and it seems that most fans in Pittsburgh have thus far supported him in that regard as well. Hornqvist was a beloved player among the Penguins fan base and there has already been plenty of criticism of Penguins general manager Jim Rutherford for dealing the veteran forward to the Florida Panthers in exchange for defenseman Mike Matheson and forward Colton Sceviour.

I could see a world in which this picture results in some fans turning on Hornqvist, but I can also imagine there will be some fans who empathize with a player that appears to feel betrayed.