power-play line were unfair to him. Prior to the trade request, these concerns had been brought to the attention of management during the Senators' year-end meetings. In an interview with reporters after the request had been made public, Senators' then-General Manager Bryan Murray stated that he was "shocked and disappointed" at Heatley's request. In addition, Murray said that head coach Clouston was hurt by Heatley's remarks. "The frustrating part for us is we have gone through several coaches here that we couldn't win enough games with," Murray stated. "We brought in a guy the results we were very happy with. The team started to look like a real team again. And then to be kind of blindsided, in his way of thinking anyway, by one of your players – not wanting to fit in. That's hard for a coach to accept." Senators' fans were blindsided by the request, and across the league observers were both puzzled and angry. Sports writers across Canada criticized Heatley's behaviour, calling him a "brat", "pathetic", and "reprehensible". "I was surprised at it, but I understood it", Atlanta Thrashers' GM Don Waddell said of Heatley's desire to leave Atlanta in the aftermath of Dan Snyder's death. "This one, I really don't understand. He asked to get out (of Atlanta) and he went to a team that he obviously approved of and had some success. They went to the (2007 Stanley Cup) finals. What I can see is that he got a lot of support in Ottawa. I don't think (the trade request) says a lot of positive things on the surface... It sure doesn't show a good team attitude." Graham Snyder, father of Dan Snyder, played a significant role in helping Heatley avoid prison time after the crash that killed his son. He was confused by Heatley's decision to force a trade from Ottawa, saying "I'm surprised because he signed a long-term deal (with Ottawa) and was playing in a market that seemed to embrace him." Snyder said there were "a lot of ways" Heatley could have dealt with the decision by Clouston to reduce his playing time and bump him down to the second power-play unit, rather than demanding a trade. "Certainly, (talking with Clouston) behind the scenes would be a lot more effective, and trying to work through it." An Atlanta Thrashers' employee cryptically told the Vancouver Sun "We know Dany very well. There