VOORHEES, N.J. - Jakub Voracek understands there are camera phones lurking around every corner and that privacy rarely exists in today's age of instantaneous information, but that breach of privacy was taken to a whole new level when members of the Senators were videotaped trash-talking the team by an Uber driver in Phoenix, Arizona, during Ottawa's late-October road trip.
"I guarantee that every single person who has a boss, every sports team in the world can guarantee it happens everywhere," Voracek said Wednesday. "And I can guarantee that the coaches behind the door talk about the players. It happens everywhere all the time.
"You go out for a beer, you go out for dinner, it happens. The coaches vent about the players when they go out to dinner about who f---ing sucks, who's playing bad, who's playing better. It happens everywhere. So now it comes out, they're making a big deal. I don't think they said anything bad, just that their PK and their PP sucks."
Most, if not every, Flyers player I talked to had seen the video, which the Ottawa Sun posted.
Who knows exactly what the Uber driver's motivation was behind posting the video - something comparable to Taxicab Confessions - but what concerns Voracek is how a normal civilian could potentially cash in with damning information.
"Who gives a s---? He's a f---ing idiot. Do your job," Voracek said. "You're an Uber driver, drive cars. Don't try to sell copies to make some money. Get the f--- out of here. You know what I mean, he's a loser."
After returning Tuesday from Arizona, where the video was apparently shot, the Flyers won't have to concern themselves about out-of-town Uber rides for a few more weeks with their next road trip coming later this month in Buffalo and Toronto.
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But the incident will certainly serve the Flyers as a reminder that not every conversation between teammates will be a confidential one.
"I guess it's sad about where society is going," Brian Elliott said. "I think it's the best thing they could have done was take an Uber out for dinner or out for drinks that night. It's just kind of sad that it comes out like that. Hopefully, you'll conduct yourself that you shouldn't have to watch your back like that, but I'm sure there are situations you want private. That's the social media world of today."
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