To his credit, Sam Bennett faced the music head-on and answered every question thrown at him by the media.
Thursday’s healthy scratch was the first of the 20-year-old’s life — a hard thing to swallow if you’re a proud National Hockey League player and even harder for a guy who has been a star at every level he’s played at.
But there he was, sitting in the Scotiabank Saddledome and watching instead of playing as his team was stomped by the Nashville Predators in a 4-3 loss.
And there he was on Friday, after joining the small group of players that were skating during the Flames’ maintenance day, owning up to Thursday’s decision by the coaching staff.