"There are two players on the Maple Leafs who know Dion Phaneuf better than most — Colby Armstrong and Matthew Lombardi.

Both played with the Leafs captain when he was a teenager.

They have seen a young player with a bundle of energy and a bucketload of talent blossom into the leader of an NHL team.

So they'd know better than most what to make of Phaneuf being named the most overrated player in the NHL by Sports Illustrated.

"Ridiculous," said Lombardi, who was in his second year in the NHL with the Flames when Phaneuf broke in as a rookie. "We've got one of the best defencemen in the league on our team. He's playing great. I think people just don't like playing against him. He's a tough player to play against.""