"He was on our radar long before we made the deal with Columbus," Burke said at the time. "We had gotten some pretty good reports on Francois in the American Hockey League from (then VP of hockey operations) Bob Murray, who said, 'The guy you have to get in the deal is Beauchemin.' Boy was he right."
...
"I remember thinking he was a workhorse down there, played a lot of minutes in a lot of different situations. He had paid his dues," Carlyle said. "As it turned out, we feel that we got a great player that hadn't really had an opportunity to show what he could do at this level."

What was so impressive was that Beauchemin still was a wide-eyed youngster looking at the challenge and opportunity he had gotten in Anaheim.

"When you consider where I was and where I'm at now, you have to look at my story as some sort of fantasy, don't you?" he said back then. "I looked at moving to Anaheim as more of a challenge, more of an opportunity to prove myself. Not trying to be as good as Sergei Fedorov."

Beauchemin's NHL experience, playoff savvy, maturity, solid defense, ability to stay out of the box, smart decision making, good size, and long-standing relationship with GM Brian Burke—as well as his ability to play in all situations—clearly puts him at the top of the list when considering who should captain the Maple Leafs.

Which brings us to our next contestant—newly signed defenseman Francois Beauchemin.

“When I got to Anaheim, I learned a lot from Scott Niedermayer,” said Beauchemin. “He taught me a lot about what it takes to be a professional in the dressing room and on the ice. Chris Pronger was a big influence on me, too. Being around those guys, I’d say that wasn’t too bad at all.”
...
“It will be a lot different than playing in Anaheim, but I can’t wait,” offered Beauchemin. “I guess I’ll have to buy some winter clothes now.”

When Francois Beauchemin watches video of the Maple Leafs' first two games, he must wonder who the hell is that defenceman wearing No. 22.

"This is not my type of game," the former member of the air-tight Anaheim Ducks said of being on the ice for eight of the 10 goals against the 0-2 Leafs in power-play and even-strength situations, and being minus-4 overall. "I have to be a lot better."
...
Beauchemin pleaded guilty on Saturday.

"I made some bad decisions at the blueline, trying to keep pucks in, pinching a little too much, not reading the play well," he said. "I believe in this group and I know we'll get a lot better than this."

"It was new everything," said Beauchemin. "Nothing much was going our way and I was trying to do too much. Sometimes you try to do too much and think more about yourself than the team. When you do that, you're not really doing what your job is supposed to be."

Mikhail Grabovski and Francois Beauchemin were involved in a scuffle and had to be separated, reports AM640 in Toronto.

The radio station is reporting the pair was involved in an argument and Grabovski tried to punch Beauchemin. Jason Blake and assistant coach Tim Hunter got between them.