I've been a dev at 5 companies in 15 years. I've never heard any praise for any developers' contributions after they've left the company. But you'll ALWAYS hear denigrations like "he wasn't very good which is why X is so shitty." And it's ALWAYS the person who is most plentiful with praise at group meetings.
"I think we should focus on the positives." - says guy who talks the most shit.