Reddaye

EA really need to add in face offs and board play like the kick ass systems used in 2k8. This rather outdated face off system feels to wrong when I go back and play some 2k8. Makes things feel much more authentic. It'd also be nice of the AI wasn't able to seemingly turn on a dime and be completely immune to the general laws of ice skating. Maybe I'm imagining things with that last comment though.

He should be able to use it if he wanted to, shouldn't he? I thought we were only honoring numbers now, not retiring them?

I think John Mitchell has pretty well proven the point about why Dominic Moore wasn't worth more than 1.75 million a season. We already have someone who could replace him. ^_^

Leafs are going to have a new face in the lineup against Washington tonight. Jeff Hamilton's contract has been bought from the Chicago Wolves. Not major news, but interesting to make mention of it. Obviously we need a body to fill in our empty spots.

You didn't happen to listen to his interview during NHL On The Fly, did you? He called in and basically told Bill Clement what he's been telling everyone about needing to go out and find a guy like Kaberle if he deals Kaberle. Ottawa and their attempts all season to get a puck moving d-man pretty well show how tough it is. That's not even taking into account Kaberle's bargain price. Although come draft day Burke might get an offer for either of them that's worth taking. I have confidence that the man will do the smart thing. I feel safe about the team's future with Burke in the driver's seat. Even when you're building a team with a young core you need experienced guys to mentor them. Kaberle and Kubina fit those roles, and hopefully White and Schenn can eventually replace them as the top pairing some day. EDIT: I have to laugh at all these people who keep claiming Burke did a horrible job today. That he did worse than Fletcher did last year at the deadline, and basically just performed poorly in general today. It's amusing.

So we now have picks in every round of the upcoming draft, plus two extras. Very awesome. Even ended up with two big, tough blue liners that may develop into something good for us. Burke did pretty well today IMO. Now if he can turn those picks into good prospects we'll be well on our way with this rebuild. Exciting times to be a Leaf fan.

Agreed 100%. We actually have some draft picks going into the draft this year. Burke relieved us of two free agents that he wasn't willing to pay the money they wanted, and ended up getting flexibility at the draft for them. Who's to say Burke won't package some players together with the picks he acquired to get us a few first rounders? Or use them to bump up our first round pick. For the first time in a long time we have options for the draft. Would have been nice to get a first for Antropov, but at least we got something. Moore for Carolina's second rounder is total profit since we got him from the waiver wire. Win-win on that deal IMO.

So all in all we've (from what's been revealed, which I expect will be everything) ended up with... - Two second round picks - One conditional pick of some kind - UFA goalie to fill in for Toskala - Fill in d-man with some toughness. That's actually better than I thought we'd end up with.

The Antropov deal is for a 2nd rounder and a conditional pick from what's been reported. No idea on the conditions, or what round that particular pick is for. Not overly fond of this deal, but it's better than nothing especially considering Nik's UFA status. Moore deal with Chicago is nearly dead in the water. Burke pushed for more and Chicago decided to explore other options instead. Ponikarovsky to Nashville for two picks is another one that's floating around. Good be a good deal, maybe a 3rd and a 4th.

They had some really great chemistry, Mitchell and Blake, that is. More ice time certainly wouldn't hurt Mitchell either. Talks with Moore have officially broken off and Burke is now totally intent on getting a trade going for him. Also been hearing that the Leafs may claim Martin Gerber off of waivers so they can give Toskala the rest of the season off to get himself healed up and ready for surgery. Pogge is currently struggling to even maintain the starting spot on the Marlies, and there's little confidence that CuJo can get it done in net.

Kaberle is supposedly out with an injury. EDIT: Now that I'm thinking of it...John Mitchell showed tonight exactly why Dominic Moore isn't worth more than 1.75 million a season. Give him some more time to develop and we've got a solid bottom six center.

Moore and Antropov are both sitting out tonight's game against New Jersey. According to TSN this is the situation with Moore: Shame about Moore; as I really like the guy and his work ethic. If he were willing to settle for $1.75 million a year I'd gladly lock him down. Comments from Burke during a radio interview today: - Has been on the phone with Minnesota three times today. Not regarding Gaborik. - Feels Moore is worth a late second, or early third round pick. - Hasn't spoken to any teams about Kaberle, expects he'll keep him. - Has turned down a few offers for Ian White. Feels he's a big part of the future. - Hasn't ruled out keeping Antropov, would consider a second rounder depending on who it's from. - Stempniak is a better player than he's shown, just needs better team mates to play with. - By the end of tomorrow he wants draft picks back. Expects two second rounders. - He's been very busy and expects to be busy tomorrow. Emphasizes the need to get draft picks back.

I agree, it's a good deal. The only question mark is LeClaire's injury problems. Even when he played here for the Mooseheads he struggled at times with injuries from what I've heard. At 26 years of age he's still young, has talent, and would probably be Columbus' number one if Steve Mason hadn't emerged. Stralman is, like you said, easily replaceable. It seems the most common rumor is the pick is a first rounder, but nothing is confirmed so I wouldn't be shocked if it was a second. The talks with Moore have supposedly started up again. It'll be interesting to see if he's benched tonight against the Devils. Marian Gaborik is officially on the block right now. Wild are asking for a Kaberle like price for him: 1st rounder, prospect, and a roster player. A fair price if the guy could stay healthy for more than four games. There's also the fact that he's a UFA at season's end, and would likely be asking well north of six million a year (his current deal is six) for a new contract. Risky business.

Gabe I understand what you're saying, and agree for the most part. I'd like to see us bring in a promising young guy, even if he just splits time with Toskala that we can develop along with the rest of the team as it grows and matures. I'm not saying we throw him right into the starting job during his first year, that seems to be a big part of Price's current problem. We let him go maybe 50/50 with Toskala and try and give him time to grow and mature along with the team. He's 24 years old, so he's got some time to go before reaching the maturation point of a goalie. Carefully coach him and grow him, and you might have something very good on your hands in three years time when we're starting to become seriously competitive. Obviously it's just some musing on my part. I'm just playing armchair GM. Supposedly the deal Columbus have offered Burke is Pascal LeClaire, a pick (possibly 1st) for Antropov and Stralman. No idea how true it is obviously. Looks like Pittsburgh are looking to make a deal. Vancouver must be making a pretty good sized one too considering the good amount of free cap space they have. Curious. Very curious.

Speaking of goalies: Nick Backstrom has just signed a 4 year extension for 6 million dollars a year with the Minnesota Wild. The reason I mention this is: FUCK LECLAIRE BURKE! If we could get a young guy like Josh Harding during Free Agency we'd have a really promising young net minder to build out from. Also, Avery is now a New York Ranger. Surprise, surprise.

Both are counts of sarcasm on my part, guess it doesn't translate well, even with emoticons. I very much agree that MK is stale. Let's face it: the only thing that made Mortal Kombat stand out early on was the blood and violence. Now practically every game feature copious amounts of gore. The fighting system has always been simplistic, especially when compared to Street Fighter 2, and the various Capcom Vs. games (X-Men, Marvel, SNK, etc). Hard to make a silk purse out of a sow's ass.

Oh....duh. I wonder if Washington could use someone along the lines of Kubina? They need someone who's more responsible in his own end, where Kubina is usually solid. He also brings an offensive punch to help their already awesome powerplay. Obviously that won't happen though, which isn't entirely a bad thing for the Leafs. Kubina has been one of our more solid defensemen lately.

Except that Antropov is from Kazakhstan. Great list though.

How dare you call Mortal Kombat stale! How dare you! All we need is Capcom or some other Japanese company turning MK into some sissy anime fighting series with cat people and girls with rabbit ears. Hopefully the series finds a good home. I'd like to see another Shaolin Monks type action adventure game.

Any Mortal Kombat without Ed Boon at the helm is a recipe for disaster. I can't imagine anyone else heading up a MK game's development.

Weekes would be a good backup for Calgary. He's a reliable guy that's used to not playing a ton of games (while backing up Brodeur anyways). I believe the Devils plan on hanging onto Clemmensen just in case Brodeur has any complications. With only two games this week (Tuesday, then Saturday), and only one before the deadline I don't expect you'll see Clemmensen go anywhere. EDIT: It seems as though the Rangers just sent Mark Bell down to their AHL team in Hartford. I assume this means he's back on waivers. Poor bastard can't catch a break.

Who could Calgary possibly move to fit Smyth into their cap though? Calgary is literally hugging the top of the cap, and Smyth's contract is pretty pricey. That would be awesome though if it happened. Calgary would be stacked up front depending on who they moved. Also to go along with that last deal Burke mentioned, there's been some talk about a deal with Columbus. Pascal LeClaire coming our way (possibly with a pick) for a package of Leafs players. Just something to chew on.

- Burke was just on Leafs Lunch and told them that he was offered a late second rounder for White last week but turned it down. - He'll know if Moore is planning to resign by tonight, and that their respective offers are a million dollars apart. He won't pay a third line plumber "just south" of three million dollars, especially with the incoming cap drop. - Essentially his stance is that either you'll overpay for his players that will help you in the playoffs, or he won't be making any deal. He'll hold onto his players until the summer, or next year, or whenever it is GMs will overpay to get them. - Denies any talks with Boston over Kaberle. - He currently has an offer on the table that involves two Leaf players being shipped out for a player and a prospect, but will likely reject the offer. Going to look into this. Basically I wouldn't expect a very busy deadline Leafs fans. Burke is doing the smart thing and not just trading for the sake of trading. Our cupboards are bare and we don't have many high end pieces we can move. We need to get the best possible return for what we have on offer.

I personally wouldn't pull the trigger on the Colborne, 1st, and 3rd rounder for Kaberle. The word around town is that Kaberle may in fact be the hottest player on the market due to his skill and price. With Boston, and Philly being two of the bigger teams wanting his services. I'd rather get a package like Upshall, Van Riemsdyk and a 1st from Philly, which is a rumored deal. Hopefully Burke sits back a little and maybe tries to get a bit of a bidding war going between a few teams for him. Maybe it will pay off big, or maybe it won't. That's a gamble that could be worth taking IMO. Kaberle is useful to us even if he stays, although it would be nice to get something to help the rebuild for him. Supposedly Columbus is really pushing to pick up Antropov, but aren't willing to give a first rounder for him. They'll only give a first rounder if we throw in a player like Ian White. To this I say: fuck you Columbus, Ian White and Antropov together is worth more than a first rounder IMO. Also Jamal Mayers has requested a trade if Burke can make one happen. Detroit are supposedly interested, which could give us a good chance to get ourselves a fourth round pick this year (we don't have a 2nd or 4th round pick this year). All rumors of course. EDIT: News from the horse's mouth earlier today:

On the heels of Bluey's massive post I'll waste people's time and post a few of my own musings to help pass the time. I suspect Moore is on his way out this Wednesday. Seems as though his agent is asking for top six money (rumors say 2-3 million a year, five year deal). I love Moore, aside from White he's easily my favorite player on the team, but the fact is I don't think he's worth more than 1.7 million a season. Paying a guy top six money that very likely in three-four years time won't be a top six player once we get fleshed out is the sort of problems Toronto has had in the past. Jeff Finger anyone? If we can deal him for a good return (say a second rounder or something) I say we should jump at it. We don't have a second or third round pick this year and honestly we need to stock out cupboards ASAP. Our prospect stocks aren't nearly as good as they should be because of us pissing away draft picks during trades. I'm not saying we're going to get guys that can play now, but we need guys who can play in four years. Take a look at Columbus or Los Angeles if you want an example of teams that have used the draft intelligently to set themselves up for the future. Bluey is absolutely right about our defensive core. Schenn, White, and Kabs or Kubs. Kaberle would net the best return if we were to trade him (and with Burke hanging around Boston I could see it happening), leaving us with Kubina as our veteran guy. One thing I love about Pavel is his ability to get the puck on net. The guy has a great shot, and has really shown it. We desperately need some forwards to fit into the mix. Mitchell is easily a bottom six guy with proper development. Grabovski needs to have an electrical ankle bracelet that shocks him every time he makes a fucking drop pass. At twenty five years of age he has some bad habits that need to be worked out. Stajan is a solid second line guy that could use some more talented line mates to help improve his own game. I'd like to keep Hagman around, although with a no trade clause moving him might be hard anyways. Aside from that we need some grit, size, and toughness. We have no real checking line whatsoever. Brad May is a temporary fix, and honestly I wouldn't be shocked to see Mayers shopped off at some point. Our team lacks size and toughness up front and I'm hoping Burke will help fix that. I don't want to end up looking like Montreal do half the time. EDIT: I also want to mention that I love Kubina's heart. People have whined and complained that he won't waive his NTC. Now I'm hearing people around the internet complain that he's PLAYING WELL. It's nice to see a guy who has some passion for the team and wants to succeed. It boggles my mind when I see people bitch about players playing good hockey for our team. In summary: some people are idiots.