Trade Deadline Not a Disappointment
There are many in Leaf Nation who are probably a little disappointed in the aftermath of the trade deadline given the moves the Leafs made.
While not to be heralded as an unbridled success here’s why you should not be disappointed by what happened on Wednesday.
Nik Antropov
While many of you, myself included, we’re hoping for a 1st round pick for big Nik, it would have been a steal. Antropov is a very valuable asset to a contending team, but he is neither a superstar, a blue chip prospect, or a puck moving defensman. He also had an expiring contract. These items all conspired to reduce his value. Burke had a choice as 3pm approached, get some assets, or get nothing. He chose the former, and rightly so. If the first round pick offers weren’t there, you can’t expect him to make something out of nothing.
Dominic Moore
This was by far the best result you could expect for this guy. Everyone has to remember that he was a waiver pickup that has never found a solid home in the NHL. He found a perfect situation to flourish; A rebuilding team that had no aspirations of success. He was given loads of ice, paired with a similar player in Blake, and he turned into the player he is now. You HAD to trade him if you couldn’t get him signed. He is a serviceable player on a stronger team, but he is not worth the 2.5 million or so Moore wanted. This is the highest value you will ever see for Moore and the fact we got a 2nd round pick out of essentially nothing, is fantastic. This is the classic “sell high” move and very indicative of definite change for our organization.
Tampa’s 4th Round Pick
This basically amounts to what I had posted about earlier. Toronto has cap space and money. They used that position to essentially purchase a 4th round pick and an ordinary, run of the mill prospect. A very good move.
Those who we’re expecting a mass exodus of players for draft picks are deluded. You can’t just throw a team of NHL castoffs and wannabes on the ice and call it a team. You need NHL caliber players to ice a team night in and night out. That’s why the likes of Poni, Stajan, White and others are still members of the Blue and White.
With respect to Kaberle and Kubina; You can’t go wrong either way with these guys. Above all else, they have that dreaded NTC in effect right now. As such, you have to deal with teams for which they are willing to play and if those teams don’t need or are not a fit as a trade partner, you are out of luck. Even if you could find a suitor for Kaberle, he is only 30 years old and is one of the premier players in the league and will likely be so for another 5 or 6 years. Burke is hoping for a competitive team as early as next year. If you move a guy like Kaberle, you need to replace him. Teams can be built around guys like him.
All in all, the trade deadline as a whole, was pretty quiet. Out of the 22 trades, Burke was involved in 3 of them. That’s a fairly good percentage. It was the beginning of the Burke era of team building.
It will continue in 4 months or so at the Bell Centre in Montreal where Burke will have 5 choices in the first four rounds of the 2009 entry draft. In a week or so after that, Burke will have around 12million to spend or so during free agency.
The rebuild is well underway. Finally.
March 6th, 2009 at 9:54 am
Excellent post Brad. I totally agree that if you look at the big picture, Burke did a great job. While I hate to se big Nik leave (10 years with us and finally becoming a good player) it had to be done. Furthermore, the Leafs showed a good deal of respect for allowing Gerber to wear his #29 even though that was Pogge’s number. It shows that the organization has some class imo. And who knows, it’s the little things like these that show NHL players that if they come to this organization that they will be treated with respect….not like what happened last year.
March 6th, 2009 at 11:19 am
29 is not Pogge’s number…I know he wears it, but the number belongs to former leaf greats like Mike Palmateer and Felix Potvin.
Pogge must earn a number in the NHL…
March 6th, 2009 at 11:50 am
I think what people are also forgetting is that teams who miss the playoffs (and happen to not be on Kaberle’s list of preferred teams) will now have a window of 3 months to work on a deal with Burke so that he can trade Kaberle at the draft. In addition, teams that get knocked out of the first round from the playoffs (and disappointed they could not go further and realize they lack a QB for their power-play) may also decide to explore Burke’s price for Kaberle. The draft to me, is going to be a tell-tale sign of the Leafs going forward because we all know that is the day the NTC clauses get nulified. And we all know, GMs like to make a big splash at the draft in front of all their collegues.
March 6th, 2009 at 12:09 pm
Good point Brad…..Everyone wanted BB to trade as many guys as possible (white, poni, kabs, kubina, mayers, blake, toskala…etc), but how the hell do you build a playoff team when all you have left is young drafted kids (who have potential, but have not proved anything….pogge, d. mitchell….etc) and the Marlies. Thanks for bringing that up.
March 6th, 2009 at 12:16 pm
Great post!
I was waiting for someone to offer the ‘glass half full’ perspective. Sure, we all had big hopes that Burkey was going to parlay Kabby into another first round draft pick (albeit a high first), I think we have to keep things in perspective.
I think even Burke himself was kinda disappointed. Perhaps we should send him the link to this excellent blog post.
; )
March 6th, 2009 at 12:35 pm
Great post Brad. Burke made some difficult decisions and although he knew there would be second guessing on the Antropov deal he did what was best for the Leafs. No disrespect to JFJ but I don’t think he would have moved Antropov, he most likely would have extended his contract. I think the future is bright, the Leafs have a high first pick next year and can sign College stars Gilroy and Bozek. We also have prospects in Berry, Stahlberg, Hayes, Dido and Stefanovich not to mention Tlusty who is on fire with the Marlies. Free agent possibilities in Cammalleri, Jaybo and the Sedins. It will be an interesting period for Leaf supporters. Hopefully Gerber comes down to earth and plays within himself, we want a lottery pick.
March 6th, 2009 at 1:43 pm
The only thing that really really bugs me. Is that we got the exact same value for Antropov that we did for Moore. That is what is ridiculous to me. That conditional pick with Antropov is a joke, and we’ll never see it. Antropov is twice the player Moore will ever be, but we got the same value for both which is just crazy.
So that is a disappointment for me.
Overall it wasn’t a bad deadline, getting a free 4th from T.B helped a little.
I expect more changes in the off season than the deadline.
March 6th, 2009 at 1:45 pm
Well, I agree with everything that I’ve seen except hearing that some people seem to think that the Sedin sisters would be a good idea, and not wanting to see Gerber play great. I’ll take a great performance like last night every single night, and let teh pick fall where it may.
Go Leafs Go!!!
March 6th, 2009 at 1:46 pm
They should’ve relied on Pogge to lose a bunch of the remaining games. Gerber has a good track record on his side, aside from his days in Ottawa. I think it would’ve been respectful to give Cujo a chance to start at least 5 of the remaining 18 games after the trade deadline, so that he can retire with dignity
March 6th, 2009 at 2:09 pm
personally, I have no idea why Antropov wasn’t worth more than he was. i’m not saying burke should have done better, if the market isn’t there it isn’t there, but I think antropov’s a lot better than he’s given credit for.
March 6th, 2009 at 2:11 pm
The Marlies are in a dog fight (with the Iowa Chops – Anaheim Ducks affiliate no less) to make the playoffs in the AHL. If Pogge was to get his shot, wouldn’t it be prudent to have him backstopping the Marlies into the postseason, instead of playing out the season with the Leafs?
March 6th, 2009 at 2:22 pm
@Jes
It is a bit disappointing that Moore was valued the same as Antropov. I think that can be summed up a with a simple ‘What have you done for me lately?’ The contributions that Moore and Antropov have provided the Leafs this year are very similar. Moore being more of a playmaker, and Antropov more of a finisher. With both impending UFA’s, what each will provide their new teams for the next 2 months or so is very similar, and I think that’s why the prices we’re very close to other.
Had these there been another year on both contracts, Antropov’s value increases as he has shown that this season isn’t a just a spike in the effectiveness chart.
March 6th, 2009 at 2:22 pm
@Roacho: How does letting Pogge lose a bunch of games at the NHL level help with his skill development and confidence?
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Brad, great blog. I’ve said this on numerous occasion already, Burke and Wilson are exactly what this team needed. Wilson has shown that he can coach a Marlies team to be competitive at the NHL level and Burke has proven to everyone that there is a new sheriff in town and he has full control over the decision process.
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I remember hating Blake with passion last season and also thinking that White was a total wash. Their turnaround stories this season trump any talks of tanking and whimpering about draft positions. I see fire in Kubina’s eyes and I believe that he truly wants to lead this rebuild. Even at the cost of potentially being handed down a lower draft pick I would like to see my boys play their hearts out for the remainder of the season. One must consider the intangible benefits of carrying this type of culture into the next season and cannot entirely exclude the potential that this may do more wonders than a high pick in a very deep draft.
March 6th, 2009 at 2:32 pm
Great blog Brad.
As I said prior to the deadline, it’s not realistic to assume we can trade everyone for a draft pick, and re-builds must be done with a balanced plan i..e. signing decent free agents, along with drafting intelligently, no matter where we fall in the draft order.
Maybe now we can put this whole “tear it down” mentality behind us.
And kudos to Gerber for playing well.
Shame on people who want him to come in and stink, or worse yet, those who want to throw Pogge to the wolves and “lose every game”. Now that would be a wonderful way to initiate your supposed goalie of the future, wouldn’t it?
As Lance said…let the pick fall where it may.
March 6th, 2009 at 2:33 pm
@Wook “One must consider the intangible benefits of carrying this type of culture into the next season and cannot entirely exclude the potential that this may do more wonders than a high pick in a very deep draft.”
that’s one of the best points that hasn’t be brought up yet. (at least to the best of my knowledge) bravo good sir, bravo.
March 6th, 2009 at 2:35 pm
Great blog, Brad. Love the optimism. I still can’t believe Moore got a 2nd… it wasn’t long ago he was a waiver pick-up by JFJ!
March 6th, 2009 at 2:47 pm
Refreshing and convincing blog, Brad. And great post Wook.
March 6th, 2009 at 2:50 pm
@Wook
In my opinion that’s exactly the kind of challenge Pogge needs to face. I think he has talent, but on the same side I don’t see him getting pushed enough. Although it may or may not workout, I couldn’t see a call up for 7-10 games affect his development. Mental toughness needs to be acquired in the heat of the battle, I affraid that locking him with the marlies is hindering him from developing in the pressures and challenges at the pro level. There’s no better time to expose him to this when NOTHING’S on the line. He has everything to gain from such and experience.
March 7th, 2009 at 4:26 am
Seriously people, we’re finding out now that (as I posted before) that J-Bo could have been had for a top four dman, and a top six forward, both of which we had available. I’m not hearing talk of Burke exploring the possibilities of a trade with Florida, and I’m wondering why! What am I missing here? I’d rather have J-Bo than the picks we got now.
March 7th, 2009 at 9:26 am
@Blue Max
Despite being a dman that logs many minutes. I don’t think by any stretch Jay-Bo’s the complete package. With the cap set to go down, I don’t see Burke throwing 7+million at him. That’s just my opinion. As for the trade comment, the Leafs have so few prospects now wouldn’t be a time to trade a bundle, when you can hope to sign him now in the summer as a ufa and give up nothing in the process.
March 7th, 2009 at 10:56 am
as long as burke doesn’t sign the sedin twins this summer, i’ll be happy. the only guy i want him to go after is bowmeister. i would trade kaberle for a prospect and another first round pick in this year’s draft, replace him with bowmeister. trade kubina for a 2nd round pick in this year’s draft, and another 2nd rounder, or 3rd rounder in next year;s draft.
then next year try hard and hope for rick nash and/or luongo as free agent pickups to return us to ‘contender status’.
i would also consider mike camilari this summer too if bowmeister doesn’t sign with us. either one of those guys would be good, but would need long term (5 – 6 year) to make it work, as they would have to suffer through one or two more years of mediocrity before we are one of the better teams in the league….
March 7th, 2009 at 10:57 am
think about it. if burke trades kaberle and kubina on draft day, we could end up with two first round picks, at least two second round picks. we are bound to get two top flight players out of that. and probably another player that could be traded as a ‘prospect’ a few years down the road when we are buyers again at the trade deadline……
March 7th, 2009 at 11:39 am
@bluemax
We are in a rebuilding stage. In that stage you need to get assets that you can build with for the assets you have. If you trade Antro and Kabs, as you are suggesting, to Florida to Jay Bo, there’s no guarantee he resigns in Toronto, and now you’ve lost 2 very valuable assets for essentially a month and a half of a wasted season. Doesn’t make any sense. The player(s) you get with Antro’s draft pick(s) will be in the Leaf system for 7 years. There’s way more value in that then a maybe.
Burke should 100% go after Jay Bo on July 1st when it costs him nothing but cash to do so.
March 7th, 2009 at 12:10 pm
Speaking of assets, check out our 6-3 200 lbs fastest skater in NCAA being hailed a late bloomer (Viktor Stalberg):
http://www.nationalpost.com/sports/story.html?id=1361605
.
Who knows, that 4th round pick BB acquired from TB could turn out to be a dandy.
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