Kaberle Trade Watch
The Tomas Kaberle trade watch is now in effect with only 36 hours to go until this situation concludes. The rumor mill is running rampant with some high profile names and some future fan favorites, but let's dive into who is being mentioned as possible blue and white sweater bearers.
The Toronto Star reports San Jose is interested and names such as Logan Couture, Derek Joslin, and Devon Setoguchi could be headed Toronto's way along with a pick. Eklund has even suggested Joe Thornton, but that seems to be quite the stretch.
Los Angeles has been involved from the start and while a rumor of Dustin Brown as the return was shot down a few days ago, Wayne Simmonds seems to be the front runner, while other reports suggest it could be Oscar Moller and a draft pick.
The Dallas Stars could be dangling Mike Ribeiro or Brad Richards in front of the Leafs, but with one year left on Richards' contract, and a hefty price tag, the Leafs could be demanding a pick be involve for compensation.
The Tampa Bay Lightning and Ryan Malone made the rounds recently and with Marty St. Louis now inked to a long-term extension, it's possible Steve Yzerman will be looking to shed some excess salary.
Early reports also mentioned the Buffalo Sabres and Drew Stafford, but the belief suggested the Leafs wanted Derek Roy if they could not get the size they sought after.
Damian Cox also mentioned the possibility of the Leafs swinging a deal with the St. Louis Blues in which David Backes would head to Toronto.
Burke had re-evaluated his return on the veteran defenceman to be "futures" packages, in which a player with development could be involved rather than the immediate bolstering to the lineup he had commanded.
The most confident statement I can present is that there is no guarantee that Kaberle will even be dealt, and there's no guarantee the specific name Burke wants has even been mentioned.
We'll just have to wait and see what happens prior to tomorrow night at midnight, but while everyone and their unborn child has thrown out a trade possibility, where do you think Kaberle will end up should the powerplay specialist be dealt?
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Micheal A. Aldred
