There are strong trade winds blowing through Leaf Nation this week. JFJ has been looking to make a blockbuster deal to shake up his under performing team. He has been talking to several western teams including Anaheim, Phoenix and Colorado. The names that pops up continually on the Leaf side are Kaberle and Steen.
Supposedly Coyotes are hot to make a deal which would suggest that they would have to be offering either Shane Doan or Ed Jovanovski. Remember in today's NHL, if you are trading big salaries in mid-season you have to take back big salaries. The only exception appears to be around the trading deadline in March. The Leafs are interested in Colorado players John-Michael Liles and Marek Svatos. But I don't see that happening because both Avalanche players have low salaries.
The trade rumours have died down involving the Leafs and Atlanta. That trade rumour involved Kaberle and Raycroft for Hossa. Waddel wants to wait until closer to the trade deadline because he believes he can get more for Hossa then.
The most intriguing trade possibility involves the Ducks. The Ducks have had an awful start and have a worse record than the Leafs. The Ducks are another Stanley Cup team that are at risk of missing the playoffs the year winning the championship (Tampa Bay, Carolina). They have only scored 29 goals in 14 games and need some offensive help. As well, Ryan Getzlaf and Corey Perry both become restricted free agents this summer. And after losing Penner to Edmonton last summer, Brian Burke may be concerned about what it will cost to sign both. JFJ would love to land Gefzlaf since his the team doesn't possess a prospect or young player of his calibre.
The bottom line is that Kaberle is the Leafs' most tradeable commodity. McCabe won't waive the "no movement" clause in his contract, Kubina is too slow to help a team in need of offense and Sundin doesn't want to go either. If a blockbuster happens, Kaberle will likely be involved.
12 years ago
