Could Burke really trade Schenn?

You know who's enjoying the new Brian Burke era the most in this, the fine city of Toronto? Jeff Blair, of The Globe and Mail. His column today is an absolute must read. (Talks with Mikhail Grabovski's agent have "not been successful." Lovely.) 

Burke's for real, and he's got his binoculars locked on John Tavares. Apparently he's already called the New York Islanders to say hi, and sent what I'm sure was a very pleasant email down to Tampa Bay. The man doesn't mess around.

My initial reaction to Burke's comments from Tuesday was that of reservation. I thought the Leafs weren't going to mortgage the future anymore, so what's all this talk about trading first round picks, and possibly even trading Luke Schenn? Say it ain't so.

But along came Jeff Blair, via Twitter, and in his infinite wisdom he asked me:

@eyebleaf Hey, you guys wanted Brian Burke? You got him. What makes the Leafs better: guy like Bouwmeester and Tavares? Or Schenn and No. 7?

Well, I'll be damned, but I think Blair might be on to something. Don't get me wrong, I love Luke Schenn. He is the type of defenceman we Maple Leafs fans have dreamed of for years. But if the Leafs send him to Long Island, where hockey goes to die (ugh, sorry Luke), along with draft picks (ugh, multiple first rounders, I'm sure), in return for Tavares, well ... it certainly makes you think, doesn't it? 

Of course, there's no guarantee Burke will be able to sign unrestricted free agent Jay Bouwmeester at 12:01 PM on July 1st, further complicating matters.

But were it all to go down as planned, come July 2nd, a Leafs team with Tavares and Bouwmeester, and a depleted draft picks cupboard (as if that's anything new to this franchise), would be better than a Leafs team with Schenn and a seventh overall first-round draft pick, whomever it turns out to be. Period.

Look, I know Schenn's special. But Tavares might be even more special. He might be Evgeni Malkin, or Alexander Ovechkin, or Sidney Crosby type special. He might be the young, dynamic offensive player the Toronto Maple Leafs have never had.

It's a tough one. Believe me, I know. How the hell do you trade a guy like Luke Schenn, the future captain of the Toronto Maple Leafs? And to the Islanders, of all teams. He doesn't deserve that. It would be blasphemy; a sin. And then, on top of that, Burke would be putting all his eggs in the free agency basket. Frankly, I can't believe this is even being discussed.

But I think if the opportunity presented itself, if the Islanders agreed to accept a package of Schenn and multiple draft picks for John bloody Tavares, it just might have to be done. And Brian Burke is crazy enough to do it.

Reflections before the deadline...

If I'm watching guys like Nik Antropov, Matt Stajan, Dominic Moore and Pavel Kubina play their final games in a Toronto Maple Leafs uniform, I must say, I'm enjoying myself.

If one or all of them are gone by next Wednesday, they will most certainly be missed.

Nik Antropov. What haven't we been through together? The potential, the knee surgeries, the bullshit injuries, the blossomage into a 20-goal scorer, the "A" on his shoulder. It's been one helluva ride over the last 10 years.

I'll be honest, I'd hate to see #80 go. I still think it's in the best interest of the Leafs to offer him a three or four year deal, at $3 or $3.5 million a year. If he signs, great. If not, let's see what we can get for him. But I'm definitely leaning towards wanting to keep him.

Dominic Moore. Other than Jason Blake, Moore has got to be the most pleasant surprise on this year's Leafs squad. He picked up another goal last night, a shortie, his 12th of the year, and his 40th point on the season. Dominic Moore. Forty points. Can you believe it?

Moore, an unrestricted free agent next season, can surely help a playoff team. But I want him to stay. He plays hard. He's a leader. He's huge on the faceoffs. He's a Toronto boy. Let's keep him.

Pavel Kubina. You know, a lot of people shit all over Kubina for not waiving his no-trade clause, and not even giving GM Brian Burke a list of teams he's willing to accept a trade to, but I'm beginning to respect Kubina and his desire to remain a Toronto Maple Leaf.

Since Tomas Kaberle went down with an injury, Kubina's been, to quote the insufferable Pierre McGuire, "a monster." In 13 games without his Czech mate, Kubby's scored two goals, added 10 assists, and is a +5. He's been logging crazy minutes, including 28 more last night, and is clearly the leader of the blue line brigade. 

I'm torn on Kubina. If I have to choose between him and Kaberle, I'm choosing Tomas seven days of the week. But over the last month I've come to appreciate Kubina a lot more, thanks to how hard he plays. He wants to be part of the solution around here, and I can't help but respect that. There's a reason he's got an "A" on his shoulder, as well.

Matty Stajan. I've ripped on him for a long, long time, yet here he is, centring the Leafs' top line, and already having set a new career high with 41 points. While I don't believe he's an elite player, he could definitely help a playoff team. It will be interesting to see what Burke does with him.

For the first time in his career, Stajan is producing, and maybe this is one of those cases where the Leafs should trade an asset when he's at his peak. Again, I'm torn.

Before I leave you, I've got a message for Leafs fans, and fans of the New York Islanders (yes, all three of them): fuck Brendan Witt.

Witt better get at least a seven game suspension for that bush-league hit on Niklas Hagman. What a douchebag. Hate the Witt.

Here's hoping Hags is not completely messed up.

On the opposite end of the spectrum, props out to Ron Wilson for sending Tim Stapleton over the boards in the shootout. Playing in his first NHL game, Stapleton sealed the deal, and two points, for the good guys. Stay classy, Coach Wilson.

And, yes, the Leafs did just win back-to-back games in the shootout.

Until Friday

I'm running out of cliches when it comes to the Maple Leafs' playoff push. After another Tuesday night come-from-behind special, the Leafs live to see another day (how do you like that one?).

If you missed the game, you missed one hell of a goal by the New York Islanders. A real doozy. I've been watching hockey a long, long time and have never seen a goal like the one Rob Davison scored last night. It was probably the ugliest goal I have ever seen in my life. If you missed it, here it is in all its glory.

Ugly eh? I told you so. A hop, skip, jump and a right turn - "in mid air, mind you" - and into the net.

The goal, and how he reacted to it, said a lot about Vesa Toskala. A lesser goalie (ie: Andrew Raycroft) wouldn't have been able to rebound and finish the rest of the contest off strong. Toskala, however, is the real deal. He shook it off, and took the goal for what it was - a complete and utter fluke - and kept the Leafs in the game until they woke up in the third period. He made some big saves, especially a beauty late in the third on Mike Comrie. I have crazy man love for Toskala. He's a true rudey, and has been a bright, shining light in another dark season for Toronto.

Going into the third period down 1-0, I figured this was how the Leafs season would come to an end. At the hands of the Islanders and Wade Dubielewicz again, just like last season (a part of me died last April when Dubie and the Isles beat the Devils on the final day of the regular season - in a bloody shootout to boot - to deny the Leafs a playoff berth).

To add insult to injury, the winning goal was going to be Davison's bouncer, or so I thought. I think it would have been kind of fitting, though, to go down like that, you know? To suffer another heartbreaking defeat in Long Island thanks to a goal that would most certainly serve as a microcosm for a season gone so horribly wrong.

But like Vanessa Williams, the Leafs saved their best for last. Huge shoutouts to my boy Kyle Wellwood who had a monster third period, scoring the tying goal on a beauty deflection while driving hard to the net, and assisting on Pavel Kubina's game-winning power play tally.

Wellwood has taken a lot of heat this year, especially in the blogosphere. I know the gentlemen at He Score, He Shoot! really hate the guy, but I still have faith in the little magician and believe he is an integral piece of the Leafs puzzle going forward.

Welly's been bad this year. Ok, he's been really bad. Alright, he's been downright awful. His numbers - 7 goals, 11 assists (that's 18 points, you math whiz) in 55 games - reflect just that. It's been a trying season for him and he's found himself in Paul Maurice's doghouse more often than not. He's been benched on numerous nights (on Saturday against Buffalo he played less than 10 minutes and didn't see the ice in the third) and has even watched a few contests from the press box. A restricted free agent at the end of the season, I believe Wellwood will be brought back next year. He's too young and has too much talent to be given up on. The Leafs cannot let an asset like Wellwood walk out of their life, or mine. No way.

Much has been made of Welly's work ethic, or lack there of, but he's coming off two abdominal surgeries and has only recently been looking like his old self out there. He looked great last night, although the Islanders weren't exactly a most-formidable opponent (read: they really suck). Personally, I think Welly's played half-decent hockey the last two weeks. He deserves another shot and with a new head coach likely behind the bench next year, it's crucial that Wellwood at least gets an opportunity to be a top-six forward here in Toronto. God knows he has the talent. Remember, we must be patient with the young ones. It's a process.

I've also got to show some more love to Pavel Kubina, who potted his fourth goal, and third game-winner, in the past four games. One thing I love about Kubby is his penchant to shoot the puck, especially on the power play. He's got a bullet from the point and when Kaberle links him with a soft pass, he puts his head down and lets it go. Kubina's making a strong case that the Leafs shouldn't get rid of him this off-season, and that's fine by me. Mulligans all around, please!

Another game in the books, and another injury as well. Yep, it is who you think it is: Carlo Colaiacovo. This time it's a hamstring injury and by the looks of the injury and the amount of pain Carlo was in, he's going to be out for the rest of the season. Poor Carlo. It's hard not to feel for him. What he's going through just isn't fair, for any hockey player. Keep your head up Carlo, your spot on the blue line will be waiting for you when you return. I'm not sure who will get the call from the farm in Carlo's place. Possibly Staffan Kronwall? Or Jay Harrison?

Without Sundin and Antropov in the lineup the Leafs were able to grind out a win last night. It sure as hell wasn't pretty but the Leafs were never big on style to begin with. Unfortunately, the Flyers beat the pathetic Atlanta Thrashers and remain in 8th place, six points ahead of Toronto. With eight games to go and no option but to win all of them, the Leafs are in need of some serious divine intervention.

Next up are those dirty little Buffalo Sabres, again, on Friday night at HSBC Arena. An effort like last night's just won't cut it against Buffalo, who trail the Flyers by only three points and who will certainly come out hungry and flying against the Leafs. The Buds will be looking to keep their season alive and one thing's for certain, the atmosphere in Buffalo will be electric.

Until Friday my friends.