Friday Leafs Tidbits: Kaberle Inquiries, Tavares Cup, Bob McK.

KABERLE STILL ATTRACTS INTEREST OUT WEST

Alec Brownscombe is reporting that the Flames made a solid offer for Kaberle. Because Kaberle doesn't want to go to the West, there was no further discussion and Burke said no. It is not known whether the offer was enough to get the job done. Check the Leafs Hotstove Twitter page for more. I will have to get Twitter some time.

THE BEST INSIDER

Bob McKenzie did an interview with Toronto Sports Media yesterday. Notably, he shot down the notion that Goligoski or Whitney to Toronto was even being discussed. There was a lot of interesting stuff talked about in the interview. I like listening to Bob McKenzie because I know he always speaks from the heart. He is impartial, connected, and level-headed. He also mentioned that he expects the trades to pick up before March 4th, with GMs franticly trying to get the job done before the sellers can hold them ransome on deadline day for large prices.

CREME DE LA CRAP

Leafs beat the Isles 5-4 in the shootout. Callup Stapleton gets the winner. Wonderful to see Stapleton get some success, because he's been incredibly prolific and consistent in the minors. He deserved this callup for sure, and I hope the Leafs find a spot for him on the roster. He got a hard look in training camp this year, and next year it will be the same. The guy came out of nowhere and is surprising people at every level of hockey he plays.

This put the Leafs a whopping 17 points ahead of the lowly masters of the basement, the Islanders. Their name suits them right now: they're on their own little island, in a league of their own (they would only be good in the AHL), and they're waiting to see who gets voted off the island on March 4th. I've become indifferent to the Leafs-Isles losing rivalry, because we just aren't as bad as them. Look at either teams roster and come back and tell me who you think has more talent. 17 points ahead, one point ahead, it's all the same. We won't ever be 30th in the league at this stage.

FINAL WORDS

An intriguing article over at Maple Leafs Hotstove regarding the Whitney trade...allegedly the Leafs almost became part of a three way deal, and something could still go down. Check'er out.

And last but not least, vote on my new poll: How many first round picks will the Leafs have in this year's draft? While it's likely we'll have at least a second by the end of March 4th, Burke may be able to dangle our assets on draft day.

Kaberle's List of 10 Teams

News reports came out yesterday stating that Tomas Kaberle would go to the Boston Bruins if the right offer was tabled.

This is actually not news at all, because Kaberle's list is apparently comprised of Eastern Conference teams. Whether there is any exception to that is uncertain.

Here is, likely, *drum roll please* what Kaberle's big bad top ten list looks like:

1. Boston Bruins
2. Washington Capitals
3. New Jersey Devils
4. Philadelphia Flyers
5. Montreal Canadiens
6. Florida Panthers
7. Buffalo Sabres
8. New York Rangers
9. Pittsburgh Penguins
10. Carolina Hurricanes

Look familiar? Now let's look at the possibility of each one of these teams trading with Kaberle.

Boston Bruins - Whether Boston could package a good enough deal to land Kaberle is unknown. What the Leafs would be glad to have: Brad Marchand and a pick.

Washington Capitals - Certainly would be a nice addition for Washington, but nobody said Washington needed powerplay help either. Leafs would be glad to have: 1st and Sami Lepisto or another pick.

New Jersey Devils - Rumours were that the Devils might try to bring back Niedermayer, so if and when that doesn't happen they could go for Kaberle. Leafs would be glad to have: 1st and Matthias Tedenby/Matt Corrente.

Philadelphia Flyers - It's not clear whether Timmonen is enough to get the Flyers deep into the playoffs, or through the neutral zone, for that matter. This is the same scenario as last year, in which the Flyers offered Carter and a first. What they could put together really depends. They're tight against the cap, so would Burke even talk if the Flyers wanted to send him a large salary? Leafs would be glad to have: Claude Giroux and a pick.

Montreal Canadiens - You can cross these guys off the list because Gainey couldn't wait and signed Matthieu Schneider.

Floriday Panthers - Can anyone say Kaberle-Bouwmeester blockbuster? Florida gets a guy who's already signed, and has already shown how well he mixes with Bryan McCabe. Florida may be forced to unload Bouwmeester, so who knows what could happen. Leafs would be glad to have: Jay Bouwmeester, but it would take more than just Kaberle. Kaberle and Antropov for Bouwmeester? Still might take more than that. Okay, Kaberle, Antropov and a 2nd round pick. Is that enough yet? If the answer is no, I hang up at this stage. If Bouwmeester couldn't happen, the Leafs could try to get Ellerby which has apparently fallen a bit out of favour with the Panthers brass.

Buffalo Sabres - They've got enough cap space, and Kaberle could fit nicely. Leafs would be glad to have: Nathan Gerbe and 1st.

New York Rangers - No cap space. They won't get it done. They're screwed in this situation. Wade Redden is to this season what Bryan McCabe was to last.

Pittsburgh Penguins - Kaberle would look great in a Pens uniform. The already potent offence wouldn't say no to Kaberle, but the priority will probably be to find a winger for Crosby. Leafs would be glad to have: Alex Goligoski and 1st. Goligoski rumours have been circulating already, as well as Whitney.


Carolina Hurricanes - They could use the boost as they're a borderline playoff team. Leafs would be glad to have: Zach Boychuk, which is a pipedream slightly. Otherwise I don't think Canes could put together a good enough offer.


Who's really in contention to land Kaberle here? My opinion, and this is pure speculation, is that the teams with the best chance at Kaberle are the Flyers, Panthers, Sabres and Devils. Barring that, perhaps a Western team will throw an offer at Burke.

Anything can happen.