This is definitely on “binkie” level of obsession for Burke at this point.  He had him in Vancouver, Anaheim and now Toronto.

Posted by HockeyJoe from Upstate New York on 01/07/09 at 02:08 PM ET

Leafs, Cup champions of 2010, lock it up. Take it to Vegas. Brian Burke is a genius.

Posted by Nathan from Jonny Ericsson's ice cream truck on 01/07/09 at 02:15 PM ET

When is the deal for Bertuzzi going to be announced?

Posted by Hockey1919 from Montreal on 01/07/09 at 02:22 PM ET

Leafs, Cup champions of 2010, lock it up. Take it to Vegas. Brian Burke is a genius.
Posted by Nathan on 01/07/09 at 01:15 PM ET

2010? You forgot about 2009! I can already feel the mo swinging toward TO!

Posted by YzermanZetterberg on 01/07/09 at 03:08 PM ET

Absurd. Ridiculous. Make it stop.

Posted by JG on 01/07/09 at 03:11 PM ET

What an amazing trade by Burke!

w00t!

Who’s next?  Pronger?  Wait...his wife hates Canada.  Ah well, she’ll live.

Posted by SYF from Las Vegas, NV on 01/07/09 at 03:12 PM ET

Did you guys not see Ron Wilson’s comments about the game last night.  Silent dressing room before the game, silent bench, no emotion…

Just because the team is not going to be winning anything right now doesn’t mean you don’t try to instill some good qualities in your young players.  Though May may not add much on the ice, he will let the young players know what leadership is about and will help keep people on their toes.

If the goal is not to win right now, then it should be to build character.  It’s not a bad move in that area.  Kuleman to the A is good too, he needs some time to develop further.

Hopefully this spells the end of Hollweg too… and Finger, and can we please trade Kaberle now!  He’s not even trying anymore :-(

Posted by WingMan from Canada on 01/07/09 at 04:12 PM ET

If the goal is not to win right now, then it should be to build character.

You know things are bad for a franchise when this is how their fans think.

Posted by HockeyinHD on 01/07/09 at 04:38 PM ET

It’s reality dood.  Anyone with half a clue knows this team doesn’t have the people needed to win.  I cheer for them to every game, I want them to win.  But I also live in reality - and that reality is this team needs to get better.  This move helps.  When things are dim you find hope in the smallest things sometimes… sadly we’ve had a lot of that.  But don’t be too quick to criticize, at least there is some direction now.

Posted by WingMan from Canada on 01/07/09 at 04:53 PM ET

Point taken, WingMan. I would say that this thing is going to take at least three or four seasons to turn around, so why throw away a pick for a guy (or at least the type of guy) you can get for free as an FA in the offseason? There’s no hurry to bring in this type of player. You can wait for his “character” till training camp next year.

And last time I checked, there were a few great character players with a little game still left that have gone unsigned this season—Shanahan (unlikely he’d play in TO), Lapointe, and Smolinski.

Oh right, but those guys don’t fight enough for Burke. My bad.

People will say it’ll probably be a throw-away pick, but when you need to blow up and start over, every pick counts. The Red Wings got a guy (Ericsson) with the very last pick in the draft a few seasons ago that will be a full-time NHL player next season—which says a lot when you consider how tough that lineup is to crack.

Picks at ANY point of the draft are valuable. European countries are getting better at hockey. There are good talents coming from outdoor rinks in Slovakia and Slovenia. Heck, there’ve been a few good players in recent memory from Khazakstan (probably spelled that wrong).

Posted by Nathan from Jonny Ericsson's ice cream truck on 01/08/09 at 11:25 AM ET