Alright Leafs fans, it’s that time of the year again and I don’t think you’ll find a single fan who will argue that this particular trade deadline is a big deal for the Toronto Maple Leafs.
As has been rumoured and discussed to no end, the Leafs are looking to move many of their veteran players including Joffrey Lupul, Stephane Robidas, (possibly) Roman Polak, and even their captain Dion Phaneuf.
While guys like Lupul and Polak could bring a decent return, the thought is that the other two in Robidas and Phaneuf are going to be very hard to move and may not bring anything back of significance.
And this begs the question - just how low would you, as a fan who is considering the short term and long term effects, go to move Dion Phaneuf.
I had to personally think about this one for weeks because at the end of the day, this is the Leafs number one defenseman who logs a ton of minutes and is responsible to play against the oppositions top line. This is a guy who the organization decided to place a C on his sweater and confide in his leadership to guide the team to a championship. While he hasn't exactly been a fan favourite, the player was essentially miscast into his role and was not afforded the chance to play alongside another top defenseman.
That said, the vision and plan under Dion ultimately died and fans have been seemingly crying for his removal after some poor defensive play and constant slides in the standings. We now find ourselves hours away from what could see Toronto making a few large moves and it stands to reason that we determine what would be in their best interest.
The problem I have with the discussion of “move Kessel, Lupul, Phaneuf, Robidas, Polak, Bernie etc…, is who exactly the pundits expect to play at the NHL level afterwards? I certainly hope that fans aren’t expecting Morgan Rielly and other recently drafted players to assume the responsibility and weight of the team on their shoulders at such a young age?
Has no one in the past few years taken a look at the Oilers rebuild model? It doesn’t quite work that way. And for that reason, I sincerely hope that the Leafs aren’t scorching this roster while not keeping in mind the development of the players that they do wish to keep. Moving Dion Phaneuf, for me, is something that needs to happen sooner than later for this team to move in the right direction.
That established, if the best deal available for this club come tomorrow is say, a percentage of Phaneuf’s contract held for a mediocre roster player and or pick/prospect, is it worth it? Like I said, I’d like to see Phaneuf moved just as bad as the next guy – heck, since the Leafs stamped the C on his chest, I wasn’t a fan.
Then I watch a team like the Calgary Flames who surround their rookies with the right number of vets, make trades to improve their current position and future goals, and wonder if the Leafs are possibly moving toward a rebuild similar to the Oilers where they draft and ruin prospects who are not properly developed.
I guess the point of this entire blog is simply to say – there could be some big moves coming over the next few hours and it seems like there are many names being tossed around as potential trade targets, but is Toronto’s “team scorching… plans really a good idea when it comes down to moving guys like Phaneuf et. al for whatever they can get their hands on?