Trade Deadline 2009 Liveblog

I'm a new Leaf. Kind of.

4:35 - That's going to do it for me. Thanks to everyone who stopped by today, and especially to everyone who contributed comments.

I'll be back later tonight with some additional thoughts on an underwhelming day.

4:20 - Have the Leafs acquired Olaf Kolzig? Burke is asked and won't deny it. Sounds like they've taken on his salary.

TSN is reporting: Leafs get Olaf Kolzig, Jamie Heward, Andy Rogers and a 4th rounder from Lightning for Richard Petoit.

Kolzig and Heward are hurt. Rogers is a semi-prospect, so the Leafs get him and a pick in exchange for taking on salary.

Sounds like this one will need some discussion with the NHL and may not be a sure thing to go through.

4:15 - Burke is kind of, sort of apologizing for his comments on Toskala being lazy in practice. But not really.

Premature to talk about Gerber for next year.

Says he can only call up four more guys before the end of the season, due to a "ridiculous, archaic, stupid rule".

Really hammering home the idea that they want to win as many games as they can.

4:10 - Burke says they "turned over every stone". He's not doing cartwheels, but he says it's a good day.

"I didn't get one phone call on Tomas Kaberle."

Going on and on about not asking players to waive their no-trades. I guess Kaberle did it on his own.

Says the summer will be a better time to put a stamp on the team.

Everyone is "scared to death of 2010-11" in terms of contracts and finances.

4:05 - Burke is addressing the media right now. He says there's a third deal that hasn't been announced, but it's "much smaller" and involves a minor leaguer.

Welcome to broadway.

3:35 - A few deals still dribbling in, but no indication of anything major coming.

I'll have a detailed reaction later tonight or tomorrow, but right now it's hard not to feel underwhelmed. On the one day of the year when team's can traditionally sell their assets for the highest possible price, the Leafs wound up with a handful of picks and two waiver pickups.

Yes, it was a tough market, and the buying frenzy we've seen in past years never materialized this time around. That made things difficult on Brian Burke. Then again, he didn't get that great big contract to do the easy stuff.

Think of this way: even with the Muskoka Five disaster, the Leafs arguably did better last year than this year. That's brutal, any way you slice it.

3:20 - TSN says the Leafs are officially done. Two waiver pickups, three drafts picks, and two veterans shipped out.

Did they do enough? Is it a disappointment? What do you guys think?

3:15 - The Moore deal is with Buffalo, for a second rounder.

Apparently the Poni story was false. Sure sounds like these two deals are going to be it for the day.

3:10 - The folks over at PPP are not happy about the Antropov deal. Is a second rounder enough? Tough to say. Word around the NHL is that some GMs thought Antropov was over-rated and wouldn't have been worth re-signing.

Oh wait, that was our GM who said that.

3:05 - TSN says a Moore deal is done. There also reports of Ponikarovsky going to Nashville but no confirmation.

3:00 - And the deadline has passed. But of course, plenty of deals will come in over the next hour or so.

TSN is reporting that Derek Morris has been dealt to the Rangers, and that the Panthers are going to keep Bouwmeester.

2:45 - Antropov to the Rangers per TSN. Apparently it's for a 2nd and a conditional pick.

TSN also says the Leafs are shopping Gerber. Good lord...

2:40 - TSN says the Leafs have been offered 2nd round picks for both Moore and Antropov, and are holding out for more.

Meanwhile, still no word on Jay Bouwmeester being dealt. That will be a horrible, horrible mistake by the Panthers.

2:35 - Digginto the comments...

Tom: "Who will be more disappointed at the end of the day: Leafs fans or Habs fans?"
DGB: Tough call. But of course, if those demanding Habs fans are disappointed then the Bell Centre will be empty, right?

Dan: "Whatever happened to Guerin and Morris?"
DGB: Guerin went to the Penguins. Morris is apparently close to going to the Flyers.

2:30 - Half an hour to go. Brian Burke is making $3M/year with the Leafs. He'll earn a big chunk of that in the next thirty minutes.

Any Leaf fans still holding out hope that this can be a good day?

2:20 - RDS.ca says Neil is going to the Panthers. Presumably Jacques Martin doesn't feel that he destroyed his manhood quite enough when they were both in Ottawa.

2:15 - Apparently the Wings and Sharks are bidding on Chris Neil. Does the loser make a play for Jamal Mayers?

2:00 - "Let's make it clear, having a no-trade clause doesn't seem to make it less likely that you will be traded, it just makes it more likely that you'll have to be asked." - Gord Wilson

"Hey Gord Wilson, go punch yourself in the groin." - Every Leaf fan watching

Don't look at us, Dom, we don't
know if you're traded either.

1:50 - TSN says the Leafs are denying that a Moore deal is done.

1:45 - The Moore story is apparently coming from Tim Wharnsby via the Globe web site. It's clearly true, since the Globe and Mail has made it known that spreading misinformation online is completely unacceptable.

1:40 - Reports are trickling in that Moore is headed to Chicago. No word on what's coming back, and no confirmation from TSN or Sportsnet yet.

1:20 - 100 minutes left until the deadline. So far the Leafs have picked up a bad goaltender and a so-so defenceman off of waivers. Nothing on Moore. Nothing on Antropov. Nothing on Mayers. And no indication of anything else even being discussed.

Time for a morale boost. If you need me, I'll be watching Wendel Clark highlights.

1:15 - So far the big movers are the Flames. The Jokinen deal is official - it's Jokinen and a 3rd from the Coyotes for Lombardi, prospect Brandon Prust and a conditional first rounder. Calgary also picked up Jordan Leopold for Lawrence Nycolat, Ryan Wilson and a 2nd.

Your move, Detroit and San Jose.

A rare photo of Martin Gerber with a puck
in front of him.

12:55 - Mystery solved. Vesa Toskala is going on IR and is done for the year.

Fine. So why exactly was he playing all week?

12:35 - Remember when you saw the first movie in the new Star Wars trilogy? Remember how excited you were, and how you were convinced it would be awesome? Then halfway through you were thinking "Um, this kind of sucks. I really hope this gets better towards the end, or else this whole thing might be a gigantic bust".

I'm kind of getting that vibe right now. You?

(Edit: Further similarities between the Star Wars movie and this trade deadline -- both involve a guy wearing a Darth Vader mask who sucks.)

12:15 - The Leafs have also apparently claimed defenceman Eric Reitz from the Rangers. I have never heard of this player before, so the only thing I can say about him definitely is that he's a better goalie than Martin Gerber.

12:10 - Bruce Garrioch: "Martin Gerber has been absolutely awful in Binghampton. He's been beyond bad... I don't know what the Maple Leafs are thinking. I thought Brian Burke was smarter than this."

12:05 - The Leafs have picked up Martin Gerber on waivers.

I don't even have a joke for this.

11:50 - The Penguins have just acquired Andy Wozniewski. I guess they're making a run for Tavares.

11:30 - TSN is reporting that Olli Jokinen to the Flames is all but done. The holdup may be finding salary cap room. Is this where Burke comes to the rescue to rent Calgary some cap room for a draft pick?

11:25 - From the predictions department: "Dominic Moore is playing so well that I'm going to give him a new nickname: Dominic 'Second Round Pick at the 2009 Deadline' Moore." - That was me, five months ago. Make it happen, Burke.

Too lazy to find a Coyotes photo

11:10 - Re: picks vs prospects.

Chris says: "In general, I would say this isn't a bad policy. However, considering the franchise players to be drafted this year and the fact that Toronto desperately needs new blood, Burke should be more willing to chase some draft picks." But Burke sounds like he doesn't think he can get even a late round first today. Would you still rather have a mid-second pick over a known prospect? Less risk, but less upside.

Tom says: "I disagree with this. If the prospect plays, for example, with Ottawa, then I'd rather have the draft pick." True, although it depends how long he's been there. If you scrub hard enough, you may be able to get the loser stench off.

11:00 - Via Chris Kontos at Cycle Like the Sedins: "Guaranteed, Brian Burke turns this franchise around in a season and half. I saw it with my own eyes across town. I hate you Brian Burke. He will pounce on any other GM who is willing to overpay in the slightest... and then get him to overpay even more."

10:35 - Burke on TSN: "A prospect who's a year away from playing is a better asset than a draft pick." What do you guys think? Agree? Disagree?

10:30 - Pascal Leclaire on being traded to Ottawa: "I've watched their games, and the building is always sold out."

In related news, Pascal Leclaire hasn't watched any Senators games since last year.

10:25 - Breaking news: while I did not win my Roll Up The Rim, I am being strongly encouraged to "please play again". So I must be on the right track.

10:10 - TSN is saying that talks with Moore have broken off, and that he will be traded.

10:00 - And now we have our first deal, with Ottawa sending Antione Vermette to Columbus for goalie Pascal Leclaire and a 2nd. Wonder if that takes the Jackets out of the Antropov running?

9:55 - Scratch Ottawa's Filip Kuba from the trade watch. The Sens have signed him to a 3-year extension at $3.7M/year. This will help fill the critical "be completely unnoticeable but pick up a second assist on a meaningless goal" role for Ottawa. They're apparently also closing in on signing Chris Neil.

James Duthie: "The team has had a horrible year, and now it sounds like there won't be any changes coming".

9:40 - Some talk in the comments about Jason Spezza. Here's my take: the Sens have done everything they could to ruin this kid. Yes, he's lazy. Yes, he hates to backcheck. But he has a ton of skill, and sometimes you just need to let a young kid play. Instead, the Sens wanted him to be a two-way player right away. That's just not how it works for most young players.

If the Sens had hired Pat Quinn (instead of hiring a teenager as coach to protect Bryan Murray's power base), Spezza could have been huge. As it is, I'm not sure he'll ever be as good as he can be on this team.

"You're getting traded today? Dude, me too!"

9:25 - OK, I'm back. I'm ready to dig into my Denny's grand slam takeout. When I was ordering it, I knew it was going to be a terrible mistake that I would regret for a long time, but I couldn't help myself. So I'm already in NHL GM mode.

Pierre McGuire on TSN just said that the Leafs should trade Dominic Moore. Stunning insight there. Meanwhile, the entire panel says that there's no way Burke can get a first rounder for Antropov.

8:00 a.m. - Welcome to the 2009 NHL Trade Deadline liveblog! Or, as it will be know starting at around 11:00, "that thing that somehow seemed like a really good idea on Monday".

Here's how it will work... I'll be updating this post all day long with news, views, rumors and blatant stalling tactics. New updates will go at the top of the post. That means you'll have to reload occasionally to see the latest content. Anyone viewing through the RSS feed should see updates, but you may be a few hours behind. I'll also be making occasional updates at twitter.com/downgoesbrown.

Please jump in to the comments section. I'll be posting and responding to some of the more interesting comments as the day goes on. And if you have trade deadline coverage on your own blog or a site you like, let me know and I'll head over and steal your ideas post a link.

Right now I'm heading out to take Baby Goes Brown to daycare (don't worry, I gave her my ipod touch so she could keep track of the deadline deals). Then it's off to Tim Hortons for a day's supply of coffee, and I should be back in time to really get going around 9:30.