Toronto Maple Leafs News

Marc Savard to the Toronto Maple Leafs is something that Brian Burke and company will be mulling over at the start of this week.

As reported by multiple sources, including sportsnet.ca’s Nick Kypreos and TSN.ca’s Bob McKenzie, Marc Savard has waived his no trade clause for two teams including: the Toronto Maple Leafs and the Ottawa Senators. Also confirmed, is that Tomas Kaberle and Luke Schenn will not be part of this package. Names being bandied about include: Mikhail Grabovski and RFA Nikolai Kulemin.

Also well documented is the fact that the Boston Bruins are in a tight bind in terms of cap space. Based on the proposed player swap, the Boston Bruins are essentially giving the player up to alleviate salary from their roster and will not get true market value for him based on the fact that there are only two teams that are in the hunt (Toronto Maple leafs, Ottawa Senators) and the Ottawa Senators are tight up against the salary cap. Should Boston be able to move disgruntled center man Jason Spezza then they would be able to make an offer on Mark Savard. As it stands right now, the Ottawa Senators are unable to move Jason Spezza and his $7 million contract. Talks continue with the Columbus Blue Jackets regarding Jason Spezza but as the Ottawa Senators GM Bryan Murray says, “there are no offers at this time”.

The Boston Bruins are current very strong at the center postion with: Marc Savard, Patrice Bergeron, David Krejci and now newly minted Boston Bruin, Tyler Seguin, whom they acquired as the second overall pick in the 2010 NHL entry draft. While unlikely to unsurp the strong lineup of centreman the Boston Bruins have, Tyler Seguin has immediately made redundancies in the Boston Bruins lineup.

Marc Savard has had a number of concussions over his career and this has also lowered his trade value having just come over a serious concussion at the end of the regular season where he missed  the last 18 games, as well as six playoff games. The Toronto Maple leafs will likely have medical assessments done on Savard before the trade is completed to make sure that concussion problems are not career threatening.With regards to Mark Savard’s cap hit, his salary breakdown is as follows:

2010/2011 — 7 million
2011/2012 — 7 million
2012/2013 — 6.5 million
2013/2014 — 5 million
2014/2015 — 1.5 million
2015/2016 — 525,000
2016/2017 — 525,000

This makes his annual cap hit: $4,007,000 per year.

While there is a certain amount of risk involved in this trade for the Toronto Maple Leafs, acquiring this player in the off-season allows for full recovery from  postconcussion syndrome and to acclimatize himself with a new environment.

Mark Savard would clearly solve the problem the Toronto Maple Leafs have with regards to the unfilled position of a number one centerman. Also, Mark Savard will be reunited with one of the league’s premier  pure snipers in Phil Kessel. The two had great chemistry in Boston even with Phil Kessel’s well-documented battle with testicular cancer and mononucleosis. With Phil Kessel seemingly healthy and coming into the season in shape (which was not the case in the 2009/2010 season), goal outputs in the 35 or 40 goal range would be easily attainable extrapolating his shortened season totals previously. While Phil Kessel and Mark Savard would be the number one and number two players offensively on the team, the Toronto Maple leafs still require another topline winger. One would think that attracting free-agent wingers will be a much easier prospect than was previously the case where Toronto may have a history of overpaying free agents.

Brian Burke has repeatedly said that Ilya Kovalchuk is not on the Toronto Maple Leafs radar screen due to his salary demands and the length/term that is being suggested that he wants. Perhaps now with a top-flight centreman and an equally gifted sniper lining up on the other side of the ice, he would be willing to play on hockey’s biggest stage for a lesser amount and for a shorter-term. Without being unrealistic, this is a common practice in the NHL if a player like Ilya Kovalchuk who has been starved of playoff success (even regular-season success) and would perhaps be willing to be reunited with his centreman from when Mark Savard played down the middle for the Atlanta thrashers. Ilya Kovalchuk had a career-high 52 goals and 92 points while playing on a line with Marc Savard.

Alternatively, multiple sources have indicated that the San Jose Sharks have offered power forward Ryane Clowe in exchange for Tomas Kaberle. The two sides have apparently not come to terms due to Toronto’s insistence that a prospect included in the trade. However, should the two sides be able to come to terms, it is easy to imagine Toronto’s first line taking shape.

The other positive aspect to this trade would be the alleviation of pressure on second-year centerman, Tyler Bozak. The 2010 unrestricted free agent pool is thin at best. The prospects of Toronto acquiring a number one centerman looked bleak and the prospects of Toronto’s number one and number two pairing of Tyler Bozak and Nazim Kadri were not good with undue pressure and expectations being heaped upon them. This trade will allow them to grow under a much smaller microscope and without the media picking apart their every mistake. This also gives Toronto a legitimate second line with what would appear to be: Victor Stolberg, Tyler Bosak and Christian Hansen as second line, reuniting the three roommates that was successful in the preseason of 2009/2010 and later in the year down the stretch. Should Nazem Kadri make the Toronto Maple Leafs it would likely be on the third line where he would be insulated with stronger more “forceful” players and would be able to play the creative game that is the accustomed to without the fear of being head hunted. The other option for him would be then to play as the number one centerman on the Toronto Marlies, which is probably the best environment for him to play in with top level playing time, as well as being put into high-pressure situations that he likely would not have been able to get into on the Leafs with the improved depth chart.

Should the trade happen, this would Make the Toronto Maple Leafs a much harder team to play against, and surely solidify their spot as a playoff team.

Marc Savard Scouting Report

Assets
Is very shifty  and has great vision on the ice. Marc has outstanding offensive instincts and is a top-level playmaker. Marc distributes the puck with laserlike precision. This play without the puck has improved and despite his small stature, he is known as an agitator.

Flaws
Despite being 5’10″ and being fiery he can still be out battled the puck on occasion in the dirty areas of the hockey rink. Marc It is not a tremendously fast skater and has been known to be in the coaches doghouse because of a lack of discipline taking penalties on occasion.

Career potential
Excellent playmaking center.

Marc Savard Full Career Stats