Having sat out four straight games, Toronto Maple Leafs rookie defenseman Jake Gardiner has officially been assigned to the Maple Leafs AHL affiliate Toronto Marlies Sunday afternoon. Gardiner shocked many when he made the big club straight out of training camp, followed by an impressive stretch of games which saw him register ten assists through 37 games this season, while posting a respectable minus-1 rating. Known as an offensive defenseman, Gardiner uses his skating and hockey sense to outwit opposing forwards, while also possessing the ability to make a quick first pass. Originally drafted in the first round (17th overall) by the Anaheim Ducks, Burke was able to bring Gardiner to Toronto late last season as part of the Francoise Beauchemin deal. Originally expected to make the team by the All-Star break, Gardiner’s solid play led to the big club

Toronto Maple Leafs general manager Brian Burke was a guest on the Fan 590’s Prime Time Sports on Wednesday night. Interviewed by long-time host Bob McCowan, Burke addressed a number of issues, including the teams depth (which Burke believes to be strong), the odds of the Maple Leafs adding a veteran goaltender (not likely) and the likelihood of Burke making a deal before the trade deadline. On the topic of trades, Burke lamented that he was currently “in conversation with clubs” and felt that, with “something on the burner” a deal should be able to get done. Make no mistake about it, Burke was not commenting on making a deal for a depth player, what he was referring to was a deal of significance, which has the Leaf Nation wondering what teams Burke has been talking to? With so many

On paper the Columbus Blue Jackets 3-2 loss to the Dallas Stars doesn’t look too bad. First of all, Columbus managed to out-shoot Dallas by a margin of 24-11 in the first two periods and 40-18 overall. Second, the Blue Jackets outhit the Stars by a margin of 32-20 and third Columbus did manage to capitalize on one of their five power play opportunities, but when you consider the Blue Jackets are now a combined 0-5-1 on the season, it’s time to start panicking, isn’t it? Long time captain of the Dallas Stars Mike Modano tweeted (@9modano) “Rick Nash please ask for a trade..!” after the Stars victory, leaving many NHL fans wondering if Modano is right—maybe Nash should ask for a trade out of Columbus? This summer, Columbus Blue Jackets Executive Vice President of Hockey Operations and General Manager

Rumors. They can start up at the flick of a few keys on the keyboard and, in most cases; there is absolutely nothing to them. Reports have surfaced that Jeff Carter was unhappy at being blindsided by the Philadelphia Flyers when he was traded to the Columbus Blue Jackets. While Carter has not said he is disappointed in his destination, there are some whispers out there that Carter would consider a move if Columbus offered. Carter’s agent Rick Curran met with the Flyers prior to the trade and was assured there was no truth to the rumors that Carter was on the move. Curran negotiated an 11-year, $58 million deal with the Flyers that was to see Carter remain a Flyer for life. Needless to say, when you consider Carter negotiated his deal in good faith and then was later

With Chris Drury expected to accept a buyout from the New York Rangers on Friday, New York looks to be positioning themselves to take a good run at the NHL’s premier free agent, Brad Richards. Richards is expected to have as many as 20 different NHL teams interested in him, but in the end there are only a few teams that have the cap room and competitive roster in place to attract the likes of Richards. At 31-years old Richards is no spring chicken. That said, there is no other free agent player in the class that Richards is. That is why Richards is expected to garner a contract in the $6.5-$8.0 million range with a term as high as nine years. Richards looks to be set on playing for a Stanley Cup contender, regardless of the money thrown at

According to TSN Philadelphia Flyers forward Jeff Carter has been traded to the Columbus Blue Jackets in exchange for forward Jakub Voracek and the Blue Jackets first (eighth overall) and third round draft choices in this years NHL Entry Draft. Carter, who carries a cap hit of $5,272,727 through 2021-22, looks to have been made expendable in order for the Flyers to sign unrestricted free agent goaltender Ilya Bryzgalov, whom the Flyers have exclusive signing rights to up to July 1st. The Carter trade also makes it possible for the Flyers to re-sign unrestricted free agent Ville Leino, who was thought to be headed out of town. And let’s not forget about that first round draft pick. Philadelphia’s minor league system has been decimated by a lack of first round draft picks. Drafting eighth overall should allow the Flyers to