Zanzibar Buck-Buck McFate said:
NYT Slap Shot blog is speculating that Thomas may be on his way out of Boston -- management quite unhappy with the controversy, and with him bring FA and Rask in the wings....
Funny, I was just thinking about whether the Bruins might want to unload Thomas and then it occurred to me:
1. This would be a big splash of a deal - which Burke loves
2. Thomas is an American player, which Burke seems to be fond of and he knows Thomas well.
That lead to me doing some noodling on what it might take from us to land Thomas - and believe me, I KNOW this is a long-shot and that Chiarelli would dearly not like to send Thomas anywhere in the East, especially not in the same division. AND likely Burke is more after something in a forward, but I thought I would throw this out there - at least as far as an interesting discussion.
Here are my thoughts:
The Deal:
Bos:
Tim Thomas
2nd Round Draft pick
Greg Campbell
Tor:
James Reimer or Jonas Gustavsson
1st Round Draft pick
Tyler Bozak
Prospect (Scrivens?)
For Boston:
Pros:
- Get rid of problem child
- Make room for Rask to finally take #1
- Bring in a capable back-up G for Rask
- Gain back $1.7M (Reimer) or $3.5M (Gus - but he needs to be signed) in salary cap for 2012-13
- Gain a mid-round 1st round pick
- Upgrade at Center (Bozak for Campbell)
- Gain a needed G prospect for depth
Cons:
- Lose proven, veteran #1 G for rest of season / playoffs
For Toronto:
Pros:
- Big splash for the team (a Burke favourite)
- Bring in a proven, veteran #1 G for playoff push / playoffs
- Still have Reimer or Gus for backup/replacement #1 down the road
- Gain back a capable C on an expiring contract
Cons:
- Take on $1.7M (Reimer) or $3.5M (Gus - less his signing $) more cap in 2012-13
- Move from a mid 1st round to late 2nd round pick
- Downgrade a little at Center
- Lose some depth in G (which we can afford)
Basis would be:
- Reimer or Gustavsson, Bozak & 1st rounder for Thomas
- Burke then says he needs to get back a pick or prospect
- Chiarelli offers his 2nd rounder for a Leaf prospect (Scrivens) and he gives back Campbell
Cap Hits:
Bos:
Tim Thomas 2011-12 $5M 2012-13 $5M 2013-14 UFA
Greg Campbell 2011-12 $1.1M 2012-13 UFA
Tor:
James Reimer 2011-12 $1.8M 2012-13 $1.8M 2013-14 $1.8M
J Gustavsson 2011-12 $1.35M 2012-13 UFA
Tyler Bozak 2011-12 $1.5M 2012-13 $1.5M 2013-14 UFA
Ben Scrivens 2011-12 $0.6M 2012-13 RFA
Chiarelli would likely want Gustavsson over Reimer (cheaper now and maybe ultimately better) , but maybe Burke can persuade him on Reimer?
Anyway - Soooo, am I totally crazy, or only marginally crazy about this as a possibility?