Brian Burke Has For Sale Sign on First Round Picks

Filed under: Maple Leafs, NHL Draft, Trade Deadline

TORONTO - Brian Burke has first round draft picks to burn but his master plan doesn't call to transform the Toronto Maple Leafs into a Stanley Cup contender through the annual lottery.

The Maple Leaf general manager picked up two first-round picks in the June draft in the last week. The first came in the Kris Versteeg deal with the Philadelphia Flyers, and the second arrived via the Tomas Kaberle trade to the Boston Bruins. If the draft was held on Saturday, the Leafs would have the 25th and 29th overall picks, which in Burke's way of thinking translates into one thing: trade bait. And it is hardly a surprise he has hung a For Sale sign on the first-rounders.

"Anytime you can add an asset that has that weight I think it is useful,'' he said at a news conference after trading Kaberle. "We are immediately going to try parlay the two firsts into something higher in the first round."

 

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Source: http://nhl.fanhouse.com/2011/02/19/brian-burke-has-for-sale-sign-on-first-round-picks/

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