1-2 punch?

With draft day a week away, there seems to be something going on in leaf land that is going to significantly change the leafs for years to come. I have different opinions on getting Luongo or Nash. I have a better solution for Burke and company to turn this team into a contender for years to come. These two players are going to be Alex Galchenyuk and Nail Yakupov. Trading up with both Edmonton and Columbus isn't too crazy of a thought either. So lets talk about the trade scenarios.

Tank Nation

First off I want to start by stating that I believe Ron Wilson will stick around for the rest of the season. May not be shocking but I also believe that once the season is over, Rotten Ron will get the can and Burke will not announce the new coach right away.

Get Back Grabbo

A team looking for center depth should have no intentions of letting their best pivot take off for free agency. He is tied for 10th in goals with David Backes and Brad Richards with 16 goals a piece. He is on pace for 62 points and 32 goals and is only getting hotter as the season goes on. He had 29 goals/29 assists for 58 points last year.

He only makes 2.9 this season and is due for a big raise. A comparable to him is Tomas Plekanec who is making 20 million over 4 years after posting similar stats to Mikhail. Grabovski brings a stronger defensive side to the game and is arguably only going to get better. Although his line mates have struggled this year, he has still performed up to expectations as this teams #2 center. Last year Plekanec had 57 points to Grabbos 58 although Plekanec has posted 69 and 70 point seasons, he is a year older and has more experience in the NHL. Both are going to score 20 goals each year for a few more seasons. 288 games for Grabovski and 519 for Plekanec. The best is yet to come from the Belarusian.

A deal giving Grabbo 4 years at 4.75 a year would be a contract I think both the Leafs and Crosbovski can settle on. He would hold down the second line center position and provide solid secondary scoring along with his keen 2 way play. Seems as though Mikhail is one of Rotten Ron's favorites. A nice option in the future for Grabbo is going to be Kadri who is learning the Wing position and they would compliment each other quite well. It would produce some silky smooth plays.

Leafs 4 - Islanders 3

A strong showing by the Leafs 1st line of last year. Clarke Macarthur buried 2 tonight to go with 1 assist and Mikhail Grabovski buried one with 3 apples on the night. On a night where the Leafs didn't bring it in the early going, they turned it around with a goal before the second period ended to make it 2-1. After Jake Gardiner tied  it up with his first career goal that had eyes for the net, the game had two crazy deflections which gave the lead to the buds then taken back after a ring around attempt directed right to the slot where P.A. Parenteau banged it home with 13 seconds left in the match. The game ended on a nice give an go with Mac and Grabbo with Mac shooting it into the glove of a sprawled out Al Montoya. The glove was clearly over the line and the Leafs won a key 2 points.

Building a Back End

When Anthopolous solidified the closer spot on the roster when he acquired Sergio Santos for Nestor Molina, that was just the start to him building arguably one of the best bull pens in the league now. After that he has also re-acquired Jason Frasor then signed veteran lefty specialist Darren Oliver and veteran righty Coco Cordero. Although most these pitchers are on the older side, they can still eat quality innings. When your starting pitching is young and thin at the back end its great to have quality options to go to in the 6th and 7th innings knowing the 8th an 9th are under control.

Leafs 4 - Wild 1

The second game in a row that the Leafs dominated. Out shooting the Wild 33-21. Have to give props to Wilson for the line changes, created a spark for the team from the first shift where Nazem Kadri scored and it continued throughout the entire game. Joey Crabb stole a move out of Matt Frattin's notebook using that power move to cut to the net and finish it off sliding the puck under Backstroms arm. Very pretty goal by the Alaskan Crabb. Kessel got off the snide finishing a dirty goal in front of the net, also the first power play goal in four games for the buds. Making sure there was no chance at a come back Lupul and Grabovski hooked up on a quick on to open the third where Grabbo directed the puck in on a crossing pass by Joffrey. Lupul had arguably his most dominant game of the season showing off his hands and vision on numerous occasions. The monster stood strong the whole game and kept the game scoreless until a weak goal on a bad angle shot late in the third which broke the shut out bid. Once again the PK stood strong, with the Leafs being more discipline lately it has taken a large amount of pressure of the units and keeping them fresh.

How Long Will this Last

Switching up basically the entire line-up going into tonight's game against the Wild seems a bit unreasonable. The Leafs need to fight through this struggle on their own. Yeah the Kessel/Lupul line has been scored against but to put the blame on them seems ridiculous. The team as a whole hasn't been able to get their speed going through the neutral zone and this has stalled the teams offense. Over the past 3 game losing streak the team has given up 3 goals each game which by no means is horrible. All games were close for the most part.