Mikhail Grabovski plays for the Toronto Maple Leafs, and it's evident that the Leafs want to keep him around. But will they get an offer they can't refuse? According to TSN's Darren Dreger, yes, they just might. Here's what he said during the network's Insider Trading segment Thursday evening:
Mikhail Grabovski Trade Offer On Table, According To Report
The Toronto Maple Leafs have an offer on the table right now that would give them a second-round pick and a prospect for Mikhail Grabovski. Brian Burke believes he can sweeten that if necessary, get a first-rounder out of that deal. But again, they’re not making that decision until Feb. 27. They know they need him, the preference is to sign him.
It seems as though a trade is only in the mix should the Leafs be unable to come to an agreement on a new contract with the forward. If that doesn’t happen by the Feb. 27 trade deadline, a deal could be had, but there are still 10 days for that to be worked out. Via Leafs blog Pension Plan Puppets:
I’m guessing the gap in signing Mikhail Grabovski is that Burke is looking for somewhere around $5M and Grabovski’s agent wants Kessel’s $5.4M deal. It’s worth noting two things: first off that it would [stink] to lose a good player over $500k. A 2nd rounder and a prospect isn’t worth anything. It’s Luca Caputi and someone worse than Tyler Biggs.
PPP goes on to speculate that Brian Burke could very well be leaking this to the media, hoping that Grabovski could accept a lower deal upon hearing the news. Grabovski is an important piece for the Leafs both this season and beyond, and Burke will likely wait until the last possible moment before trading him away.
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