How wrong you are ELT's, yet again when it comes to your wisdom on the Leafs. It was in fact a lopsided trade as we speak and will most likely end that way and only time will tell, but Grabo and his linemates play against #1 and #2 lines night in night out and against top D pairings as well on a nightly basis. They are one of the higher scoring lines in the NHL in case you didnt know. Thus Grabo has cemented himself as a "Top 6 Player" in the best league the world has to offer, the NHL. He was not ready to be a top 6 in montreal, he needed more experience, seasoning, good coaching and time to mature, which he has got all 4 in Tor, something he was not going to get in mtl.
For the way he plays the game, i will take Grabo anyday over the overpaid centre's your team has. When Burke signed Grabo for around $3 mil per season, eyebrows were raised by many in the Hockey world, well, now that price seems like a bargain. Credit the birth of his new little baby girl with him learning to take responsibility and mature into the well rounded player he has become. He is part of a Leafs team that now has 2 scoring lines that can change the game at any second, and once we have a centre to feed Kessel, it will only get better, and that allows Tyler Bozak to become a third line centre to play with Colby Armstrong and another winger that will fit in with those 2 to form another solid secondary scoring line...
If Burke can either get that big centre for Kessel, this summer (Brad Richards, or maybe trade for Paul Stastney, or some miracle that Zack Parise somehow gets moved by NJ and becomes available with a sign and trade) or our farm produces one soon, look out, the Leafs will go from struggling to score goals some nights which is why they might come up short this season, to a team that will be lighting the lamp much more consistently.
The whole team is maturing before our very eyes the last 25 games and whether we make the playoffs this year, (if only there were 15 more games instead of 7) Grabo is a HUGE part of our future, and WE Leaf fans thank Montreal for giving up on him.
Ole'
No, that was unfortunate to have to move Grabby to the Leafs but I think Montreal thought they had enough skilled but small L1 + L2 Centres so the flipped him to Toronto for a dud + a 2nd rounder that was used to add Robert Lang. Not a bad trade actually.
Now, can I just throw in "sloppy seconds" ... a guy who couldn't crack MTLs L1/L2 is Toronto L1 Centre? That's just a symptom of a bigger problem in Toronto.