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Done deal: Toronto trades Tomas Kaberle to Boston for prospect Joe Colborne, first round pick

Tomas Kaberle

Toronto Maple Leafs defenseman Tomas Kaberle celebrates his first goal of the season with teammates while playing against the Montreal Canadiens during first-period NHL hockey game action in Toronto on Saturday, Dec. 11, 2010. (AP Photo/The Canadian Press, Nathan Denette)

AP

After two years of speculation about Tomas Kaberle being traded, it has finally happened. This time around, it’s a pair of dubious partners getting together once again to complete the deal as the Leafs have sent the blue line offensive specialist to Boston for prospect forward Joe Colborne, Boston’s first round pick in the 2011 draft, and a conditional pick.

The Bruins adding Kaberle to their blue line corps gives them the offensive-minded defenseman they severely lack. Kaberle will jump in instantly as their power play quarterback and become their top offensive threat from the point. This season, Kaberle has three goals and 35 assists and was Toronto’s fifth leading scorer.

That kind of production from the blue line in Boston would make him the Bruins fifth leading scorer as well and top point producer on defense. His 35 assists would also be tops on Boston’s roster as well. All told, Kaberle would be the missing piece they’re looking for on their defense and the freedom he’d give to Zdeno Chara to unleash hell from the other point with his slap shot. If other teams were worried about the Bruins before, they should be terrified now because Kaberle makes them a much more well-rounded team.

For Toronto, the package they’re getting from Boston is solid and manages to find a way to hurt the Bruins in another way. Joe Colborne comes to them as a former Denver University standout and former teammate of Tyler Bozak. Colborne was buried in Providence in the AHL because of the Bruins’ depth at center. He’s a big guy at 6'5" 190 pounds and still just 21 years-old. He can play center, he can play wing and he’s got talent to burn. His stats in Providence aren’t anything stellar but part of that is due to the Bruins’ farm team being so poor this year. Through 55 games he’s got 12 goals and 14 assists but at Denver in his final year there he put up 22 goals and 19 assists in 39 games as a sophomore.

Getting Colborne also weakens an already soft Bruins system that’s mostly devoid of high-end prospects. While GM Brian Burke was being tempted with taking Blake Wheeler, he instead gets one of the very few top prospects left in the Bruins system and he’ll get a chance to flourish with Toronto. Getting Boston’s first round pick in the 2011 Entry Draft helps out as well since the Leafs gave their pick up to the Bruins in the Phil Kessel deal. It’ll be a much lower pick than what they’d ideally want but after the Kris Versteeg trade, Toronto now has what will be two late first round picks.

Burke getting as much as he did from Peter Chiarelli considering Kaberle is a free agent after this season is outstanding work by him. For Chiarelli, his next move will be to get Kaberle signed to an extension before July 1, otherwise they’ll have given up a lot for a minimal return. That is unless the Bruins win the Stanley Cup, then all bets are off. Those conditions also play into the conditional pick going to Toronto. TSN’s Bob McKenzie says that it’s a 2012 second round pick that goes to Toronto if Kaberle re-signs with Boston or the Bruins reach the Stanley Cup final.

Update: Deal is officially done as reported on the Leafs website.