Kaberle Trade: Leap of Faith or Panic Move?

By Patrick Powell On Friday morning, Pierre Gauthier took the bait that the Carolina Hurricanes had been reportedly dangling for weeks: defenseman Tomas Kaberle. As a member of the Toronto Maple Leafs, Kaberle distinguished himself as one of the premier, offensive defenseman in the League. Considering the Leafs’ failed to make the playoffs since the lockout, Kaberle was the subject of trade rumors for years. The Boston Bruins paid a bounty for his services and the Czech defender hoisted the Cup for the first time in his career last June. However, most people will tell you they won in spite of him, not because of him. Kaberle left the Leafs in second place on the club’s all time scoring list among defensemen (Borje Salming is the current leader). His primary assets are his vision and passing on the power play, as evidenced by his career stats. Nevertheless, the deficiencies in Kaberle’s game have been his decision-making in his own end and his proclivity to making turnovers. In an i...