The $5.75 Million Dollar Question: Trading Bryan McCabe

With 10 potential NHL ready players on the blue line, and only prospect Luke Schenn being waiver exempt, it’s clear that the Toronto Maple Leafs are going to have to make a few moves to get down to the seven D-men they plan on carrying during the regular season.

If top prospect Schenn gets the standard nine game look and is returned to his junior team, the Leafs would be down to nine D-men.

Given the Leafs recent move towards players with more size and grit, I wouldn’t be surprised to see Ian White moved, which would put the team at eight defensemen.

That leaves defencemen Pavel Kubina and/or Bryan McCabe as prime trade bait for the re-building Leafs.

Leafs GM Cliff Fletcher and Coach Ron Wilson have both openly stated that McCabe is not in the team’s plans for the upcoming season, making McCabe, despite his no movement clause (NMC), the more likely of the two D-men to be moved.

Timing

If it’s Kubina on the trading block, the Leafs have a small window of opportunity to close the deal. Kubina’s contract permits the Leafs to trade him between the NHL Entry Draft and August 15. After that, Kubina’s no trade clause kicks in, effectively pulling Kubina out of the trade market.

McCabe is due to receive a $2M bonus in September (his salary for this season is $4.15M+$2M bonus for $6.15 while his cap hit is $5.75M). It's likely safe to presume that most teams would be far more inclined to deal for McCabe once that bonus has been paid by the Leafs.

Cap Hits, Chemistry and Conferences

If trying to trade McCabe with his NMC wasn’t challenging enough, a look at the cap situation across the NHL quickly reduces the number of possible trading partners.

Several teams are either right at the cap max or so close to it they likely can’t take on McCabe’s $5.75 M cap hit.

Cap issues pretty much rule out: Anaheim, Boston, Calgary, Chicago, Dallas, Detroit, Montreal, New Jersey, New York Rangers, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, and Tampa Bay.

Nashville, Phoenix and St. Louis have the extra cap space but are likely too constrained by internal team budgets to take on McCabe’s $4.15M salary.

Sure, the Leafs could take back a hefty salary in return, but it would have to pretty much be a dollar-for-dollar trade with any of these clubs, and given the log jam on D that precipitated this deal it would have to be a big-money forward.

It’s difficult enough to find a trade partner never mind trying to balance out the salaries going each way, so I don’t think trades with any of these teams are going to happen (but I could be way way off on this one).

McCabe’s rather free-wheeling style probably eliminates Minnesota and Florida outright too.

That’s 17 teams out of contention. (Of course, having said that on the record, the Leafs will definitely trade McCabe to one of these teams).

Then there’s the whole issue of location.

McCabe has some personal/home life issues that have led many to conclude that he would only accept a trade to a team in the Northeastern United States.

Teams with cap space, but a west coast bias, include Colorado (still need to re-sign Sakic), Columbus, Edmonton, Los Angeles, San Jose and Vancouver.

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