Toronto Maple Leafs: Say No to the Thought of Steven Stamkos

I'll start by saying this...

If you think for even a second that Steven Stamkos will be wearing the beloved blue and white this season, then do I have a great luxury car to sell you! It's called a Gremlin.

Suckers are anyone who believe that this Stamkos talk will actually evolve into reality.

There are way too many moving parts for this to ever be a real scenario.

I will start with the biggest one. Steve Yzerman is no fool. There is no possible way that any half-wit GM would ever trade away a player of this magnitude.

Please don't mention Wayne Gretzky; that is an entirely different situation,

Stamkos is possibly in the top five of players in the NHL today. He is the franchise. He is too valuable to this team to ever let him go.

He grew up cheering for the Leafs. So what? Does that make this rumor any more possible? Hundreds of players cheered for the Leafs, and hundreds of them never played for them.

Moving to part two. This is what I base my thought processes on. Brian Burke is opposed to offer sheets. Remember Kevin Lowe and Dustin Penner? Burke needed multiple feminine products to cure the infection he got over that debacle.

There is no way, after making such a scene like he did over that move, that he could ever do it himself. He is much too proud to be mocked over stepping on his own tongue.

That is part of the problem with Burke. He runs his mouth so much that he tends to %$@# himself.

Moving to part three. Long-term contracts are not Burke's thing. He hates them and has stated it many times.  I would bet Stamkos will sign a contract in excess of $100 million.

Is that far fetched? Take a look at his age. A 10-year contract is realistic. I would hope Burke would never commit to anything of that nature.

I would love nothing more to see a guy like Stamkos on the Leafs. Not at the expense of many picks, or prospects though. Not at the expense of a long-term contract. Especially not at the expense of our GM's reputation. We've been laughed at too much for the last 40-plus years.

To those that believe this is possible, to land Stamkos and live happily ever after, I'll say this: stay off that donkey Eklund's site.

And if it happens, I'll eat my words like a big boy. Until that time, many of you dreamers need to give your head a shake.

End rant.