Burke cutting it close with Kaberle

Hockey Betting Lines

08/13/2010 - Toronto, Canada (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Brian Burke is currently engaging in a risky waiting game with his most valuable trading commodity, All-Star defenseman Tomas Kaberle.

Burke has less than three days remaining to decide what to do with his most proven defender, before Kaberle's no trade clause is re-enacted on August 15th at midnight.

The Toronto Maple Leafs front office has a difficult dilemma to deal with in regards to Kaberle, who is currently the team's longest serving member and is entering the final year of his contract at a very modest rate of $4.25 million per season.

There has been a significant amount of speculation recently that as many as six to 10 teams have showed serious interest in acquiring Kaberle, with several teams already having tabled substantial offers.

There is no doubt that Burke's club could desperately use another young and highly skilled top-six forward to play alongside talented sniper Phil Kessel and Burke's prized blue chip prospect, Nazem Kadri.

However, Burke, Toronto's President and GM, has consistently stated over the past several months that unless other NHL general managers are willing to meet his asking price, then he has no problem holding on to Kaberle for the upcoming season.

By waiting until the final days, hours or even minutes up to the deadline, it is apparent that Burke is attempting to drive up the price for Kaberle, in hopes of creating a bidding war amongst his suitors.

This waiting game could potentially leave the Leafs in a precarious position, one in which they may not acquire any assets in exchange for Kaberle, only to watch him walk away at the end of the upcoming campaign.

Look no further than the local Toronto Raptors as an example of the potential impact this type of scenario can have on the direction of a young team. Maple Leafs Sports & Entertainment's other "Brian", Bryan Colangelo, can certainly attest to the magnitude of the decision facing the Maple Leafs, and after the recent Chris Bosh exodus from T.O., he most definitely does not envy the position that Burke currently finds himself in.

It is fair to say that Burke's abrasive style and aggressive tactics have proven to be successful for his clubs in the past. However, at this point, it is also quite fair to question whether or not this type of risky waiting game will eventually pay dividends for the team.

Other general managers around the NHL are obviously quite aware of the August 15th deadline, and may not be willing to increase their offers in order to concede to the demands that Burke has laid out to acquire Kaberle's services.

With only one year remaining on Kaberle's current contract, he essentially becomes an extended rental player at a bargain price, unless a team is able to negotiate a contract extension before he becomes an unrestricted free agent at the conclusion of the upcoming season.

This makes Kaberle both an appealing commodity for teams feeling the squeeze of the NHL salary cap, as well as a high risk acquisition for others, since the asking price will surely be steep, involving a combination of young talented players and/or draft picks.

As Sunday evening quickly approaches, there is no doubt that the forecast for Toronto this weekend calls for a flurry of speculation and rumors surrounding the Leafs, and more specifically Kaberle.

The decisions that Burke makes over the next couple of days could have a profound impact on the landscape of the franchise for many years. Burke has a tremendous opportunity to fast track the development of his hockey club from a perennial non-playoff team to an up-and-coming group with a talented young core that could potentially lead the Leafs towards success for the next decade.

Through all of the uncertainty with regards to what may transpire with Kaberle, the one thing we know for sure is that Leafs fans won't have to wait long to see how this story unfolds. As Sunday's upcoming deadline approaches, it seems inevitable that one of two scenarios will play out, with either Kaberle's trading window or his career with Toronto likely closing for good.

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Elite 8 NCAA Tournament Betting at online sportsbook MySportsbook.com

In what should be an outstanding Saturday of March Madness betting action, the top four teams in the South and West Regions square off in what should be extremely close match-ups. Three of the four teams are coming off extremely close games on Thursday evening, only UCLA won semi comfortably over Pitt 64-55.

Ohio State is coming off their second game in a row where in all reality they should have lost. Of course that doesn’t matter now since the name of the game is “survive and advance” but as the tournament continues, they can’t afford to keep getting down to their opponents early. Kansas also avoided a scare by holding off a scrappy Southern Illinois squad. In the third thrilling game of the evening Memphis pulled off the minor upset (+3.5) despite being the higher seed to Texas A&M.

Although the spreads are fairly small for Saturday’s games, MySportsbook.com continue to bet against the underdogs. Despite OSU’s two scares, 86% of the “betting public” feels the Buckeyes (-1.5) have what it takes to make the Final Four. In fact, so much of the early money is on OSU that the line has already moved from -1 to -1.5. In the second game of the doubleheader, Kansas and their high-powered offense are 2 point favorites as they take on UCLA and their effective defense. About 63% of the early money thus far is once again backing the favorites. If those percentages stay that high, don’t be surprised if this line moves as well. If you like Kansas (-2) you might want to jump on it early.

Memphis vs. Ohio State

Both squads were involved in thrillers on Thursday evening and should come out fired up. OSU can ill afford to get behind early like they did versus their previous two opponents (Xavier, Tennessee). Greg Oden needs to stay out of foul trouble; the Buckeyes are a completely different team when he is on the court. Memphis definitely has the athleticism and length to match-up with OSU. Of Memphis’ five leading minute earners, the shortest of the bunch is 6’5”. Each team has a very effective defense; Memphis surrenders 62.3 PPG whereas the Buckeyes give up only 61 PPG. With those type of numbers, it isn’t surprising that Memphis covered the UNDER almost 69% of the time this season. As a favorite, OSU has covered the UNDER almost 66% of the time over the last three seasons. The major concern for Memphis which is magnifies this time of the year is their brutal foul shooting (62%). This season, OSU is 17-11 ATS versus teams with a winning record and 7-2 ATS in all tournament games. Memphis has been an extremely reliable cover in tournament play in recent years with a 23-8 ATS record over the last three seasons.

UCLA vs. Kansas

In the second game of Saturday’s doubleheader, UCLA will play in a role which they are very unfamiliar with that of the underdog. Only twice this season have they been getting points from the handicappers and both times they covered. Over the last three seasons UCLA is a reliable 23-7 ATS in this unfamiliar role. UCLA has not fared well against Big 12 opponents recently going 1-7 ATS since 1997. Giving up only 59.6 PPG, UCLA will definitely look to do what they do best: keep this game as low scoring as possible. Their defense has been especially tough during the tournament. UCLA opponents have been able to muster up only 48.7 PPG while shooting a combined 34.5% from the field. UCLA definitely has a challenge at hand with a Kansas team that is capable of putting points on the board in bunches. As a team, they average 79 PPG and shoot an impressive 49.6% from the field and 39.4% from beyond the arc. During the tournament Kansas has been “lights out” from the field having shot 56.2%.

With Friday -105 juice on Basketball betting, MySportsbook.com is the place to bet on all of the “March Madness” action.  Don’t forget to monitor who the public is backing at MySportsbook.com’s “Betting Trends”.  By doing so, you have the best chance of predicting a possible line change, thus getting the best value for your wager.

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