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3 Best Moves By Brian Burke as Toronto Maple Leafs G.M.

By Stephen Nixon

MONTREAL - JUNE 26: Nazem Kadri shakes hands with Toronto Maple Leafs President & GM Brian Burke as Special Advisor Cliff Fletcher looks on during the first round of the 2009 NHL Entry Draft at the Bell Centre on June 26, 2009 in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. (Photo by Bruce Bennett/Getty Images)
MONTREAL - JUNE 26: Nazem Kadri shakes hands with Toronto Maple Leafs President & GM Brian Burke as Special Advisor Cliff Fletcher looks on during the first round of the 2009 NHL Entry Draft at the Bell Centre on June 26, 2009 in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. (Photo by Bruce Bennett/Getty Images) /
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TORONTO, ON – JANUARY 23: Joffrey Lupul #19 of the Toronto Maple Leafs . (Photo by Claus Andersen/Getty Images)
TORONTO, ON – JANUARY 23: Joffrey Lupul #19 of the Toronto Maple Leafs . (Photo by Claus Andersen/Getty Images) /

#3. The Acquisition of Joffrey Lupul and Jake Gardiner

Here’s the full trade:

  • Toronto Maple Leafs trade Francois Beauchemin to Anaheim Ducks for Joffrey Lupul, Jake Gardiner and 2013 Fourth Round Pick (117th Overall)

The fact that Burke was able to take an average 30-year-old defenseman in Beauchemin and trade him for Jake Gardiner, who was a 20-year-old offensive talented prospect defenseman would have made this trade a steal, alone. However, getting Lupul in the deal as well make this an A+ trade.

Having previously drafted Gardiner as the G.M. of the Ducks, Burke knew a lot about him and understood his upside. The Ducks were a veteran team looking to get back to another Stanley Cup Final, so acquiring Beauchemin was a win-now move, so they were fine with moving on from a prospect.

The Ducks defense during the early 2010s was filled with great young talent, so although Gardiner would have for sure cracked their line-up, the Ducks thought he was expendable in order to get an already proven NHL defenseman in Beauchemin.

Gardiner took a lot of heat during his time in Toronto, although most of it was unjust. He was an incredible skater who always kept his head up in the ice to make offensive plays and could contribute between 30-50 points each year. His defensive play definitely wasn’t the best at times, but he was a proven top-four defenseman.

Acquiring Lupul was a risk, as he was coming off injury concerns, so it was unclear which player you’d be getting. Although he was injury prone in Toronto, when healthy, he was a dynamic player.

Lupul had two 20-goal seasons, including a 25 goal and 67 point 2011-12 season. His creative ability to make plays was remarkable and he instantly became a fan-favourite, as the only current player jerseys you’d see at the then Air Canada Centre were Phil Kessel, Dion Phaneuf or Lupul’s.

This trade was awesome, but there’s only one other Burke trade that topped this…

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