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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Dallas Cowboys Super Bowl Odds

Will he or won't he?  Now that the Dallas Cowboys have a new head coach in Wade Phillips, the big question will be: Does Terrell Owens stay with the team.

Jerry Jones continues to suggest that Terrell Owens will remain with the team.

"I've said that he's back, he's here, he's under contract," Jones said. "In the interviews I've just been through (to hire a new coach), it was very clear to me how highly he's thought of and how much of an impact he had on our offensive success."

Just to be sure though, Terrell Owens cleared out his locker and removed his name plate.

Terrell Owens was among the Cowboys most productive players this past season, catching 85 passes for 1,180 yards and a league-best 13 touchdowns.

But T.O. is due a $3 million roster bonus in June, then a $5 million salary this season. Cutting him before then would save a lot of money and headaches.

Aside from the questions surrounding Terrell Owens, the oddsmakers at MySportsbook.com have concerns over starting quarterback Tony Romo's state of mind and whether he will remain a starting quarterback.  It is also not known how players will adjust to new head coach, Wade Phillips.

Here are the football odds as seen at MySportsbook.com and subject to change after February 10, 2007 if not locked in prior to that date.
Arizona Cardinals 60-1


Atlanta Falcons 50-1


Baltimore Ravens 15-1


Buffalo Bills 50-1


Carolina Panthers 18-1


Chicago Bears 10-1


Cincinnati Bengals 15-1


Cleveland Browns 100-1


Dallas Cowboys 15-1


Denver Broncos 15-1


Detroit Lions 100-1


Green Bay Packers 50-1


Houston Texans 100-1


Indianapolis Colts 6-1


Jacksonville Jaguars 30-1


Kansas City Chiefs 30-1


Miami Dolphins 40-1


Minnesota Vikings 75-1


New England Patriots 10-1


New Orleans Saints 18-1


New York Giants 20-1


New York Jets 30-1


Oakland Raiders 100-1


Philadelphia Eagles 18-1


Pittsburgh Steelers 10-1


Saint Louis Rams 60-1


San Diego Chargers 6-1


San Francisco 49ers 75-1


Seattle Seahawks 20-1


Tampa Bay Buccanneers 75-1


Tennessee Titans 40-1


Washington Redskins 50-1

To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com for all your Sportsbook credit cards needs.

FOOTBALL TRASH TALK

NFL Football Trash Talk

Trash talk has a place in every competitive endeavor (except baseball; those stirrup-wearers are too busy chewing on their sunflower seeds and their supplements to worry about what their opponents are doing).

Fantasy sports is no exception. Any intelligent discussion of the subject would probably start with a thesis statement or a definition of terms. Thankfully, this wont be an intelligent discussion.

Let me just say that I am happy to take a place in this space alongside my talented colleagues, even our commissioner. (You should see how she bleats like a demented paper boy about league fees on our fantasy site).

Trash talking, I would argue, is primarily about amusing your friends, their sheeplike demeanors and sloping foreheads notwithstanding. The best place I have found for football trash talking is at www.SportsAlarm.com.

Beyond the entertainment factor, though, I would recognize that the sophomoric ritual has one advantage, when properly applied. It magnifies your fantasy triumphs and mitigates your fantasy failures by transforming the eventual point total into an afterthought. Winning makes it seem like your opponent really is a truss-owning, lapel-pin-wearing nitwit. And in defeat, trash talk can be the air bag to break the fall from your hyperbolic heights. The plug-necked yahoos on your team, you can say, will be sacking groceries by the end of the season.

The best trash talk, in my view, is layered and nuanced. And it doesnt focus only on your opponents team. It picks apart your opponent. The idea is to create a shock-and-awe-scale blizzard of nonsense, and the goal is to make your opponent drop his hands from his keyboard in exasperation.

What team does your opponent root for? Accuse a Giants fan of having a Joe Namath pillowcase. Wheres your opponent from? Give a look of concern no matter his reply, then say, I'll try to type slower for you next time. Is your opponent into politics? Label everyone a tax-and-spend corporate shill.

Cap all that with a liberal application of irrelevance. For instance, dont just conclude by saying your opponent is a twerp who drafts like my grandmother. Say that your opponent is a sweater-wearing, eyebrow-plucking twerp who drafts his team about as well as Zsa Zsa Gabor gave acceptance speeches at the Oscars. By the time your foe makes sense of that, his starting running back will have had puppies.

But what about you? Hmm? Recall a memorable slam? Have a tried-and-true technique? Know someone who seems impervious to insult? Take a moment and tells us about it. Put together some (fit-for-publication) thoughts. You wont be too busy returning phone messages from your friends, Im sure, to reply.

In addition to the trash talking, the Sports Alarm has a huge gallery of high resolution pictures of beautiful women and models in bikinis. The most popular models are: Lindsay Lohan, Carrie Underwood, Alessandra Ambrosio, and Paris Hilton.