It has been repeated emphatically and often by Brian Burke that he believes in building a team in a certain way; a group of talented, scoring top six forwards and a bottom six of gritty, hard-hitting checkers.
Burke also believes in the importance of getting your goaltender situation figured out, then building up your blue-line.
Since he has already taken care of those two factors in the first season and a half, he is ready to work on the forward group until he gets it right.
His recent acquisition of Kris Versteeg from the Chicago Blackhawks is definitely a step in the right direction. Versteeg will fit nicely into a top six role, and since he is so versatile, he can play any of the forward positions. With his strong stick handling, scoring touch, and feistiness despite his smaller size, he will likely win the fans over before long.
He produced 20-goal seasons the past two years on a team where he was overshadowed by scoring talents like Patrick Kane, Jonathan Toews, and Marian Hossa. The 24 year old could easily surpass his points total given the minutes he will likely receive on the Leafs.&n ...
Read Full Article at Bleacher Report - NHL
Article written by Nathan Cole
Brian Burke Continues To Rebuild the Toronto Maple Leafs in His Own Image
July 4th, 2010 by Nathan Cole Leave a reply »
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