Joe Colborne's Versatility Could Be Biggest Asset in Reaching NHL

When I read this NESN article I get the feeling that former Denver Pioneer and Boston Bruins prospect Joe Colborne is just another Blake Wheeler type player, a big body player that isn't very physical. Oh goody.

Analysis
Colborne possesses an enticing blend of size and skill, especially now that he's begun to fill out his 6-foot-5 frame. He was a self-described "beanpole" when he was drafted in 2008 as a 190-pounder, but two years in the weight room at the University of Denver has helped him bulk up to 216 pounds. Now he just has to learn how to make the best use of that size.

He's not an overly physical or aggressive player, but he does use his body well to protect the puck. While he needs to improve on his consistency, Colborne has good hands, great vision and excellent hockey sense. That combination makes him a crafty playmaker, but he also possesses a strong shot and quick release, so he's also adept as a finisher.

A natural center, Colborne played most of last year on the wing, and with Boston's depth down the middle, a move out wide is probably his best bet to make the big club in the near future. That's not a problem for Colborne, who's willing to play any position to get a shot in the NHL. He's a left-handed shot but has played both wings, giving him even more versatility. He also showed great character and leadership at this summer's development camp. It was Colborne's third camp, and he took it upon himself to call the newcomers before camp to let them know what to expect, then served as a mentor to the younger campers during the week of drills and off-ice activities.

Kovalchuk for a couple of former WCHA players?

As a Bruins fan this trade would go a long way in putting Boston in the elite status. I am all for sending Wheeler and Joe Colborne to Atlanta if it gets Boston a crack at the cup.

Kovalchuk trade bait?

Is Ilya Kovalchuk, who has 323 goals but is minus-86 in his Atlanta career, a better trade rental than Marian Hossa was in 2008 when Pittsburgh got him and got to Game 7 of the Stanley Cup final? I don't think so. I may be in the minority, but I think Hossa is a better player (he actually can check) and, in his prime all he fetched was centre Erik Christensen, winger Colby Armstrong, suspect draft pick Angelo Esposito and a 2008 first-round draft pick -stocking stuffers really, although Hossa was 29, and Kovalchuk is only 26, so maybe he'd be worth more.

I still think the Boston Bruins are the short-term destination, although they don't have long-term cap room, because Marc Savard and Kovalchuk have a history from Atlanta, and the Bruins can give up Blake Wheeler, their first-round pick (not the one they got from Toronto for Phil Kessel) and, say, centre Joe Colborne, who is a sophomore at University of Denver.

Don't Let the Door Hit You On the Way Out

The more I hear of this story the less sad that I become; one can say that I am over it. Good luck with going to the hockey black hole known as Toronto. You’re really going to love the way the fans are going to treat you when you disappear for a few games and don’t score any goals. Toronto fans are less forgiving than Boston fans and they are relentless on the message boards. You might want to talk to last year’s whipping boy Jason Blake; the fans were also very persistent in their criticism of the former 40 goal scorer. You’re making more money than Blake is so you’re going to have higher expectations on our shoulder. I am going to say anything less than 20-30 goals is going to be looked at as failure by the Toronto fans.

In retrospect; Kessel was almost Gaborik like, first there was the demands of a bunch of money and then not wanting to play for the old team anymore. After the Kessel trade to Toronto became official it seemed like the same things keep began surfacing all over again, doesn’t train very hard, he is quite… The kid is a great talent blessed with great offensive skills but I don’t think calling him a prima donna is out of line. So maybe Gare Joyce wasn’t that far off the mark during the 2006 entry draft combine? Maybe Jack Johnson aka “JMFJ” was right? Is Kessel a dirt bag or misunderstood.

I also said this in 2006; “I have nothing against Phil Kessel I think he has amazing talent and a huge upside if he grows up and realizes it’s not all about Phil Kessel, because in the NHL, team goals come first, because it’s about working as a team and worrying more about team goals you’re your personal stats.”

There are no give me's in life, but maybe Phil could learn from his buddy David Krecji who is more of a team player than you and will cash in on his next contract. Hockey is a team game and there is no "I" in team.

The Boston Bruins, it seems, were determined to give Phil Kessel a swift kick in the drawers on his way out of The Hub.

He didn't want to play in Boston. He demanded a trade. He didn't train hard enough. He wouldn't backcheck. He hadn't forgiven the team for benching him during the 2008 playoffs. Claude Julien was mean to him. He was greedy. He was untruthful in denying ever asking for an exit visa out of town.

These were some of the grenades launched at Kessel over the weekend from Boston management after the trade that sent him from the Bruins to the Maple Leafs for two first round picks and a second.

Clearly, this was a trade Boston GM Peter Chiarelli didn't want to make but was forced into making by circumstance and the unrelenting pressure of Leafs GM Brian Burke. Burke's public acknowledgment that he had an offer sheet waiting for Kessel put a chill on the Kessel market that Chiarelli couldn't thaw. Teams like Minnesota and Nashville had interest in the speedy winger but weren't about to give up prospects and picks and then not be guaranteed to get the player.

So, after the trade, Chiarelli had to present the Bruins case in as positive a light as possible after initially refusing to make any comment at all on the day of the deal. His No. 1 priority was to make a strong argument that this trade wasn't about the Bruins being cheap and not wanting to pay Kessel, an accusation that was lobbed at the team for years.

Kessel, says Chiarelli, demanded a trade and wouldn't negotiate a contract, so that was that. Indications are that was indeed the situation, and Kessel's statement that he "never once" demanded a trade was really just semantics. Whether his agent made the demand or whether his unwillingness to talk contract was a passive aggressive strategy, it really doesn't matter now.

Clearly, Julien's coaching style was part of the issue, and so the most fascinating part of Kessel's career as a Leaf when it begins in two months or so will be how he and Ron Wilson are able to forge a working relationship. Wilson's a demanding coach, and he can be caustic and pointed in his public and private remarks when he feels it is warranted. San Jose officials make no bones about the fact they believe Wilson's riding of Patrick Marleau retarded Marleau's development.
[the spin]

Processing the Kessel trade.

Bruins fans knew this day was coming, he didn't want to play for the spoked "B" anymore so we wish him well, personally I hope the Leafs suck this year again. I just can't believe that the Bruins Managment sent him to a league rival. I just hope this doesn't come back to haunt the Bruins management. Kessel was a Hab Killer and in the end he didn't want to play for Bruins coach Claude Julien. Incidently this is the same coach that was fired by New Jersey right before Stanley Cup playoffs in April of 2007 by general manager Lou Lamoriello.

General manager Peter Chiarelli, who estimated that the Phil Kessel trade was finalized at 9:15 p.m. last night, said there were two reasons the deal took place: the forward's desire to leave and Toronto's looming threat of an offer sheet.

"Let me be perfectly clear," Chiarelli said. "This trade is really about two things. One, it's about a player who did not want to play in Boston. Two, it's about the threat or the perceived threat of an offer sheet."

At the June draft in Montreal, the Bruins attempted to trade Kessel to Toronto in a package that would have returned Tomas Kaberle and the No. 7 pick. Chiarelli said the primary focus of the trade was the seventh pick. The deal fell apart because of miscommunication. Then in July, Kessel informed the Bruins that he wanted to be traded, and there was also chatter that an offer sheet might come down. Last night, said there were two reasons the deal took place: the forward's desire to leave and Toronto's looming threat of an offer sheet.

"Let me be perfectly clear," Chiarelli said. "This trade is really about two things. One, it's about a player who did not want to play in Boston. Two, it's about the threat or the perceived threat of an offer sheet."

At the June draft in Montreal, the Bruins attempted to trade Kessel to Toronto in a package that would have returned Tomas Kaberle and the No. 7 pick. Chiarelli said the primary focus of the trade was the seventh pick. The deal fell apart because of miscommunication. Then in July, Kessel informed the Bruins that he wanted to be traded, and there was also chatter that an offer sheet might come down. [Boston Globe]

On a side note. Phil Kessel is also telling the media that he didn't ask to be traded out of Boston.

Kessel said he never asked the Bruins to be moved out of Boston.

"I never one time asked to be traded," Kessel said. "I think it just became a mutual thing that it was best for both parties to move on. That's basically what happened with that." [Boston Globe]

Kessel is introduced in Toronto.

A few people have asked me how I feel about Kessel being traded to the Maple Leafts and all I can say is, "good luck." If you don't produce in Toronto the media and the fans are going to eat you alive. One team gets better and another team gets draft picks that may or may not help the Bruins.