Burke Set To Join The Center Of The Universe

Former Vancouver Canuck General Manager Brian Burke and the Toronto Maple Leafs have agreed to terms on a six year deal that will see Burke take over as team President and General Manager.

The deal is reported to be worth around $18 million dollars and includes the rest of this season and the next five. The deal has not yet been made official, but it is expected to be announced Saturday.

Brian Burke

Current GM Cliff Fletcher, who has done a pretty decent job trimming down the team for a rebuild (and at the same time icing a team that has remained competitive and entertaining for the fans), is expected to stay on with the team as a consultant.

Burke favourite, and his successor in Vancouver (the man that was responsible for bringing us Roberto Luongo) Dave Nonis, is also expected to join the Leaf staff.

Burke’s arrival in Toronto has been rumoured for almost a year. He has been deemed the savior of the franchise. He was given a lot of credit for taking the Anaheim Ducks to the 2007 championship, far too much credit if you ask me.

He did do a pretty good job cutting some salaries and bringing in some key players for the cup run, but the road was already paved by former GM Bryan Murray, who did a marvelous job drafting young talents like Ryan Getzlaf and Corey Perry. The Leafs do not have the luxury of such high end young skill and he will have his work cut out for him. He may find further challenges working in a market like Toronto where he will be under a microscope that probably didn’t exist in Anaheim.