Trade: Maple Leafs Send Clarkson to Blue Jackets for Horton
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The Toronto Maple Leafs have traded David Clarkson to the Columbus Blue Jackets for Nathan Horton.

The 30-year old Clarkson went undrafted. Clarkson has five years left on his deal with a $5.25 million cap hit. His buyout proof contract.

The 29-year old Horton was drafted 3rd overall in the 2003 draft by the Panthers. Horton’s career could be over due to a back injury. He’s on the LTIR. He has five year left at a $5.3 million cap hit.

Clarkson is owed salaries of $5.5 million, $7 million, $7 million, $4.75 million and $3.25 million.

Horton is owed salaries of $6 million, $6 million, $6 million, $4.5 million and $3.6 million.

  • Chris Johnston: “There was NO salary retained in the #CBJ-#leafs trade.”
  • Bob McKenzie: “Here’s bottom line on Clarkson-Horton trade: Horton’s contract wasn’t insured. CBJ paying him to sit in stands and he’s longshot to play.”
  • Shawn Mitchell: “#CBJ GM Jarmo Kekalainen, via release: “Clarkson has been a 30-goal scorer…who will bring added character and leadership to our group…” “He plays our way. Gritty, hard. He’s a heart-and-soul player, a net-front guy.”

Thoughts from the media:

7:40 PM

  • Mark Masters: “Clarkson’s agent told Nonis that David would prefer to get to new team ASAP so he could “get some games under his belt” before summer”
  • Mark Masters: “Nonis hasn’t spoken to Horton yet; Leafs will evaluate his medical situation over next 7 to 10 days”
  • Mark Masters: “Nonis on Clarkson: “I know he did whatever he could to be a successful Maple Leaf & I don’t blame him for anything that happened””
  • Terry Koshan: “Lots of #Leafs trades, but main core hasn’t yet been touched. Still plenty to be done for this team to get going in right direction.”
  • Rob Longley: Nonis on Clarkson: “Sometimes players for whatever reason don’t fit in a certain city or with a certain organization.”

7:25 PM

  • Darren Dreger: “Surprisingly, sounds like Clarkson deal only took days to put together. Shocking. Leafs and CBJ revisited this Clarkson trade possibility a cpl of days ago. Spoke again last night and this morning and close this aft. There was also discussion on a bigger deal with CBJ who wanted a d prospect. Didn’t come together.”
  • Bob McKenzie: “Horton’s back condition remains unchanged, which is to say he likely requires surgery and it’s extremely doubtful he’ll ever play again.”
  • Damien Cox: “That’s a big commitment by MLSE to agree to eat all that money for a guy who can’t play just to create cap room.”
  • Chris Johnston: “David Clarkson is owed $27.5M in real dollars over the next five years. Nathan Horton is owed $26.1M.”
  • Jim Matheson: “Clarkson whipping boy in T.0. He had 10 goals in 58 gms, only 5 fewer than Kadri in same 58 gms. Also, Clarkson -11 Bozak -18. Just sayin'”
  • Craig Custance: “It was Columbus that approached the Maple Leafs about the Clarkson/Horton swap. Creative proposition to get someone on the ice contributing.”
  • David Pagnotta: “Nonis hasn’t spoken to Horton yet, plans on speaking soon and figuring out where he’s at in the next week or so.”
  • Pierre LeBrun: “One thing to remember though: there’s a difference between cap space and LTI space: LTI space doesn’t pro-rate. $1 in October is $1 in April”
  • David Pagnotta: “Nonis said if Horton comes back from injury, great. If not, “we create some cap space.””
  • Daren Milard: “The Clarkson/Horton trade is one of the best salary cap escapes in @nhl history. Aided by über rich mlse. Cap space worth more than real $”

7:00 PM

  • Aaron Portzline: GM Jarmo Kekalainen on Horton: “We would have been paying him $26 million the next five years to sit in the stands.”
  • Aaron Portzline: “#CBJ did not have insurance on Nathan Horton, so they would have had to pay the full amount of his contract for the rest of his term. #CBJ opted not to buy insurance with 30-game deductable in first season because, with shoulder injury, they expected him to miss 30-plus. Then, this season, #CBJ could not get insurance on Horton because of his back injury. Horton’s contract was NOT insured.
  • Bob McKenzie: “.TOR gets to put Horton on LTIR and use his cap hit $ elsewhere. so the net result is TOR loses David Clarkson’s cap hit for the duration.”
  • Bob McKenzie: “Huge cap maneuver for TOR. They lose Clarkson’s contract entirely, must pay Horton to not play but get to use Horton’s cap dollars elsewhere”
  • Bob McKenzie: “CBJ would rather pay Clarkson and have the player in the lineup. TOR must pay Horton’s salary so there’s no actual $ saving, BUT…”
  • Renaud Lavoie: “David Clarkson has a list of 14 teams where he can be traded. Nathan Horton has a no-move clause. So they had to be consulted. “
  • James Mirtle: “The difference between Toronto and Columbus is one is willing to spend well over the cap on LTIR and one isn’t. Leafs flex financial muscle.”
  • Bruce McCurdy: “Creative deal between a cap based team & a real dollar budget based one”
  • Daren Millard: “Ok 1st Wayne Gretzky is traded and now David Clarkson and his in moveable contract are traded to @BlueJacketsNHL for Nathan Horton”
  • Andrew Gross: “Clarkston-Horton: Understand obviously trade from Leafs point of view, with cap relief. From Jackets side, don’t get it, just don’t get it.”
  • Nicholas Goss: “Dave Nonis dumps Clarkson’s contract. GM of the Year-worthy stuff.”
  • Gus Katsaros: “Thats some Gandalph level wizardry there.”

6:40

  • Chris Johnston: “The #leafs just rid themselves of Clarkson’s contract. Never thought that would be possible.”
  • Glenn Schiiler: “Proving once again… No matter HOW bad the contract is, some GM out there will inherit it. #Clarkson #DionNext?”
  • Anthony Petrielli: “Nathan Horton on permanent LTIR is the ultimate get out of jail free card for David Clarkson.”
  • Jim Matheson: “Now this is not only out of the blue, it’s from another planet: Clarkson’s bad contract for Horton’s possible career-ending bad back.”

 

What are your thoughts on the trade?

 

David Clarkson

Nathan Horton