Newest Leaf's hockey-mad home

MONTREAL - Nazem Kadri - the Maple Leafs' newest reason for hope - is all about family. And the Kadri family is all about sports.

But yesterday they were all about each other. Kadri's 9-year-old sister, Rema, was in hospital after an asthma attack.

She's okay, and the family breathed a sigh of relief as it began to absorb the life-altering changes Kadri will undergo after the Leafs made their historic selection in Friday's NHL entry draft. Kadri will be the first Muslim to play for the Leafs; at seventh overall, it represents the highest a Muslim has ever been drafted.

"It's surreal," said Kadri, a feisty 5-foot-11 centre who plays bigger with good speed and hands. "I've been waiting for this day a long time ... it's definitely special.

"It's going to be a big summer ahead of me, and hopefully I can crack that roster next year. My goal is to be on the Toronto Maple Leafs next season."

Much will be made of Kadri's background - there just aren't that many elite-level Muslim hockey players. Montreal-born Ramzi Abid played parts of four seasons in the NHL before moving on to Europe a couple of years ago, and Justin Abdelkader of the Detroit Red Wings is of Jordanian descent.

Kadri, who's of Lebanese heritage, may inspire youths from other immigrant families from the Middle East to take up the sport, a role he's very comfortable with.

"It's nice to be a role model, and hopefully I can open up some eyes," said Kadri.

The Kadri story reads like a slice of Canadiana. His father, Sam, came to the country in 1968 when he was 3 years old. One of seven children, Sam desperately wanted to play hockey like all the other kids, but his father couldn't afford it.

"I wish I played hockey, but hockey's an expensive sport, and very time-consuming," said Sam.

When he had a family of his own and a successful garage and car dealership in London, Ont., he made sure his son and four daughters could play the sports they wanted. For Nazem, it was hockey.

"He just loved the game so much," said Sam. "He was playing winter hockey, spring hockey, summer hockey, 24-7."

When Kadri was only 2, his father bought him rollerblades. "He tore up my hardwood floors learning," Sam says. "He was unbelievable, for that age. ... My hardwood floors were gone, but I didn't care."

When Kadri got out on the ice at age 4, "he was just skating around kids, so they ended up moving him up two age groups," Sam said.

In high school, Kadri was "Naz" to his classmates and teachers, but he was such a phenomenon on ice that he got the nickname "Phenaz" amongst his hockey friends.

About 100 family and friends were in Montreal two days ago for the NHL draft, cheering him on even as the Montreal crowd booed a Leaf selection. His cousins almost immediately started walking around with Leaf hats autographed by him.

Kadri calls himself a practising Muslim and tries to pray regularly and eat halal, but admits his busy schedule can make that difficult.

"I try my best," he says.

Defenceman Luke Schenn - the Leafs' first-round pick last year - wanted to know all about him. Schenn came away impressed with Kadri's hockey resum?, feeling GM Brian Burke has added the kind of truculent, pugnacious player he believes the Leafs have been lacking.

In 2008, at the Ivan Hlinka under-18 tournament in Slovakia, Kadri was one of the best players on a Canadian squad that featured Steven Stamkos - the No. 1 pick in 2008 - and Cody Hodgson - another 2008 first-rounder. Kadri had four points in four games.

Last summer, Kadri proved to be among the best in the world at the national junior team training camp. A jaw injury 20 games into the OHL season was why he didn't make the team. He got his jaw unwired early so he could go to the December camp, but not having played for a couple of weeks put him behind the other players and he was cut.

"It was an awful feeling," he said. "I set my goal to make that team."

Al Murray, Team Canada's head scout, said Kadri is a better skater than John Tavares, the No. 1 pick in this year's draft.

"He can play all three forward positions, and all roles, from first line to fourth line," said Murray. "He's real versatile."

Kadri was the best player on the London Knights last season, until an OHL trade deadline deal saw Tavares hop over from Oshawa. Kadri gave up his No.1 centre job, and moved to Tavares's wing. He finished with 25 goals and 53 assists in 56 games.

"He's got great skill and he plays with (heart)," said Knights coach Dale Hunter. "He hits hard. And he's a playmaker. He puts up points, and he's a winner.

"I know Burke wants the Leafs to be more aggressive. He picked the right guy. ... He's the type of kid who will run over the best player on the other team hard and score goals and get points. He's unique that way."

Note Hunter's use of "unique." It came up in a conversation with John Caldarozzi, Kadri's coach in bantam and minor midget with the London Jr. Knights.

"He's a unique kid. He's a throwback. He's not caught up in the silliness or ego. He loves hockey," said Caldarozzi.

In Arabic, Nazem means "leader." His father sees him that way.

"He was captain in a lot of his minor hockey teams," said Sam Kadri. "I can see him as captain in the NHL. He's that kind of player."

Leafs settle for 7th

It had started out as a day full of optimism and intrigue. But as the hours wore on, it quickly transformed into disappointment.

The Toronto Maple Leafs did not land John Tavares. They did not trade up for the second straight year to allow top prospect Brayden Schenn to join his brother in the Leafs lineup. And they failed to acquire an extra first-round draft choice or potential 40-goal scorer by moving Tomas Kaberle out of the city.

But general manager Brian Burke, who selected forward Nazem Kadri of London, Ont., with the seventh-overall selection at last night's NHL Draft, does not believe he failed -- even if the sold-out Bell Centre serenaded him with a chorus of boos.

"Could we have moved up? Easily," Burke said. "We could have done it on the floor and we could have done it two weeks ago if we put Luke Schenn in the deal. And, to me, that's a step backwards for our franchise. My ego is not that big where I have to get up there with the first two picks."

Burke said the New York Islanders, who drafted Tavares with the first overall selection, did not entertain any offers for their No. 1 pick. He added that any talks to acquire Tampa Bay's No. 2 pick involved giving up Schenn, who was named to the NHL's All-Rookie Team last season.

"I think for the Toronto Maple Leafs we made a prudent decision to keep a kid who I think we'll be our captain in a couple of years," Burke said of Schenn, "and added another kid [Kadri] who is going to be an important part to our team down the road."

Though a deal fell through to trade Kaberle, the puck-moving defenceman will likely not be in Toronto by the end of the summer.

The exact details of the transaction were unclear. But the Boston Bruins had reportedly offered forward Phil Kessel as part of a package for Kaberle, which involved also involved draft picks.

While Burke refused to divulge what prevented the trade from happening, he repeated that he is in no rush to part ways with Kaberle, whose trade value should escalate after the July 1 free-agency period begins.

"I will only trade Tomas Kaberle reluctantly," he said. "I think he is a good player and a good person and he's at a good cap number. That being said, my job is to improve our team by turning over every stone.

"The sequence, in my opinion, is that now that [Chris] Pronger has moved, the next move will be [Jay] Bouwmeester and then my phone will ring off the hook."

For now, Burke is focused on the player he selected last night and the rest of today's draft. Barring any trades, the Leafs will have two picks in the second round (50th and 58th) and one each in the third, fifth, sixth and seventh rounds.

In Kadri, Toronto adds a 5-foot-11, 175-pound playmaking forward with speed to burn and a nose for the net.

The 18-year-old was believed to be ranked among the top three a year ago when he scored 25 goals and 65 points and helped the Kitchener Rangers reach the Memorial Cup final. But after breaking his jaw with the London Knights earlier this season, he was criticized for his lack of consistency.

Maple Leafs get role model

MONTREAL-The Toronto Maple Leafs drafted more than just a hockey player in Nazem Kadri with the seventh overall pick last night.

They drafted a symbol of change.

Kadri, a solid two-way centre with the London Knights, is of Lebanese heritage, and the first Muslim drafted by the Maple Leafs. That he grew up a Montreal Canadiens fan only adds to the mix for multi-cultural Toronto.

"Being a role model is an important thing for me," said Kadri, who hopes Muslim kids are inspired to take up hockey because of him. "Hopefully these kids can look at me and use me as a role model."

Kadri is likely to remain with the London Knights for another season. His arrival in Toronto coincides with a time when some teams in the GTHL are struggling with enrolment. In Scarborough, the youth from a heavy immigrant population aspire to play cricket and soccer, leaving youth hockey rosters barren and teams forced to fold or merge.

"A lot of Muslim kids are going to start playing hockey because they see someone like them be successful in that area," said Kadri.

There are about 250,000 Muslims living in Toronto, and the drafting of Kadri was welcomed.

"That's good news," Wahida Valiante, chair and national president of the Canadian Islamic Congress told the Star's Kenneth Kidd. "I hope he plays well, because we'll be cheering."

But while Kadri's faith is important, he's also "just Canadian," she said. "It speaks very loudly that we live in a healthy society."

Maple Leaf Sports and Entertainment worried in 2008 that hockey might lose its grip as the top sport in the city with the changing demographic.

GM Brian Burke acknowledged Kadri has leadership skills - he was the president of the Muslim Student Association in his high school - and the teenager's maturity showed in pre-draft meetings. Burke said he'd be happy if Kadri's career as a Maple Leaf inspired others to take up the sport.

"If this has a ripple effect on the young players in the Muslim community to take up hockey, then that's a wonderful side effect. If that increases our player pool in a part of society we're not touching right now, that's great."

Until now, Ramzi Abid has been known as the greatest Muslim hockey player. The Montreal-born left winger played 68 games in the NHL over four seasons with four teams.

"It's nice for my community to be recognized as a pro hockey player," said Kadri. "There's a lot of stereotypes about Lebanese, like they don't set foot on ice, but here I am."

Burke insists he drafted Kadri for hockey reasons and turned down trade offers for the seventh pick in order to get him.

"Our scouts think he's creative and explosive," said Burke. "He's intense. They like his physical play even though he's not a big guy."

Kadir said his father, Sam, put him on skates when he was 2 in his home town of London, Ont. He played on a team at 4 and was in the elite level by 6. Kadri's father, mother Sue, four sisters and about 40 other relatives were in the Bell Centre to hear his name called.

It was his father, who owns an auto dealership in London, who was the big Habs fan. Kadri said his dad would probably buy Leaf season tickets now and expected his family at just about every game.

Peter DeBoer, now coach of the Florida Panthers, coached Kadri with the Kitchener Rangers two seasons ago, Kadri's first in the OHL.

"I love him," said DeBoer. "He's a fierce competitor. He's got fantastic skill.

"He's got passion for the game."

Leafs add speedy Kadri with seventh-overall pick

Brian Burke got his man. Thing is, that man was not Brayden Schenn or John Tavares.

For weeks, reports had the Toronto Maple Leafs general manager trying to move up from the No. 7 slot in Friday's NHL entry draft in Montreal to grab Tavares, the OHL scoring sensation who went first overall to the New York Islanders, or Schenn, a rugged forward with the WHL's Brandon Wheat Kings and brother of Leafs defenceman Luke Schenn who went fifth overall to the Los Angeles Kings.

Instead, Burke landed Nazim Kadri, a speedy sniper from the OHL's London Knights.

"We could have had (Tavares)," Burke told TSN. "But we didn't want to deal Luke Schenn (to move up in the draft to select him). We're not frustrated at all. We think we got an excellent young player.

"We're very excited about this young man. It's a great day for Toronto."

Kadri, who grew up a diehard Montreal Canadiens fan, will have no problem suiting up for the Habs' historic rivals.

"I feel great," Kadri said. "It's a great feeling to be part of the Toronto Maple Leafs."

And by taking Kadri, Burke stuck it to the rival Ottawa Senators, who had designs on taking Kadri with the ninth-overall pick. Moments before the selection, TSN captured Burke and Senators GM Bryan Murray in a brief discussion about a possible trade involving the pick.

"Kadri is the kid we're going to take," told Murray. "Is that the kid you want?" Burke asks Murray.

"Yes," Murray responded.

"Well, we're going to take him," Burke replied.

"OK," Murray said.

End of conversation.

It wan't all bad news for Murray. With the ninth pick, he selected Jared Cowen, a six-foot-five shutdown defenceman from the WHL's Spokane Chiefs. Cowen could join Eric Karlsson, a puck-moving Swedish defenceman Ottawa selected in the first round of last year's draft, to one day bolster the Senators' blue-line.

The Edmonton Oilers followed Ottawa by selecting speedy Swedish forward Magnus Paajarvi-Svensson.

"We think he plays Oilers hockey," Edmonton GM Steve Tambellini told TSN. "He drives to the net. He's an emotional player and we're so excited to have him.

"To come to the Edmonton Oilers. That's a classic club. There's great hockey history there, with Mark Messier, Wayne Gretzky, Kent Nilsson. I feel great to be here."

The Canadiens, slammed in recent years for snubbing Quebec players in favour of U.S. high school prospects, thrilled their fans with the 18th pick, selecting centre Louis Leblanc of Kirkland, Que., a Montreal suburb. Leblanc, who played last season with Omaha of the USHL, will play next season at Harvard University.

"It's important to have that element or have that flavour on our team," Canadiens GM Bob Gainey told TSN for drafting a Quebec-born player. "The Canadiens are really a part of the city, the province, the francophone culture. I really think Louis fit into our wheelhouse. We're all really happy with him as a player. We got a good, competitive player."

Leblanc told TSN he had hoped the Canadiens would call his name.

"You never know what team's going to pick you, but I was hoping it was the Canadiens," said Leblanc, who hopes to play two seasons at the Ivy League school before making the jump to the NHL. "It happened tonight, and there aren't really words to describe it."

The Calgary Flames traded their 20th-overall pick to the New Jersey Devils and ended up with pick No. 23. They selected Swedish defenceman Tim Erixon, son of former NHLer Jan Erixon.

The Vancouver Canucks - with star goalie Roberto Luongo, a Montreal native, announcing the pick - selected University of Minnesota defenceman Jordan Schroeder with the 22nd pick.

Leafs prepared to trade up for Tavares

TORONTO - For the second straight year, the Toronto Maple Leafs are slated to select seventh overall at the NHL entry draft. But when Brian Burke was asked whom he intends to choose, the general manager said John Tavares.

t sounded more like a warning than wishful thinking.

Though Tavares is expected to be chosen no later than second overall, Burke believes he has the resources - and reputation - to pull off a major coup and land the potential franchise forward.

"We're going to talk to everyone between us and the first pick and see what the landscape is," he said in a season-ending news conference at the Air Canada Centre on Tuesday. "We're going to see what it costs, and we're going to try to move up."

The New York Islanders, who finished with the worst record in the regular season, won Tuesday night's draft lottery. They will pick first at the June 26 draft in Montreal, followed by Tampa Bay, Colorado, Atlanta, Los Angeles and Phoenix

The Leafs had the seventh overall pick last year, but were able to trade up and draft defenceman Luke Schenn at No. 5. Of course, improving by two positions is easier than six.

Burke's history of swinging successful draft-day deals - while GM of the Hartford Whalers in 1993, he moved up from sixth to second overall to select Chris Pronger - is the reason why he is being so candid about his intentions this summer.

"We're not going to ambush anyone," he said. "I've done this a couple of times. I'm not going to be able to sneak up on anyone, so we're just going to announce it today. If I thought there was a tactical advantage to doing this quietly, I wouldn't be telling you guys what the strategy is."

Burke's strategy is pretty straightforward.

Anyone not named Schenn is likely up for grabs. So, too, are the two second-round draft picks he acquired at the trade deadline. And, with Toronto operating well below the salary cap, the Leafs might also be willing to take back costly contracts.

"It's like farming," Burke said. "A lot of work goes into farming and the harvest only takes a couple of days. Well, it's like that with the draft."

Before Burke starts planting seeds, he first needs to find out whether teams prefer Tavares or six-foot-six Swedish defenceman Victor Hedman.

"I'm not confident that everyone has John Tavares at No. 1," he said. "If they're going to take a different guy, then you don't have to get the first pick. You have to talk to the people involved and see how candid they will be."

"We'll see what we can do."

Leafs in transition: So, now what?

The Maple Leafs are going to empty their lockers today, having missed the playoffs for the fourth season in a row. Coach Ron Wilson believes some of the building blocks of a winner have been put in place. Changes are sure to come. GM Brian Burke has said he wants the 2009-10 Leafs to challenge for a playoff spot. Wilson has warned there could be stretches next season that could be worse than this one, with the team expected to add anywhere up to six rookies.

The focus is making everybody better," said Wilson. "We want to be better than we were this year." Here's a thumbnail look, on a player-by-player basis, at how the team did this season; and its prognosis for next season. All contract figures are in U.S. dollars and expire after 2009-10 unless otherwise noted

GOALTENDERS

VESA TOSKALA

Contract: $4 million

Status: Gets a mulligan for playing the year hurt, but needs a strong start next season to keep his job.

MARTIN GERBER

Contract: Unrestricted free agent

Status: Played well enough down the stretch to land an NHL contract, but did himself no favours by getting suspended. Not likely to be back.

CURTIS JOSEPH

Contract: Unrestricted free agent

Status: Ever popular, but Leafs will look for a backup to push Toskala for the No.1 job.

JUSTIN POGGE

Contract: Restricted free agent

Status: Needs a strong playoff run with the Marlies to regain confidence of management.

DEFENCEMEN

PAVEL KUBINA

Contract: $5 million

Status: Puzzling penchant for forechecking explains his minus-15, worst among Leaf defencemen. Good offence, but if Tomas Kaberle's not moved it will be Kubina who's sent packing.

TOMAS KABERLE

Contract: $4.25 million per year until 2011

Status: Still the one Leaf who'd garner the biggest return on the trade market despite uneven season. ... Averaged 23:27 of ice time to lead the team.

JEFF FINGER

Contract: $3.5 million per season until 2012

Status: Erratic at times, but solid enough in own end. ... Led team with 158 blocked shots.

MIKE VAN RYN

Contract: $2.9 million

Status: The Leafs were 12-9-6 when he was in lineup and Wilson doesn't think that's a coincidence. Van Ryn is brittle, having last played a full season in 2006-07.

LUKE SCHENN

Contract: $2.975 million per year until 2011

Status: Here's hoping solid rookie avoids sophomore jinx. ... Led team in hits (206), giveaways (74).

JONAS FROGREN

Contract: $1.065 million

Status: Learned great deal in first year. ... Needs to stay healthy.

IAN WHITE

Contract: $850,000

Status: Won over the coach with solid play. Could replace Kaberle on power play. ... His plus-6 was tied for best on team; was only defenceman on plus side.

FORWARDS

JASON BLAKE

Contract: Three years remaining at $4.5 million, $3 million, $3 million.

Status: Rebounded from cancer, rediscovered his gritty side, learned to score again. ... Unmovable contract, will return. Wilson has to get him to be less selfish (302 shots again led team by wide margin.)

NIKLAS HAGMAN

Contract: $3 million per year until 2012

Status: Decent scorer, solid work ethic, good character. ... Can fill a gap on offence and, when someone better comes along, can be solid third-liner.

LEE STEMPNIAK

Contract: $2.5 million

Status: Figured out by Game 79 he has to work harder. Will be on a short leash next season.

ALEXEI PONIKAROVSKY

Contract: $2.105 million

Status: Thrived once Nik Antropov was traded and had career-high in points (61). ... Good one to keep around to help Grabovski and Kulemin.

MATT STAJAN

Contract: $1.75 million

Status: Stature rose in Wilson's eye, but best suited for third-line duty.

NIKOLAI KULEMIN

Contract: $1,487,500

Status: Loves to play in front of the net.

If he keeps doing that, he'll easily build on

his 15-goal rookie campaign.

JAMAL MAYERS

Contract: $1,333,333

Status: Wasn't quite the presence expected.

... Led team in faceoff circle, winning 57.3

per cent of his 429 draws.

CHRISTIAN HANSON

Contract: $875,000

Status: A year with the Marlies would help

him adjust to life in the pros.

JOHN MITCHELL

Contract: $487,500

Status: Had trouble keeping his game at a high tempo, but team brass see top-6 forward potential. ... His minus-16 would make him the clubhouse leader in golf but leaves something to be improved upon.

MIKHAIL GRABOVSKI

Contract: Restricted free agent.

Status: Has heart to go along with that talent. ... Tries to do too much by himself. ... Won only 44.5 per cent of faceoffs. ... Could use Kontinental Hockey League as bargaining chip.

BOYD DEVEREAUX

Contract: Unrestricted free agent

Status: Hard-working role player with speed should land a job somewhere.

BRAD MAY

Contract: Unrestricted free agent

Status: Popular in dressing room and Burke loves him, so don't be surprised if 37-year-old is back.

SUBS AND GRUBS

Jeff Hamilton, Tim Stapleton, Anton Stralman, Jamie Sifers,

Phil Oreskovic, Erik Reitz

Leafs sign top college prospect

The Toronto Maple Leafs haven't won much this season, but they have landed the services of Tyler Bozak.

Bozak, considered one of the top free agents to come out of university hockey, signed with the Leafs on Friday, ending several days of speculation where the talented centreman would end up.

The 23-year-old native of Regina had eight goals and 15 assists in 19 games this season with the University of Denver Pioneers, his second season with the NCAA school. He missed more than half the year with a knee injury.

More than 20 National Hockey League teams were reportedly interested in signing Bozak, who went undrafted. Reports Thursday suggested he'd narrowed his choice to Toronto, Ottawa, Montreal, Colorado and Anaheim.

Toronto GM Brian Burke said he was happy with the acquisition.

"We are absolutely thrilled that Tyler has chosen to sign with the Maple Leafs today," said Burke. "He is a young man that was coveted by a large number of teams in our league and it's our goal to help him reach his potential with our organization. He's a responsible player at both ends of the ice and he has shown the ability to put points on the board with his quickness at the collegiate level."

Bozak, who spent three seasons with Victoria of the British Columbia Junior Hockey League prior to joining the Pioneers in 2007-08, had 18 goals and 16 assists in his rookie college season.

Considered a strong two-way centre, Bozak is considered to have the potential to step into the NHL next season.