I wanted to wait a few days before writing the post I never wanted to write at all. In the meanwhile, a week has passed, the Leafs remain on fire, and, let's be honest, there isn't much left to be written about Tomas Kaberle that you haven't already read. Hell, there wasn't even any time to reflect on, or to mourn, Kabba's departure. A few hours after the trade was announced, there was Tomas, in Ottawa, having ditched blue and white, the only colours he'd ever worn, for white, black and gold. Twenty-four hours later, the post-Kaberle era was underway in Toronto, with the Leafs and Ottawa Senators doing their best, through 65 agonizing minutes and a shootout, to slap hockey in its face.

"[Tomas Kaberle] did not want to leave. He asked for an extension several times."

- Brian Burke

While I remain -- first, foremost, and always -- a supporter of the logo on the front of Toronto's sweater, it's impossible, over the years, to not become attached to certain names and numbers on the back of the jersey. Kaberle and his 15 were one of those names and numbers.

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On October 13, 1998, Tomas Kaberle, then a boy, only 20 years young, registered the first point of his NHL career. It was an assist, of course, on a Garry Valk goal. And it came on the power play, of course. Little did we know at the time, but the assist would be the first of many.

On December 20, 2010, to little fanfare, Kaberle, now 32 years old, tallied assist number 419 of his career. It also came on the power play, this time on a John Mitchell goal. I know what you’re thinking: What in holy hell was John Mitchell doing on the power play? But that’s not the point. (The point being: Fire Wilson.) Along with his 81 career goals, Kaberle’s 419^th assist gave him 500 points.

Kaberle, an afterthought, drafted 204^th overall in 1996, whose rosy cheeks came out of nowhere in 1998 to make Pat Quinn’s new-look Toronto Maple Leafs, had done it: 500 points. In the long and storied history of the franchise, only 10 players, and only one other defenceman, the legendary Borje Salming, have put up more points. Think about that for a minute or two. Ponder it. Have a coffee, stare out your window, and contemplate the fact.

For comparison’s sake, 22 Montreal Canadiens have registered 500 or more points. Kaberle’s milestone is no small feat. From Garry Valk to Mats Sundin, Sergei Berezin to Steve Thomas, Jonas Hoglund to Derek King, Tie Domi to Darcy Tucker, Alex Mogilny to Gary Roberts, Eric Lindros to Jason Allison, Nik Antropov to Alex Ponikarovsky, Phil Kessel to Kris Versteeg, and finally Mikhail Grabovski to John freakin’ Mitchell, Kaberle, like you and I, has been there through it all; has assisted on goals by each of those guys. In the end, no matter what you think of him, give it up, and show Kaberle some love.

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Take me out to the ball game. Take me out with the crowd. Buy me some peanuts and cracker jack....

Toronto Blue Jays vs. Tampa Bay DEVIL Rays. Monday, August 24th. Roy Halladay. Me. At the BEAUTIFUL MOTHER FUCKING SKYDOME. 7:07 PM. Enough said.

Who's down? Holla at ya boy. Let's make this happen.

I'll be outside gate 6, in my Kaberle jersey, with a "I BELIEVE IN VERNON WELLS" sign.

There will be beer. And baseball. Everybody wins.

Anyone down for some good old gamble-age?

Carlo Colaiacovo is as healthy as he's ever been. Training camp gets underway today, which means it's only a matter of time before Carlo gets injured. Anyone down to drop $5 for the first annual Carlo Colaiacovo Injury Pool? Winner take all. First come first serve. Starting tomorrow, Sept. 20, when players hit the ice, we each get to pick the week in which he will be injured. An injury to Carlo will be defined as four games missed in a row, or a stint on the injured list (during training camp or the season). 

So, like I said, if you're interested, we all drop $5 into the pot. Money can be collected via paypal or e-mail transfer, and paid out to the person who correctly predicts Carlo's imminent demise. If Carlo gets injured past a date anyone has selected, the person closest to the date of his injury wins.

If, by the grace of God himself, Carlo manages to stay healthy all year, the money...oh who the fuck am I kidding, we all know he's getting injured.

Let me know what y'all think. This season looks like it's going to involve some heavy drinking, so I'm thinking we should find different ways to spice it up. 

You can select the following weeks:

Sept. 20 - 26

Sept. 27 - Oct. 3

Oct. 4 - 10

Oct. 11 - 17: LEAF FAN IN VAN

Oct. 18 - 24: DRAKENLOT

Oct. 25 - 31: LOSER DOMI

Nov. 1 - 7: EYEBLEAF'S BROTHER

Nov. 8 - 14: EYEBLEAF

Nov. 15 - 21: JOHNNY TORONTO

Nov. 22 - 28: BLURR 1974

Nov. 29 - Dec. 5: CHEMMY

Dec. 6 - 12: JARED FROM LONDON

Dec. 13 - 19: NJ BRANCH

Dec. 20 - 26: MARVELOUS WIN

Dec. 27 - Jan. 2, 2009

Jan. 10 - 16: GENERAL BORSCHEVSKY

Feb. 14 - 20: PPP

And so on...If you think Carlo can last into the new year, you're a person of much greater faith than I am.

To kick things off, I'm going to select the week of Nov. 8 - 14, and that's why you see my name there. 

Let me know your thoughts, and if you're down for the pool. If you are, make your selection in the comments section, and I'll be in touch about the $5. 

And, just putting this out there, but if there's a desire to make this even more interesting and up the ante to $10 a head, I'm totally down. You, the people, must decide. 

And, of course, a big thank you to Pension Plan Puppets, both PPP and Chemmy, for the platform to shit on Carlo Colaiacovo. In all honesty, I hope we all lose this pool and Carlo plays 82 games. 

Cheers,

eyebleaf

I threw up after last night's game. What a pathetic display of officiating. I hate Don Koharski and Mike Leggo. The Maple Leafs were robbed last night. And it hurts.

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