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MONTREAL -- Could Ryane Clowe and Brayden Schenn be Maple Leafs by the end of the weekend?
The Leafs and San Jose Sharks have held discussions concerning the 26-year-old Clowe, the hard-charging power forward who had 22 goals and 30 assists for the Sharks last season. To date, however, the Leafs have rejected the Sharks' offer to take Clowe straight up for the Toronto's first-round pick -- No. 7 overall -- in tonight's NHL entry draft.
As for Schenn, Burke continues to attempt to move up to land either the No. 4 pick from Atlanta or the No. 5 slot from Los Angeles in order to snap up the younger brother of Leafs defenceman Luke Schenn.
Burke and Kings general Dean Lombardi were scheduled to hold discussions Wednesday night.
With talks at obtaining one of the top two picks in order to select John Tavares bogged down, Schenn might be a more viable option.
Asked yesterday why he was more optimistic of landing the fourth or fifth selection as the draft moved closer, Burke replied "blind hope."
If Burke fails to move up, one player to keep an eye on is Peterborough power forward Zack Kassian, who is ranked 19th by the International Scouting Service. The Leafs could trade down and still grab the 6-foot-5 Kassian, who has been compared to Boston's Milan Lucic.
