Brunnstrom Dealt to Toronto

			2011 Season				2011	Remaining
To Toronto	Position	Age	GP	G	A	P	Cap Hit	Years	Cap Hit
Fabian Brunnstrom	Forward	26	0	0	0	0	$675,000	0	RFA
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To Dallas	Position	Age	GP	G	A	P	Cap Hit	Years	Cap Hit
Mikhail Stefanovich	Forward	21	0	0	0	0	$775,000	1	$775,000

It's a minor-league trade of sorts, but it could sprout into a little bit more before the end of the regular season. The Maple Leafs made the move to acquire Fabian Brunnstrom from the Dallas Stars on Thursday afternoon, sending European prospect Mikhail Stefanovich the other way.

Brunnstrom, a major-league bust with the Stars since he signed his entry-level deal in 2008, has only spent time in the AHL in the 2011 season, not having earned the chance to shine again with the big club.  In the Toronto system, he may get a chance to work his way through the system a little bit more with room to grow into a spot on a Leafs team that is struggling with forward depth.

Going the other way is a 2008 4th round pick in Stefanovich, who is currently playing in the KHL, after not quite feeling comfortable with the Marlies in the AHL.

This deal is a bit of a wash cap-wise if neither player gets a game in the NHL this season.  Brunnstrom does have a one-way deal this season, but that just means he's getting paid his NHL salary in the AHL, but his salary does not count against the cap in the minors, so there is little to worry about there at the moment.

Frankly, the only reason why this deal gets any play on the blog is well... the Stars really didn't have a lot of visible depth up front on their roster at the beginning of the season and I thought it may be the season that Brunnstrom gets his act together and becomes a full-time NHLer. Well, the Box 8 forward did not do anything like that and now he's just a lump of ink on the sheet that we can't get rid of.  I'd be a little surprised if he made his mark in the NHL with the Leafs, but anything is possible these days, it seems.