Roberto Luongo almost went to the Maple Leafs in a monster trade

The 2012-2013 season was cut short by the latest lockout, and two teams came close to rewriting history with a monstrous trade.

Going back to the 2012 playoffs, Cory Schneider took over the number-one goaltender spot with impressive stats.

Although the Canucks were eliminated in five short games against the eventual champions, the Los Angeles Kings, Cory Schneider delivered some fine performances.

In three games, the goaltender maintained a 1.31 goals-against average and a 0.960 save percentage.

Although this was only a small sample, it was enough for Canucks management to continue with the American and try to trade Roberto Luongo during the lockout.

I say try, because the Montrealer was finally traded in March 2014.

However, Brian Burke, who was general manager of the Toronto Maple Leafs during that period, confirmed via his Twitter account (X) that they were in the running for Lu.

Burke recently took the time to respond to several Internet users on the social platform.

He even made it clear that he had considered a trade that could have turned history on its head. Burke was finally fired on January 10, 2013, a few days before the NHL returned to action.

Already, with a base made up of Nazem Kadri, 7th overall pick in the 2009 auction, as well as Jake Gardiner and two first-round picks, it’s a big comeback.

What’s even more interesting is when you look at what the two picks would have become.

Based on the Big Head Hockey page, the picks involved would have tipped the scales completely. In fact, especially one of those two.

Indeed, those picks became Frédérik Gauthier and one of the Leafs’ current stars, William Nylander.

With this trade, Toronto would finally have found its number-one goalie at the time.

But in the process, the Leafs would never have gotten Nazem Kadri, whom they eventually traded for Tyson Barrie and Alex Kerfoot, nor William Nylander, who has just racked up 40 goals and 87 points.

Not to mention Jake Gardiner’s service to Toronto, including one 52-point season and five 30+ point seasons.

In short, the Maple Leafs wouldn’t look the same at all, and I don’t think it would have helped their playoff curse.

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