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TORONTO - It was a gamble and Maple Leafs general manager Dave Nonis knew it. Jakub Voracek Jersey . "If we werent able to get Bozak signed or if Clarkson didnt sign then I wouldve had a lot of cap space with no players," Nonis told the Leaf Report. "So it was definitely a gamble and we weighed that against keeping him and playing him." Ultimately, Nonis and his management team opted to exercise their second compliance buyout on Mikhail Grabovski this past summer, ridding themselves of the enigmatic centreman after five years in Toronto. After much debate, they determined that the cap space freed up by his dismissal was just too enticing to pass up; that the players fit on the roster just wasnt there. The 29-year-old, who returns to the Air Canada Centre as a member of the Washington Capitals on Saturday evening, still had four years remaining on a contract that ate up $5.5 million in cap space annually. "It wasnt a decision we made just overnight," Nonis said. "We thought long and hard about it and decided to roll the dice with the cap space and see if we could relocate it effectively." These were nervous times for Nonis. Though he had just acquired 27-year-old Dave Bolland from the Chicago Blackhawks, he had no guarantees that Tyler Bozak would re-sign in Toronto nor whether David Clarkson, their top free agent target, would take their bait and become a Leaf. "We didnt know when we did it that wed be successful in getting some players signed," Nonis said. Also due to be signed were restricted free agents Jonathan Bernier, Carl Gunnarsson, Nazem Kadri, Mark Fraser and Cody Franson. Cap space, predictably, (with the upper-limit dropping to $64.3 million) was going to be at a premium. "We looked at a number of scenarios, including keeping him," Nonis said of Grabovski, who signed for one year in Washington at $3 million. "I said at the time, I think Grabo, wherever he ends up, was going to have a positive impact. Hes a good player and I believe that. But for us we felt we needed to regain that cap space to make some other moves moving forward." A major part of the equation was also the players fit within the roster. Never coming to grips with the role he was required to play in Toronto last season, Grabovski endured the worst season of his career in 2013. He finished with nine goals and 16 points in 48 games, completely off-kilter in the defensive role head coach Randy Carlyle had pegged him to fill. Afforded similar minutes under Adam Oates in Washington, albeit with a more offensive lean, Grabovski has already produced seven goals and 19 points this season. "Again, the notion that there wasnt ice-time available for him or opportunity last year, thats just false," Nonis said of Grabovski, who averaged nearly 16 minutes last season, his lowest as a Leaf. "I think it was more a situation where the fit just wasnt right. And it wasnt his fault. I dont think he ever shortchanged us on effort or being prepared or professionalism or any of those things. There just didnt seem to be a fit. And so to have that much cap space tied up with a player that wasnt fitting with us - it doesnt mean hes not going to fit with other teams, obviously he is - but thats what led to the decision to buy him out." Grabovski made no secret of his disdain for Carlyle and the role he was dealt in his final season as a Leaf. He believed his value came from producing offence - he scored 20 goals three times - and could not comprehend why that opportunity wasnt being afforded him as it had been previously under Ron Wilson. "I think too much is made about the coach being the issue with Grabo," Nonis said. "Look at Grabos ice-time and look at his opportunity and look at his performance and I think Grabo would tell you that he didnt have a great year. Whether it was just because he didnt feel like he was being used correctly or what it might be, but I think its easy to point the finger at the coach and say well its his fault. I dont think thats fair. Theres a lot of things that went into his season last year and I think just saying it was all the coach is unfair." The teams dynamic at centre ice almost dictated the terms for Carlyle. With Kadri making the team out of training camp when the lockout wrapped last January and Bozak already lined up as the teams top centre - the better fit for Phil Kessel in the teams opinion - there was nowhere else to put Grabovski but in the checking role he was assigned. Add Bolland into the mix from Chicago this summer - an ideal candidate to fill the role Grabovski griped under - and the stage was set for change in early July. Nonis, admittedly, could have waited until the summer of 2014 to exercise the buyout - the final year to do so under terms of the new CBA - but risked another poor season in doing so. "From a managers point we looked at it and said Is this the best thing to do for us to rehabilitate him, so to speak, and get him back to playing where we needed him to play or to buy him out and create the cap space. "That was the decision." Cole Bardreau Jersey . According to the CFL Scouting Bureaus January rankings, four of the top five Canadian prospects line-up on the offensive side of the trenches, which is good news for Bombers general manager Kyle Walters. With only one selection in the first two rounds — Walters sent his second-round pick to Saskatchewan in the days ahead of the 2013 trade deadline — the No. Anthony Stolarz Jersey . CBS Sports Jon Heyman is reporting that Santana will sign a one-year deal, likely in the next two days with one of a trio of suitors, with the Toronto Blue Jays believed to be heavily involved. http://www.nhlflyersproauthentic.com/ . Markieff Morris and Marcus Morris, city natives, handled the catering for teammates that begged them for the tasty postgame feast.CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- Even with his best round of the year, Phil Mickelson knew it wouldnt be enough for him to stay in the lead Saturday at the Wells Fargo Championship. That was OK with Lefty. All he wanted was a chance at Quail Hollow, and Mickelson hasnt had a better chance to win all year. Mickelson roared into contention by playing a six-hole stretch in 7-under par on the front nine, and keeping bogeys off his card with a wedge that danced around the cup on the 18th for a 9-under 63. He was leading when he finished and wound up two shots behind J.B. Holmes, who overtook Martin Flores for the lead on the last hole. "I dont think Ill be leading at the end of the day because I think there are some birdies out there," Mickelson said. "But just to be in contention, and to have a chance at a golf course that Ive become so close to over the years, Im excited about tomorrows round." Holmes, pounding tee shots and gaining confidence along the way, had a 9-iron left on the 490-yard closing hole and made a 20-foot birdie putt from the fringe. That gave him a 6-under 66, and it made him the outright leader when Flores made his only big mistake of the round. Flores pulled his tee shot into the stream that winds along the left side of the 18th fairway. He at least gave himself a chance to save par, but missed a 20-foot putt and had to settle for a 69. Holmes goes into the final round with a shot at coming back from injuries, one of them far more noteworthy than the others. He had brain surgery in 2011 to remove a piece of his skull. Then, he broke his ankle in 2013, and time off allowed him to have surgery on his left elbow. And now he takes a one-shot lead into the final round at 13-under 203. "Ive worked really hard to get there and it would be a great accomplishment to come back and get a win in the bag," Holmes said. Flores feels the same way. His best finish in four seasons on the PGA Tour was a tie for fourth in the John Deere Classic last year, when he closed with a 63 and finished one shot out of a three-way playoff won by fellow Dallas resident Jordan Spieth. Flores describes himself as a flat-liner, and he played the part Saturday, the first time he ever played in the final group on the weekend. He never looked at a leaderboard because hhe figured it didnt matter on a Saturday. Kimmo Timonen Jersey. He didnt let adrenaline get the best of him when he rolled in a 40-foot birdie putt from just off the 12th green for his third straight birdie and a two-shot lead. He never came seriously close to a bogey until the 18th hole. And not even that bothered him. So when asked if he could be the winner Sunday, Flores shrugged and said, "Why not me?" "Ive been working really hard, feeling great about my game," he said. "Im going to go out there and attack. If I win, I win. If I dont, I dont. Im going to keep working until I do." Kevin Kisner had a 68 and was three shots behind. Justin Rose bogeyed his last hole for a 71 and was four shots back, along with Jason Bohn, who made three birdies over his last four holes for a 67. Former PGA champion Martin Kaymer bogeyed his last two holes for a 70 and was five behind. The last 54-hole leader to win at Quail Hollow was Anthony Kim in 2008. That could bode well for Mickelson, off to his worst start to a season in 11 years. Not since 2003 -- the last year he went winless on the PGA Tour -- has Mickelson gone this deep into a year without winning. Worse yet, he doesnt even have a top 10. He had to deal with a back injury in San Diego and an oblique muscle strain in Texas. He missed the cut at the Masters last month for the first time in 17 years. "I had a good round today, and it feels good because its been a rough year for me this year," Mickelson said. "I havent been healthy early on and I havent put it together. And to have a good round today, good round the first round, this is a good start." Mickelson said he didnt feel far off after his 75 on Friday, and he was right. He was helped by a couple of long birdie putts on the fourth and sixth holes, and by a 20-foot eagle putt on the par-5 seventh hole that revved up the crowd on a gorgeous day of sunshine. Rory McIlroy set the pace early for a day of low scoring with a 65 that brought back memories of 2010, when he made the cut on the number and went 66-62 to win for the first time on the PGA Tour. He was four shots behind that year going into Sunday. But with Holmes and Flores finishing strong, McIlroy goes into the last round seven shots behind. Cheap NFL Jerseys Wholesale Jerseys Wholesale NFL Jerseys Jerseys From China Wholesale NFL Jerseys Cheap NFL Jerseys Cheap Jerseys ' ' '