Even those who are playing Super Bowl odds had to lift up their hands and pay attention when the latest NHL trade rumor came down the pipeline: Ilya Kovalchuk to Toronto?

The hockey-crazed market in Toronto is starving for a star, and the free-scoring Kovalchuk would definitely look good in the blue and white, especially with Phil Kessel on the other wing. Kessel has been struggling badly lately, but he showed glimpses of what he could do when he returned from the injury list. The Maple Leafs will have a lot of cap space at the end of the year as Vesa Toskala, Mike Van Ryn, Matt Stajan, Alex Ponikarovski and Lee Stempniak should all be done with the Leafs after this year. The problem is draft picks, since Toronto gave up their next two first-round picks, along with next year`s second-rounder, for Kessel. They`ll have to offer up a lot of players on their roster (wait for the annual Tomas Kaberle trade-clause debate); the only untouchables are probably Kessel and goalie Jonas Gustavsson. It all depends on Kovalchuk, and how badly he wants to win, and how soon.

It`s probably not going to happen, but it`s just one of many rumors involving Kovalchuk as we head towards the trade deadline. I wouldn`t take the US sportsbook odds (US sportbook reviews) on it, but it`s fun to dream.