According to Andi Petrillo of Hockey Night in Canada, the Toronto Maple Leafs have made an offer for Kings goalie Jonathan Bernier.
Bernier, 23, has said he expects to be traded after Los Angeles locked up starter Jonathan Quick for 10 more years.
The Columbus Blue Jackets are also reportedly interested in the 11th overall pick from the 2006 draft.
If the Leafs have indeed made an offer, it would seem to fly in the face of Brian Burke’s comments earlier this month when the general manager said he wasn’t interested in an unproven goalie.
“We’re not looking at that avenue,” Burke said on Sportsnet 590 The Fan. “A couple goalies that moved are young unproven guys. That’s an avenue we’re not interested in. We’ve kicked the tires, looked at all the prices, but that’s not an avenue we’re looking at.”
For that reason, the Globe and Mail’s James Mirtle isn’t buying the report.
“Burke has always said, even during season, if he brought in goalie, it’d be a vet,” Mirtle tweeted Tuesday.