Word is starting to come out from various sources that the Toronto Maple Leafs have had at least a conversation with Chris Chelios about Cheli wearing the blue and white for a season.

Before going any further, I offer full disclosure: I don't harbor the hatred for Chelios that everyone else does. I really don't think he walked into anyone's office and demanded he be a Red Wing. He was on a team going nowhere, and got picked up by a team tooling for a run at the Cup. Personally, I wish him well.

That being said, it's hard to figure out what the Leafs would want in Chelios. I'm sure the thought is that you bring in a guy like him, and he can mentor Luke Schenn for a season before sewing a "C" onto Schenn's sweater. It makes perfect sense, except for one thing...

He has absolutely no history of mentoring young players. It's not his thing. Sure, he'll give everything he has out on the ice, he'll play hard, maybe yell at guys in the locker room. But taking a young version of himself (such as Schenn) under his wing? It's never happened before, no reason to believe it would happen now.

It certainly didn't happen in the Hawks' dressing room. This is important to remember, since it's just a matter of time before The Great Roz write one of his "Bring Cheli Back" pieces of tripe. Chelios won't bring any leadership to the Hawks that they don't already have. Chelios might be one of the Great Captains In Hawks History (granted, we haven't exactly been awash in Bob Gaineys over the years, but still), but this is Jonathan Toews' team. There's no point in bringing in Chelios to skate 10 minutes a night and possibly divide the clubhouse - something Toews wouldn't stand for anyway.

So it wouldn't make any sense to add him to Toronto's 1000 other defensemen. But, since Brian Burke is a jagoff, I hope they sign him. I hope he takes minutes away from someone who could actually help the Leafs' rebirth.

Then, I hope Chelios gets time in with the Rangers and Bruins, so he covers the entire Original 6.