setUoYouRPROFILE's blog: "tufui"

Somewhere at Leafs camp Friday, out of sight of the media,sacs louis vuitton Luke Schenn probably allowed himself to crack a little smile. At 21 and after three seasons with the Leafs, the big D-man signed his first big-time NHL contract, a five-year deal worth $18.5 million U.S. By all accounts, the term and dollars are well deserved. The contract takes Schenn, who recorded a career-high 22 points last season, into the prime of his career. At that point, Schenn could cash in even more. “What you see if a classic, hard-nosed shutdown Canadian defenceman,” Leafs GM Brian Burke said in announcing the deal. “(NHL GMs) all dream about taking players like that.” Burke said negotiations got serious the last two or three weeks, and that two-, three- and five-year deals were considered — four would have taken him to his arbitration year. Several young players — Winnipeg’s Zach Bogosian, Boston’s Brad Marchand and John Tavares of the New York Islanders — signed rich new deals just prior to camp, while Josh Bailey re-signed Friday with the Islanders, hours before a team-imposed deadline. There was uncertainty on those teams with camps approaching. In Schenn’s case, there was little doubt a solution would be found. Both sides emerged with smiles on Friday. “The first three years on an entry-level contract, you get more comfortable as you go and handle situations, so I think I’ll continue to learn,” Schenn said. “I’m still young . . . and for me to get the opportunity to play for five more years, I couldn’t be more thankful.” What the Leafs have in Schenn is a bona fide top-four D-man, one the club will lean on to continue his solid play in the Leafs’ zone and get more involved in the offence. Schenn improved his skating in the summer of 2010 and gradually became more involved offensively last season. Leafs coach Ron Wilson, though, said scoring is secondary to Schenn’s specialty, shutting down the opposition’s top lines. Toronto addressed the offensive side in the off-season by adding Cody Franson and John-Michael Liles, blueliners who handle the puck well. “If (Schenn) makes more money, I don’t expect more,” Wilson said. “This isn’t a per dollar kind of a thing. That’s the business side of things. “I want Luke to play exactly the way he played last year and continue to improve. In our league, well, goaltending is obviously the toughest decision, But learning to be an NHL defenceman is a long process. Luke has gotten better every year. I expect him to improve. “We want him to play hard defence. He has to be a stay-at-home, shutdown type of guy and he’s got to continue to excel at that.”