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MILTON – The chatter percolated furiously for months and then finally on an early July day in the summer of 2012, Luke Schenn was traded to the Philadelphia Flyers for James van Riemsdyk. The fifth overall selection in the 2008 draft, Schenns name had bubbled with such intense fervour in trade rumours that then-Maple Leafs general manager Brian Burke went so far as to assert that no deal was coming six months before it finally did. "We are not in trade discussions involving Luke Schenn," Burke said wearily before a game against the Buffalo Sabres. "I told Luke thats not a guarantee he wouldnt be traded if something materialized but were not in trade discussions with any team about him right now. We havent offered him to anybody. I dont know where the rumours started, but I told him thats not happening." Like Schenn, Jake Gardiner has heard his name bandied about in trade chatter and figured that one day he might follow his former defence partner out the door of Toronto. He was on tentative footing with the organization or so he figured in light of the incessant discussion of his name in trade talks. "Yeah, there was always thoughts about that – whether Im going to get traded or not," Gardiner told TSN.ca from the teams annual charity golf tournament on Monday. "I just had always heard talk about it." That chatter quieted some last month. With Brendan Shanahan firmly at the helm as the teams new president and change coming in all directions within the organization, the Leafs extended a five-year deal to the recently turned 24-year-old, ending all the speculation while securing the former first-round pick as a piece near the front of the teams future. Having mostly dangled at arms length from the club to that point, the show of faith was unexpected. A restricted free agent, Gardiner expected a shorter deal, perhaps the kind of prove yourself, bridge contract Nazem Kadri had gotten one year earlier. "Just kind of shows they have that faith in me as a player," Gardiner said of the five-year pact, which is worth a total of $20.25 million. That faith had certainly been tested from the point of his arrival in the winter of 2011, be it because of misguided and sometimes poor decision-making or soft defensive play. An undercurrent of impatience at his overall progress seemed to linger as that standout rookie campaign edged further and further into the rearview mirror. He heard his name out there and wondered whether, like Schenn, he would be next to go, whether all the rumours and speculation would finally lead him elsewhere. Another trade deadline came and went this past March and Gardiner remained, but persistence of disconnect between himself and the club simmered (never hotter than March of a year earlier when Gardiner remained a Marlie, much to his and his former agents chagrin). At his season-ending press conference in mid-April, Randy Carlyle spoke to a revealing exit interview with one of his players and while not naming said player explicitly, expressed surprise that a "young defenceman playing a roving style" felt his "leash was short where we believed it was longer" and who he compared himself with in the league, "that was kind of shocking". Gardiner, though, says his relationship with the head coach is fine, nothing more than a hard-edged, old-school type trying to pull out the best from his group. The "leash", he said, was a function of performance, longer with success. "Hes a coach that pushes his players, especially the young guys," Gardiner said of Carlyle, the former spending most of his summer back home in Minnetonka, Minnesota, "He knows we have more to our games and he just wants us to get to that level." "Hopefully I play well," he continued. "Thats pretty much the base of it. If I play well our relationship will be great. Even if I dont hell be pushing me so itll be good either way." Whether Gardiner gets to the level Carlyle expects, the level hes shown capable of hitting and then even exceeding is the looming question. The hopeful signs have been there. The consistency has not. While the team sputtered into another disastrous playoff miss, Gardiner generally excelled down the stretch, looking more like his assertive self while depositing five goals and 14 points in the final 21 games. He also finished as the teams best possession player and leading minute-eater at even-strength. Can he put it all together? The Leafs are gambling that he can. "Both them and I are excited for the next five years." Buy Shoes Black Friday . The shortstop still grieves, but it will be nights like the one Segura had in a 5-2 victory Monday over the Cincinnati Reds that will provide some distraction. Discount Shoes Black Friday .In the Football Money League compiled by accountancy firm Deloitte, German champion Bayern Munich remained third but Barcelona dropped from second to fourth during its trophyless 2014.In the 2013-2014 financial year, Real generated 549. https://www.cheapshoesblackfriday.com/. No pretty goals on this night, just get to the front of the net and fight for a chance. Wholesale Shoes Black Friday .com) - Russell Westbrook and Kevin Durant combined for 51 points and the Oklahoma City Thunder took down the struggling Bucks 114-101 on Tuesday. China Shoes Black Friday . Englands only win in the four most recent trips north had been tight, and Scotland was expected after losing 28-6 to Ireland six days ago to show some venom against its archrival.SAO PAULO, Brazil -- Former Germany great Franz Beckenbauer was banned from football for 90 days by FIFA on Friday for not co-operating with an investigation into the 2018 and 2022 World Cup bids. FIFA said the suspension was requested by ethics prosecutor Michael Garcia, making Beckenbauer the first person to be punished as a result of the case. Beckenbauer refused "repeated requests for his assistance, including requests that he provide information during an in-person interview or in response to written questions provided in both English and German," FIFA said in a statement. It was unclear whether the FIFA suspension would prevent Beckenbauer -- who won the World Cup as both a player and coach -- from attending the tournament in Brazil. FIFA suspensions relating to "any football-related activity, at any level" typically include attending matches and meeting other football officials. Beckenbauer was a voting member of FIFAs executive committee in December 2010 when it chose Qatar, and Russia as 2018 World Cup host. He said last week that he rejected two attempts by Garcia to speak with him, claiming he was no longer active in football. Beckenbauer still holds top-level positions in world football, after serving on FIFAs board from 2007-11. He joined after leading Germanys organization of the 2006 World Cup. He is an adviser to FIFAs football committee and a global ambassador for German champion Bayern Munich. Garcia, a former U.S. Attorney haas said that next month he will deliver a dossier on the World Cup case, which FIFA critics hope will order a redo of the votes.dddddddddddd Beckenbauer was named in reports this past weekend by The Sunday Times, which has alleged widespread corruption linked to Qatari official Mohamed bin Hammam and the 2022 bidding campaign. The newspaper said Beckenbauer took paid consultancies in 2011 with German firms seeking contracts for World Cup related projects in the gas-rich emirate. Like most FIFA board members, Beckenbauer has not publicly revealed who he voted for. Qatar defeated the United States 14-8 in the fourth round of voting, FIFA President Sepp Blatter has previously said German and French business and political interests influenced the FIFA vote. FIFA said its independent ethics judge, Munich-based Joachim Eckert, was not involved in the decision to suspend Beckenbauer, who faces further sanctions. "The case is now the subject of formal investigation proceedings being conducted by investigatory chamber member Vanessa Allard as chief of the investigation," FIFA said. Garcia could still seek to interview Beckenbauer, though he closed the investigation phase of his probe on Monday. On Wednesday, Garcia addressed FIFAs 209 member countries in Sao Paulo and stressed that football officials are obligated to co-operate with his work. "And it makes real penalties available to all those who fail," the American lawyer said then. ' ' '