Brian Burke rips Dougie Hamilton trade rumours

Someone tell Brian Burke nobody uses payphones anymore — and that deers aren't very good skaters. 

The Calgary Flames president, who appeared on TSN1050 on Wednesday, addressed rumours regarding defenceman Dougie Hamilton, specifically a leak about a team that made an "insulting offer."

Burke said they told that team, "we're not moving him and next time you have an idea that stupid, just save the quarter. Don't go to the payphone.

"That team started telling teams, 'yeah, we made an offer on Hamilton.' Now it's a rumour, it's got legs. Someone's like 'wow, they must be moving him.'"

Burke's tirade called out anyone involved in the Hamilton trade rumours, while also completely killing the notion that Hamilton is available.

"It's very frustrating when you have to deal with leaks," Burke said. "As soon as one of the teams that's in the mix with the leaks is the Toronto Maple Leafs — now, it's an army of leakers. An army of people that have no goddamn idea what they're talking about, who'll happily go on and say the Toronto Maple Leafs are in on this, and doing that."

Burke, who was the president and GM of the Leafs from 2008-13, refused to mention who leaked a rumour about Hamilton but said if they persist, he might not be as nice.

"This is one where we think we can trace the leak. [GM Brad Treliving] got a call from a team — who shall remain nameless, at least for now, if this goes on much further I'm probably not going to remain nameless — and said 'would you move Dougie Hamilton?' And [Treliving] said no.

"We expended a tremendous amount of assets to get this player. We're really happy with him, he's a quality guy. He's six-foot-five, he weighs 237 pounds, he's a right shot, skates like a deer — he's a good hockey player. Yeah, let's move him! Let's get rid of him."

Calgary gave up a first-round pick and two second-round picks to Boston in June of last year to acquire the 23-year-old defenceman.

But surely, any team attempting to acquire Hamilton hopes he doesn't skate like a deer.

Burke clarified on The Andrew Walker Show on Sportsnet that he was not faulting the Toronto media or the Toronto Maple Leafs for the leak.

"We don't think it was a Toronto writer that started it, we don't think it was the Toronto Maple Leafs that started it," said Burke.

Treliving also shot down the rumours Wednesday telling Sportsnet 960 the FAN that the idea Hamilton is being shopped is "completely false."

Hamilton has 12 points in 25 games this season while averaging just more than 19 minutes a game.