It's getting deep into February and the Toronto Maple Leafs are five points out of the playoffs. The captain of the Leafs is in the final year of his contract but has stated that he wants to sign an extension and stay in Toronto.

Ultimately, however, the captain's actions say otherwise.

The captain sets his contract demands at $4 million per season. The Leafs start at $3 million per season but move up to $3.5 million, assuming the captain will meet them and a deal will be done. However, the captain does not budge and a stalemate ensues.

With the deadline hours away, the captain tells Leafs management, according to the club's majority owner, that if he isn't signed to an extension -- at his $4 million demand -- he will refuse to play the rest of the season.

So a trade becomes the Leafs' only option, and the captain has but one destination for which he'll waive his no-trade clause -- his former club, the Colorado Avalanche.

So the deal goes down. The captain is traded back "home" and the Leafs suffer an emotional and physical loss so devastating that any hope of the playoffs is lost.

In the hours after the trade, some backroom workings become known, making it seem as if the captain was planning this trade all along.

The plane that whisked the captain to Calgary, where the Avalanche played that night, was parked nearby one night before the trade deadline.

A box of equipment -- to the captain's specifications and with the Avalanche logo -- arrived in Calgary before the trade was struck. The Flames' equipment staff was asked to sew the captain's name on the back of an Avalanche sweater hours before the deal was reached.

OK, now replace Toronto with Columbus and captain with Adam Foote. And realize that this scenario played out in February in Columbus.

No, Columbus is not Toronto. It does not have the hockey history to match the center of the hockey universe.

But Columbus is a member of the NHL. It has ticket-buying fans who paid for Foote's $4.6 million annual salary for the better part of three seasons and should not be walked out on.

If Foote did this in Toronto, he would be vilified by fans and media for the rest of his hockey life.

The Blue Jackets, including captain Rick Nash, have mostly avoided criticizing Foote, saying in so many words that he "did what's best for his family." Not surprising, given the hockey code.

Privately, however, a handful of players say they'll never forgive Foote. One, privately, has likened him to a traitor, saying he "talked about playing for the sweater the whole time he was here but then bailed on everybody at the worst possible time."

Twice last week, when the Blue Jackets played in Denver, Foote declined requests to speak with The Dispatch.

It's questionable whether Foote, who has a triceps injury, will play Tuesday when the Avalanche plays in Nationwide Arena for the first time since the trade.

But he'll have to play here eventually.

West vs. East

With the NHL's three best young talents playing for Eastern Conference clubs, it has been suggested for two seasons that the East is closing ground as the NHL's toughest conference.

Settling the debate will have to wait at least another season.

In interconference games this season, the West is 82-45-15. Further, 13 of the 15 clubs in the West have winning records against the East.

Columbus is 7-1-1. San Jose is 8-1-0. Minnesota is 10-2-1.

The problem lies at the bottom of the East, which has the NHL's five weakest clubs -- New York Islanders, Ottawa, Atlanta, Tampa Bay and Toronto. Those five have combined for a 12-27-6 mark against the West.

What do I do?

Edmonton defenseman Jason Strudwick was the first star of the Oilers' 5-2 win over the Islanders last week. It was the first time in his 522-game NHL career he has been one of the top three stars.

"I didn't know the protocol," Strudwick said. "They handed me an Oiler hat. I said, 'You get a hat for being a star?' They said, 'No, no. You throw the hat into the stands for the fans.'

"I said, 'Really?' "

Sunday slap shot

With a win Tuesday win over the Blue Jackets, Red Wings defenseman Chris Chelios passed Scott Stevens for most regular-season NHL victories (880).

aportzline@dispatch.com