NHL general managers spent the whole morning and early afternoon yesterday on their cellphones and blackberries trying to pull off megadeals that would give their team an edge in the race to claim this year’s Stanley Cup. While the pool of impact players available began to dwindle in the days before yesterday’s deadline with the re-signing of Tampa Bay’s Dan Boyle, St.Louis’ Barrett Jackman and the news that Toronto captain Mats Sundin and Flames winger Alex Tanguay would not be moved, some teams were still able to pull off some major deals and set themselves up for the stretch run. No team wins the Stanley Cup on deadline day but with the right moves they can put themselves in a pretty good position to contend or with a bad move or two they can waive the white flag and begin the planning for next season. The true merit of the deals made yesterday won’t be judged for some time but here is a list of who I believe were the best and worst deal makers at the deadline.
Winners
1.Dallas Stars- The Stars, who have decided to open it up this season after being a defense first team over the last few years, acquired star forward Brad Richards from the Tampa Bay Lightning. Richards is an offensively skilled two way player who can also excel on the power play and special teams and has proven his mettle in the postseason by winning a Conn Smythe trophy for postseason MVP. By adding Richards, the Stars get the secondary scoring they have been looking for without losing much off their roster. Mike Smith played well but Marty Turco is the No.1 netminder in Dallas and while they may miss Jussi Jokinen’s shootout prowess and the grit of fourth liner Jeff Halpern, Richards work at both ends of the ice will more than make up for the loss of these role players. This may be the move that people look back at as a turning point should Dallas bring the cup home.
2.San Jose Sharks- It seems like the rich got richer in the west as the Sharks improved as well on deadline day. GM Doug Wilson identified his team’s most glaring weakness (of which it doesn’t have many) and went out and turned it into a strength with the acquisition of the top puck moving D-man available, the Sabres’ Brian Campbell. Campbell gives the Sharks an all-star presence on their blueline and a capable quarterback on their power play unit while bringing a decent amount of physicality with him as well. The loss of Steve Bernier, who was sent to Buffalo in the deal, will be offset by the return of forward Ryan Clowe. Once again, Wilson has proven himself as a GM not afraid to make the big move.
3.Washington Capitals- This year’s surprise team in the NHL, The Caps and GM George McPhee made some surprising moves yesterday to create depth in some important areas should the team continue into the playoffs. Getting Cristobal Huet from Montreal (in a move no one saw coming, least of all Canadiens fans) gives Washington two No.1’s at the goalie position (with Olaf Kolzig) and makes the decisions tough on coach Bruce Boudreau as to who will backstop the team come the postseason. The thought here is Huet will get the bulk of the work as he has been hot as of late and 21-12-6 so far this season. The Caps also acquired veteran forward and former “Best Player in the World” Sergei Fedorov from Columbus to team with fellow russian Alexander Semin and take some of the pressure of current “all-world” talent Alexander Ovechkin. While Fedorov is not the player he once was, he still provides strong two way play and if he gets hot could give the team some secondary scoring down the stretch. Adding agitator Matt Cooke gives the team some grit and someone to watch out for Ovechkin.
4.Columbus Blue Jackets- It wasn’t the moves that the Blue Jackets made that landed them on this list but the moves they didn’t make. Columbus GM Scott Howson, who is in for the long haul, basically waived the white flag on his team’s long shot bid to make the playoffs by sending captain Adam Foote to Colorado and Fedorov to the Caps. Howson was able to pick up some valuable draft picks and prospects while opening up some cap space for the offseason where he will probably be an active player in free agency. Overall, while some fans may be disappointed, Howson thought long term and the franchise will inevitably be better for it.
5-Pittsburgh Penguins- It’s tough for me to put the Pens on the winners side of this list even if they did acquire the best player available in Atlanta sniper Marian Hossa. Hossa gives Pittsburgh three of the top forwards in the league (along with Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin) and makes their power play the most talented we’ve seen in the league in years but it’s my feeling that GM Ray Shero paid way too high a price for a player that may very well be just a rental. I find it hard to see how the Pens will be able to afford Hossa when he becomes a free agent at season’s end. The Pens are obviously looking to win the Cup this season but at what cost to the future of the franchise. Angelo Esposito is a prospect who slipped after most observers felt he could be a no.1 overall pick only two years ago, Colby Armstrong and Erik Christiansen are talented young players who filled roles on this club and a first round pick is way too much of a package for a player who is anything but a sure thing come playoff time in Hossa. The Pens also recieved defensive forward Pascal Dupuis in the deal.
Losers
1.Montreal Canadiens- GM Bob Gainey promised fans he was going to add a big piece at the deadline then proceeded to move his team’s starting goaltender for a second round pick. In the most surprising and unexpected move of the day, Gainey handed over the reins of his team which has legitimate visions of a long playoff run to a 20 year old who has never played a single postseason contest in the NHL. Carey Price is the goaltender of the future in Montreal but no one thought the future would come so quickly. Gainey is a fan favorite and a legend in Montreal but if Price and new Backup Jan Halak should falter, all the goodwill he has built up over the years could quickly evaporate.
2.Ottawa Senators- No team in the east was more in need of some kind of spark than Ottawa. After sprinting out of the gates, The Sens have slowed to a crawl and are limping into the playoffs for the second straight season. Last Season they added Oleg Saprykin and cruised all the way to the finals before they were outclassed by Anaheim. This season, problems at goaltender (nobody wanted Ray Emery?..shocker!) and average play as of late signal bigger struggles ahead but all the Sens could muster after missing out on the Hossa sweepstakes was veteran forward Martin Lapointe for a sixth round pick. Lapointe is a proven winner and a locker room leader but at this point in his career he is nothing more than a spare part. The Sens needed a bigger move (wouldn’t Huet have been a perfect fit here?) but just couldn’t get it done.
3.Philadelphia Flyers- It seems that the Flyers were so busy assessing the state of their MASH unit, that they forgot it was deadline day. After sending minor leaguer Alex Picard to Tampa on Monday for veteran forward Vaclav Prospal, the Flyers were invisible yesterday. For a team that has lost 10 of 11 prior to the deadline but still finds themselves within striking distance of a playoff spot, it was curious that GM Paul Holmgren would do nothing. Was this the team’s way of silently waving the white flag?
4.Toronto Maple Leafs- It is almost unfair to put the Leafs on the list but here goes. Interim GM Cliff Fletcher was hamstrung by the ridiculous no trade clauses given to Mats Sundin, Tomas Kaberle, Darcy Tucker and Bryan McCabe by John Ferguson Jr. during his tenure as GM. Once Sundin and Kaberle announced they would not be moving, Fletcher was left with only spare parts (Belak, Kilger, Gill) to move and was only able to acquire some draft picks to throw onto this sinking ship of a franchise. A rumored trade of Kyle Wellwood never materialized and at the end of the day, Leafs fans were once again left shaking their heads.
5.New York Rangers- After Dan Boyle re-signed with Tampa, Kaberle decided to stay put and Campbell was moved to the Sharks, Glen Sather was left wondering how he would fill the team’s glaring need for a puck moving defenseman. Rangers fans meet Christian Backman, your new Garden whipping boy. Sather sent a fourth rounder to St.Louis for the underachieving blueliner who had become the Blues’ version of Marek Malik, thanks to his big frame but soft play in his own zone. Sather then made a deal with former underling Don Maloney in Phoenix sending one time first rounder and highly touted goalie prospect Al Montoya and project Marcel Hossa westward for two way winger Frederic Sjostrom and minor leaguers Josh Gratton and G David Le Neveu. It was a disappointing day for Rangers fans who had hoped to add some blueline depth to a corps recently depleted by injuries and continue the recent run that the team had been making.
While Western Conference powers like Anaheim, Vancouver and Detroit stood pat or made only minor moves yesterday and the Avalanche announced their intentions to win the Cup (unfortunately they meant the 1999 Stanley Cup…..Foote, Forsberg???..What happened Patrick Roy isn’t returning phone calls?), the Stars and Sharks solidified themselves as frontrunners and the Pens and Caps gave notice to the East that they were all in come playoff time. The one thing for sure after yesterday is the big winner is the NHL fan as the moves made on deadline day assure that this will be one of the most exciting playoff races and postseason tournaments in recent memory.
