CHICAGO, IL -- The 2012 NHL All Star Game is now in the rear view
mirror, and the hockey world is centrally focused on the upcoming
trade deadline.
And what better way to frame our focus on that deadline than this
year's great game in Ottawa? Consider, for a moment, the impact of
trade deadline deals from only last year on this year's game!
Four of this year's All Stars were involved in deals in February of
2011, and each of those deals is a great cautionary tale of buyer
beware.
Last year, Joffrey Lupul was traded for a fourth time, but it was his
first deadline deal (the rest were summer moves, two of which involved
Chris Pronger). Toronto brought Lupul north from Anaheim with Jake
Gardiner and a fourth round pick for defenseman Francois Beauchemin.
How'd that work out for the Ducks?
Pittsburgh dealt from a position of strength and moved a defenseman,
Alex Goligoski, to Dallas for a couple forwards. The deal was seen
then as a minor swap of complimentary, but not special, players. Now,
James Neal sits second in the NHL with 27 goals for the Pens. Not a
bad addition for Pittsburgh.
Florida decided they wanted to add pieces to their rebuild and moved
Denis Wideman to Washington for a third round pick and Jake Hauswirth.
So far, the Panthers haven't seen either of the players they acquired
in an NHL game... but they did pick up All Star Brian Campbell this
summer for Rostislav Olesz.
If you haven't heard of Olesz, don't worry about it. He's been
effective in Rockford (AHL) this year.
Of the four deals that were consummated before the deadline last year
that involved a 2012 All Star, perhaps only one ended up being
break-even.
When Ottawa dealt Brian Elliott to Colorado for Craig Anderson, many
thought it was a dead weight swap of netminders looking for a last
chance. But Anderson has been good for the Sens this year, and Elliott
returned to the scene of the deal last year as an All Star member of
the St. Louis Blues.
In 2010, the Calgary Flames sold low on Dion Phaneuf and moved him in
a blockbuster, seven-player deal. Now the captain in Toronto, he's
back to the form that had his name in the conversation for the Norris
earlier in his career with the Flames.
In 2008, two other 2012 All Stars moved in February. Campbell was
traded to San Jose by the Sabres for Steve Bernier and a pick that
later became Tyler Ennis.
In the bigger deal of that trade season, Marian Hossa and Pascal
Dupuis were dealt to Pittsburgh by the Thrashers for Angelo Esposito,
Colby Armstrong, Erik Christensen and a first round pick in that
year's draft. The Thrashers picked Daultan Leveille, who is now a
senior at Michigan State.
Ennis is nice, Armstrong was decent for Atlanta, and the players that
bounced back and forth between Calgary and Toronto ultimately didn’t
impact either roster that season. But Atlanta/Winnipeg hasn't replaced
Hossa, and Calgary hasn't replace Phaneuf, and both played well in
Ottawa this past weekend.
As we sprint through four weeks of injuries, losing streaks, winning
streaks, and probably a coach or two losing their job, rumors will
light Twitter on fire and keep traffic flying around the web.
Fans everywhere are hoping their team finds "the missing link," and
GMs are hoping to as well. But as each of the deals happen, one has to
wonder which future NHL All Stars will be wearing a different sweater
in March.
Tab Bamford is a Columnist for TheFourthPeriod.com and the Chicago
Correspondent for
The Fourth Period Magazine.
