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Latest Update:
Aug. 24, 2005
Check
in with us throughout the NHL season as The Fourth Period's
brass of experts offer their opinions on major events occurring
around the world of hockey.
 Hossa,
de Vries for Heatley
The
hockey world saw quite the blockbuster trade on Tuesday, when
the Ottawa Senators signed winger Marian Hossa and then traded
him, along with defenseman Greg de Vries, to the Atlanta
Thrashers for young star Dany Heatley.
Heatley,
who asked to be traded two weeks ago (or as it was put it:
"a change of scenery"), comes to Ottawa after the
much-publicized car accident during the 2003-04 season that led
to the death of teammate Dan Snyder.
Hossa,
meanwhile, was stunned to hear the news (told to him be his
agent, Jiri Crha, who heard about the trade through the media),
but vowed he played twice as hard now for his new team.
As
many ponder over the ramifications of the trade, TFP's Experts
try to help in analyzing the move in 140-words or less:
| Arpon
Basu |
Senators GM John Muckler is taking a minor risk assuming Heatley will return to the form he showed before his tragic car accident
two years ago. Heatley was barely visible during the World Cup and
didn't make a big contribution at the 2005 World Championships. The Senators
weren't looking to hang on to de Vries in any case, so they
don't lose a whole lot there. Plus, they'll save $1.5 million a year trading
Hossa's salary for Heatley's, which should allow them to keep Wade Redden. Thrashers GM Don Waddell apparently had to trade Heatley, in which case he did an admirable job getting a superstar in return and picking up the rights to a solid
defenseman in de Vries to anchor an otherwise suspect blue line. |
Edge to: Atlanta |
| Dennis
Bernstein |
If you score
50-goals in Atlanta and no one hears it, did it happen? Sens send their Big Poppa Pump to the black hole of hockey for nothing more than being too good. Hossa will form an intriguing line with the combative Bobby Holik (probably MORE combative that
he's not making $9M large with the NY Rangers) and that makes them second in the snoozing South
- but who cares? You can say the Sens never delivered with this guy at crunch time, but I think it was more a goaltending issue than that of its forwards. Maybe they should have waited to fail with
Dominik Hasek between the pipes before making a deal. Big risk for Ottawa because who knows where
Heatley's brain is, but forming with Jason Spezza could make them a superior line for the next five years. Greg de Vries? Nice guy. |
Edge
to:
Atlanta |
| Dan
Kingerski |
Both
Heatley and Hossa are exceptional players. It's hard to find faults in either
(good thing I'm a cynic). Hossa scored just four points against Toronto in the April '04
playoffs, and merely two points in the final six games of that series. Crunch time was not Hossa's stage. Great players come through. Hossa may have more pure talent that Heatley, but I just don't see Dany-boy tossing up bagels when the "Cup" is in sight. Heatley is a 40-goal guy, in the
OLD NHL. Heatley and Jason Spezza will dominate games -
I can't say the same for Hossa and Bobby Holik. de Vries,
meanwhile, does help a desperate Atlanta blue line. |
Edge
to: Ottawa |
| David
Pagnotta |
There haven't been many talent-for-talent trades in recent memory, and this deal certainly benefits both clubs. Ottawa was able to shed more than $3 million in dealing away Hossa and de Vries while obtaining the talented Heatley in return, and allowing them to hold on to the likes of Martin
Havlat, Wade Redden and Zdeno Chara long-term. At the same time, Heatley wanted to re-start his NHL career in a new city, and playing with the likes of Daniel Alfredsson, Jason Spezza and Havlat will definitely help as he tries to regain his form. Hossa, meanwhile, was fairly upset/ticked about the trade, but now has added incentive to play harder alongside fellow goal-scorer Ilya Kovalchuk. Let us not shy away from the addition of de Vries, who gives the Thrashers a strong, intelligent veteran to play among their top-four. |
Edge
to:
Atlanta |
| Dan
Rakusan |
On the surface, this looks like a cap move, but I believe it was more inspired by a collision of egos.
Muckler wasn't about to be shown up by Hossa, so he made this trade. Would either side do Hossa for Heatley straight up? Doubtful. In the end, Muckler made Waddell look like a genius by coughing up an elite winger in Hossa and a potential top-4
defenseman in de Vries. In exchange, they get damaged goods with emotional baggage, but of course some very solid upside potential in Heatley. This is an old school GM making an old school deal, trading a European for a Canadian. Atlanta wins this walking away. |
Edge
to:
Atlanta |
---
Who are they? ---
Arpon
Basu is the Montreal Correspondent for The Fourth Period
Magazine, and covers the Canadiens for TheFourthPeriod.com. He
is also a beat reporter with The Canadian Press.
Dennis
Bernstein, an NHL Analyst with ESPN Radio, is the Los Angeles
Correspondent for The Fourth Period Magazine and covers the
Kings for TheFourthPeriod.com. He is also the man behind SCORE!
media.
Dan
Kingerski is the host of The Fourth Period Radio Show, as well
as the Pittsburgh Correspondent for The Fourth Period Magazine,
and covers the Penguins for TheFourthPeriod.com
David
Pagnotta, formerly an NHL Analyst with FOX Sports Radio, is the
Editor-in-Chief of The Fourth Period Magazine and
TheFourthPeriod.com, and also covers the Toronto Maple Leafs for
both the website and publication.
Dan
Rakusan, a TFP Senior Writer, is the Ottawa Correspondent for
The Fourth Period Magazine, and covers the Senators for The
Fourth Period.com.
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