It's a wrap, folks! The wheelings and dealings of the 2009-10 NHL Trade Deadline are now complete, ending at 3 p.m. Eastern time.
Perhaps a more fitting name for the NHL Trading Deadline would be Media Frenzy Day. After all, each and every year, sports television networks across Canada dedicate an entire day of TV programming to this special day, which includes promotions galore for days leading up to the event.
The trade deadline rivals the first day of free agency in terms of media excitement and overall fan intrigue for their respective teams. There's always a fascination from hockey fans and media alike about who's going to go where and for whom but rarely do any groundbreaking deals materialize involving the league's best players. In fact, there was possibly one deal in an entire 15 hours that actually warranted some of the hype (Wolski to Phoenix) and that came between two of the NHL's most surprising teams, who both may become afterthoughts come playoff time.
Plenty of NHL players, mostly depth forwards and defenseman, changed residences usually in exchange for future considerations (i.e. draft picks and prospects).
Playoff bound teams have one final opportunity to load up and tweak their roster for a run at Lord Stanley. At the opposite end of the spectrum, the few teams well out of the loop can retool by dealing away, normally, average NHL players at a premium with several teams lining up to bid over a player's services. Good teams will always try and outdo the competition by staying one step ahead but sometimes the best move is no move at all, no mortgaging the future or no possible chemistry issues.
The Most Notable Trade of the Day
The Washington Capitals, Carolina Hurricanes, Phoenix Coyotes and Columbus Blue Jackets were the most active teams on the market, mixing and matching their names in several trades apiece but perhaps the most shocking deal on deadline day involved the movement of one young player for another. Wojtek Wolski, an accomplished scorer with the Colorado Avalanche, moves to the desert for Phoenix Coyote forwards Peter Mueller and Kevin Porter. A surprise move considering how well Wolski has performed for the Avs this season while Mueller has been a huge disappointment for the Yotes.
After Colorado finished 28th in the NHL last season, Phoenix 25th, neither team was expected to be a contender this year but each have proven doubters wrong. Both teams are in line for a playoff berth (Phoenix sits fifth in the West, Colorado sixth), great news for such young teams without any superstars outside of Shane Doan and Paul Stastny.
Selected in the first round (21st overall) in the 2004 Entry Draft, Wolski recorded 17 goals and 30 assists in 62 games with Colorado this season and led the team in plus/minus with a plus-15 rating prior to the deal.
Wolski had been relegated to Colorado's second line recently, playing alongside rookie points leader Matt Duchene and pleasant surprise Brandon Yip. After starting the year on a tear, Wolski had managed only a goal and two assists in his last 13 games with the Avalanche going 7-6-0 in that span. Wolski remains a great talent but very inconsistent, either very dangerous offensively or virtually non-existent.
Mueller was picked eighth overall in 2006 by Phoenix. After a very impressive rookie year in which he tallied 22 goals and 54 points, Mueller took a step back last season where he recorded 13 goals and 23 assists in 72 games. His struggles have continued this season statistically as he has just four goals and 17 points in 54 games. Mueller bounced between roles on a young Coyotes squad, playing on the first line one night and the fourth the next but a change of scenery may be a good thing.
Acquisition of the Day
That title belongs to Buffalo Sabres for acquiring Raffi Torres from the Columbus Blue Jackets for seventh defenseman Nathan Paetsch and a second round pick.
Torres brings a lot of intangibles to the tables for the Sabres, namely grit and a solid scoring touch, having scored 20-plus goals twice in his career and on pace for another this season. Torres, who has 19 goals and 12 assists in 60 games this season, should give Buffalo the secondary scoring they desperately need.
The Deadline's Biggest Non-Deal
Ray Whitney's name circulated around the rumour mill for months, a possible destination being the L.A. Kings but in the end, there was no deal. The Hurricanes forward has 49 points in 60 games on a Canes squad that sits 14th in the Eastern Conference. Carolina remains in the mix of things after going 8-2-0 in their last 10, just 8 points out of a playoff spot. The playoffs remain a long shot but retaining Whitney should keep Canes fans, linemate Eric Staal and Whitney himself, very happy.
Toronto Continues to Clean House
In a surprise to few, Maple Leafs GM Brian Burke handed Alexei Ponikarovsky, Lee Stempniak and goaltender Joey MacDonald their walking papers in four deals total, acquiring prospect Luca Caputi, a fourth, fifth and two seventh round draft picks.
Boston Bruins GM Peter Chiarelli is probably a happy man right now, not at any of his team's deals but rather at watching Burke deal away two serviceable players, which should only increase the Bruins chance of landing a lottery pick in this year's draft as part of the Phil Kessel trade in November.
Of course, none of these deadline deals will be judged an success unless the players moved lead their respective new teams to the dance in June.
Thomas Cranston - Thomas Cranston is a graduate of the Journalism (Print) program at Durham College (Oshawa, Ontario, Canada). He is passionate about a wide ...
