Hockey Weekend Trade Frenzy

Can you remember a time when there was so much activity this far BEFORE the NHL trade deadline?! I'm not going to lie...the NHL trade deadline is like christmas for me. I check TSN, NHL, and ESPN all day long giddy with anticipation of all the deals that may occur. After school/work I run home to turn on the TV and get my laptop up and running with all the "real time trade update" pop-ups you can click on from these websites. I'm not sure if I enjoy this or the NFL draft more...listen you put a gun to my head I wouldn't be able to come up with an answer.

Back to this weekend. I had an idea that we might see some activity though before the Olympic trade freeze (Feb. 12-March 1). The freeze ends on March 1st and the deadline is on the 3rd, doesn't give teams much time to wheel and deal. Anyways onto the analysis.

Trade 1:

Toronto receives: Dion Phaneuf (D), Fredrik Sjostrom (F), prospect Keith Aulie (D)
Calgary receives: Ian White (D), Matt Stajan (F), Niklas Hagman (F), Jamal Mayers (F)

Calgary needed to do something to inject some life into their lifeless offense. They did just that. By adding Stajan and Hagman they add Toronto's #2 and #3 scorers respectively. They also add some grit with Mayers and a solid defenseman. White has been a pleasant surprise for Toronto this year being one of their best defenseman. Since the Sabres are in the same division as Toronto (as well as the fact that they are our rivals), I see these players on a consistent basis. White has played very well this year and is a very inexpensive option for the Flames. The Flames do two things with this trade...bring in offense and take some salary off the books. They had a lot of money tied up in their defense with Bowmeester, Regier, and Phaneuf. Something had to give. Stajan will be an UFA this summer and White will be a RFA. Stajan will probably be paired up with Iginla and bring some much needed firepower to the top 6.

Brian Burke just added a potential franchise defenseman with this trade. He has coveted Phaneuf for some time now. Some people think Phaneuf is overrated, I disagree. By the end of his career he'll have a few Norris Trophies (award for best defenseman of the year) under his belt. He is a hard hitting, puck moving defenseman. It's not as solid in his own end as you'd like a $6.5 million a year player, but I'd be willing to take him. Toronto lost a lot of firepower, so you wonder how they will address that. My guess is they view this season as a lost cause and they want to evaluate some of their young talent. Maybe they'll address the offense in free agency. They also bring in a good 3rd line winger in Sjostrom. One thing about Brian Burke is he's not shy, I wouldn't expect this to be the last deal they make this year.

Winner: Toronto. Anytime you can add a potential franchise d-man, you do it. Stajan and Hagman are nothing better than second line players. Phaneuf is a #1 d-man. Putting it in perspective it's as if the Sabres traded Derek Roy, Drew Stafford, Henrik Tallinder, and Adam Mair...would I make that trade? In a heartbeat. Mind you that Stajan is an UFA (probably wouldn't re-sign with Toronto). For you Pens fans it would be like the Pens getting rid of Jordan Staal, Pascal Dupuis, Jay McKee, and Craig Adams. Would you make that trade? For Phanuef...I think I would.

Trade 2:

Toronto receives: Jean-Sebastien Giguere (G)
Anaheim receives: Jason Blake (F) and Vesa Toskala

This trade works for both teams. Giguere has never regained his once superstar status he had when he led the Ducks to the finals twice (once in 2003 when he won the Conn Smythe and 2007 when they won the Cup). Who was the GM of the Ducks then? Oh yeah...Brian Burke...what a small world. However if he can return to form and be a #1 goalie (as well as tutor Gustavsson) he will be the solid goaltending they've been searching for since Cujo. The biggest question mark is...can he do this? The biggest risk Toronto is taking on is his salary (which I believe is around $6 million). But it's a doable risk since they have significant cap room right now.

Anaheim adds a scoring winger and a solid #2 goalie. Giguere wanted out and they were able to oblige. Toskala has never lived up to the hype he received while he was with San Jose. Can he be a #1 goalie? I don't know...he definitely didn't prove that in Toronto. But he is a great #2 option, which Anaheim gets to back up recently extended Hiller.

Winner: At first Anaheim is the winner, but if Giguere turns out to be a solid #1 goalie, then it's a push. Anaheim now has a solid #2 goalie (which they had before in Giguere) as well as a scoring winger. That right there makes me believe they have the upper hand at first look with this trade. However, if Giguere can solidify the spot between the pipes, Toronto will never look back regretting this trade and may even come out on top by a slim margin.

Overall I think Toronto did a good job trying to create a core to their roster. In the beginning of the year they added Kessel and now they were able to add a #1 d-man in Phaneuf. They're taking a big of a gamble with Giguere, hoping he returns to form at the ripe old age of 32, but it's an acceptable gamble. They didn't give much up in return. I think they gave up more to bring in Kessel (a top 5, maybe even #1 overall, pick in this upcoming years draft). One thing about Brian Burke is he is not shy about trying to improve his team. You have to respect that. It's clear what he's trying to do. He's establishing a young solid core group of players in Toronto and is going to build around them. He has his sniper and his #1 d-man. I'd say he's off to a good start.

-Brett