Media by Associated Press – Vancouver Canucks left winger Markus Naslund, of Sweden, warms up to face the Colorado Avalanche as the teams skate before playing in an NHL hockey game in Denver on Sunday, Dec. 23, 2007. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski)
Hockey is a sport where a Stanley Cup run can be quickly fueled by a mid-season trade that pumps life into a franchise that was only a step or two away from a Stanley Cup crown. But trades don’t always work out well for all the parties involved. Sometimes, those deals end up leaving teams suffering for many years.
Here’s a look at a few of the worst.
Pittsburgh can’t make Naslund work
The Penguins recognized Markus Naslund’s talent when they drafted him in the first round of the 1991 NHL Entry draft. However, Naslund struggled to fit in with a loaded Penguins lineup early in his career. By the 1995-96 season, Pittsburgh decided to deal Naslund to Vancouver for Alek Stojanov, hoping Stojanov would help push the Penguins toward the cup.
Stojanov would only play 45 more games in his career after being in a car accident. Naslund would reach his potential with the Canucks. He would go on to have 12 successful seasons with Vancouver, finishing his career with 869 points, which included 395 goals.
The Penguins would lose steam in the late 1990s as financial issues, and the retirement of Mario Lemieux sent the team back to the middle of the pack.
Flames give away Hull
Calgary dealt young forward Brett Hull to St. Louis in 1988 for defenseman Rob Ramage and goalie Rick Wamsley. While the Flames would go on to win the Stanley Cup that season, Ramage didn’t contribute much beyond the cup-winning year.
While Hull never won a Stanley Cup with the Blues, he did win two much later with this Dallas and Detroit, the Flames may have been able to have extended defense with him.
Hull finished with 741 career goals and added 650 points to finish with 1,391 career points. During Hulls’ time in St. Louis, he would lead the NHL in goals in four consecutive seasons. In 1990-91, Hull would score a career-high 86. He also had seasons where he scored 72 and 70 in St. Louis.
Montreal Parts with Roy
The Canadiens had a problem with Patrick Roy. The goalie was unhappy after he was left in the game to give up nine goals during a game on Dec. 2, 1995. Roy went to the team president Ronald Corey and said that he had played his last game for the Canadiens. Roy would be dealt to the first-year Colorado Avalanche three days later.
Roy, along with Montreal captain Mike Keane, were traded in exchange for Andrei Kovalenko, Martin Rucinsky, and Jocelyn Thibault. Roy would end up being one of the key pieces for Colorado, which would have a dominant run of success in the late 1990s and early 2000s.
The Avalanche won two Stanley Cups during that timeframe, in 1996 and 2002. Montreal still hasn’t won a cup since 1993. The Canadiens were the NHL’s preeminent team for many years but have seemingly never recovered from dealing Roy away.
See more NHL picks >>