The 2016 NHL trade deadline came and went with a whimper. The Buffalo Sabres made just one deal: free agent forward Jamie McGinn was traded to the Anaheim Ducks for a (conditional) 3rd round draft pick (that could become a 2nd round pick.)
The lack of excitement will disappoint fans who have grown accustomed to blockbusters. Last year, Buffalo put together two massive trade packages, one for Evander Kane in February and another for Ryan O’Reilly on draft day. The year before, Ryan Miller was sent to St. Louis a few days before the deadline for a big return, just months after Thomas Vanek was shipped out for Matt Moulson and a first round draft pick.
This year’s action doesn’t compare to either of the previous two, and that’s likely because the Sabres aren’t in the same position to deal. You’re not going to turn around and trade Kane or O’Reilly a year after acquiring them, and those deals cost Buffalo many of their valuable-but-not-untouchable assets, such as prospect forwards Joel Armia and Claude Lemieux, and young roster players Mikhail Grigorenko and Nikita Zadorov.
Having made two blockbuster trades of picks and prospects for good NHL players last year, Murray likely didn’t have the pieces to put together a third. Look at the Sabres’ prospect pool and you won’t see many hot properties. There’s no star AHL player to move, no former first round pick in need of the dreaded “change of scenery”. The University of Minnesota’s Hudson Fasching might be the most attractive player not yet with the Sabres’ NHL roster, and his name didn’t come up in trade rumors.
If the Sabres wanted to make another deal for a player of the caliber of O’Reilly or Kane, they would’ve had to give up either a first round pick (no thank you) or at least one or two guys whom their NHL roster already depends on, like Mark Pysyk or Tyler Ennis. Better to make those deals at the draft or during the season than when GMs are distracted with decisions about rental players and expiring contracts.
Rather than reach for the stars, the Sabres probably wanted to move the other direction – trading veterans for picks and prospects, rather than vice versa. That didn’t really work out either. It would’ve been nice to get a middle round pick for Chad Johnson, and in other years with more active trade markets, guys like Matt Moulson or Josh Gorges could have been dealt. But the market sets the price, and when useful players like Florida’s Brandon Pirri are getting traded for a 6th round pick, you throw your hands up and accept what you have. Selling now would’ve meant selling low. Cross your fingers and hope for better luck in June.
The one man to actually be traded – McGinn – impressed many fans in Buffalo, but few see him as a top-6 forward. A basement-dwelling team like the Sabres shouldn’t be turning down mid-round picks for roleplayers. If McGinn liked life in Buffalo enough, and the Sabres liked him enough, the two can try to work out a deal in the summer. If not, this is a fair price for a replaceable part.
One factor that could have slowed trading league-wide is the new draft lottery format. With more picks up for grabs, and better odds at getting them, teams become less willing to trade those picks. Hopefully we’ll see GMs adapt in the future by taking cues from the NBA and putting lottery protections on trades. There’s no reason teams shouldn’t be able to say, for example, “We’ll trade you our 2016 first round pick, unless it ends up being in the top 5 picks, in which case we’ll keep it and you’ll get our 2017 first round pick.” A little creativity and some new norms can solve the problems posed by an expanded draft lottery. Whether NHL GMs are willing to change with the times is the question.
A quiet deadline across the league and a relatively barren prospect pool makes it hard to grade Tim Murray’s performance today. Expect to hear a lot of talk about free agency and trades at the draft going forward. The Sabres need to supplement their roster before next fall. After one of the dullest deadlines in memory, they might have to get creative to do it.
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