Stupid?
OK you and I need to hit the reset button. Let me present to you an argument, to see if we can realign this debate instead of maligning it:
I for one feel that this little snippet is a good representation of how bad of a GM Gillis was. A sensible counter argument would be appreciated without any ad hominems and/or banning requests
Sometime after trading for Ballard, Gillis was actively trying to trade Bieksa due to the conondrum the acquisition of Ballard created on the back end and on the cap. Ballard and Hamhius were acquired within a month of each other. With Salo, Erhoff, Edler, Hamhius, Ballard and Bieksa in the fold and Erhoffs next contract looming, Gillis decided to cut bait with Bieksa cause certainly no other GM out there would dare touch Ballard not with that contract and poor quality of play, ergo the Buyout. Gillis had to get rid of someone if he wanted to be in a position to resign Erhoff. Bieksa the fall guy because of the Ballard acquisition. He certainly wasn't going to trade his newest acquisition - Ballard. The optics!
While actively shopping Bieksa, a miracle happens for Gillis, Salo snaps his Achilles saving Gillis the embarrassment from trading Bieksa at a time when his stock was low. What happens after that? Bieksa turns his game around playing some of his best hockey. But Salo's injury only delayed the inevitable for Gillis - which eventually had him trading Erhoffs negotiation rights to the Rangers for a 4th round pick
No Ballard, maybe we are in a position to sign Erhoff instead of trading his rights to the Rangers. We also must be mindful of the fact that Edlers best hockey was when Erhoff was his partner, he was never the same after.
I give you - The Fall out from the Keith Ballard experiment. It's bigger than you realize
The cherry on top? The 4th round pick Gillis received from the Rangers for Erhoffs rights? He later trades to Columbus for Sami Shutdown Pahlsson. You know who Columbus drafts with that pick? Josh Anderson! The Ballard Acquisition Fallout is endless