Biggest "Almost" Deals Through History?

LeafsNation75

Registered User
Jan 15, 2010
37,975
12,506
Toronto, Ontario
Tomas Kaberle was almost traded for apparently every stud in the league during the 90s or early 2000s

http://www.fiveminutesforfighting.com/2012/08/tomas-kaberle-trade-rumour-history.html
To this day when I see this I wonder which deal for Toronto would have been better? For me I can't decide between the trade they would have hard for Jeff Carter or Chris Pronger. If I had to choose I think I would have liked to seen the trade for Carter since Mats Sundin left after that season as a UFA and Carter would have been the Leafs new #1 Centre at that time.
 

Bordeleau Of Blood

Archangel
Jul 28, 2005
2,638
85
In 2002, it was heavily rumored that Pierre Lacroix had a deal done with Boston to send Chris Drury to the Bruins for Bill Guerin. The deal was contingent on Guerin agreeing to an extension with the Avs, but he was intent on testing free agency that summer and the deal was axed.
 

tarheelhockey

Offside Review Specialist
Feb 12, 2010
84,903
136,977
Bojangles Parking Lot
How about this one... in 1925, the expansion New York Americans were looking for players to start up their franchise. At the same time, the WHL was getting ready to fold and the Edmonton Eskimos were selling off their players.

Seeing an obvious opportunity, Tommy Gorman laid down $10K for three players: "Bullet" Joe Simpson, who was never really the same star in the east, and two other players who never amounted to anything for the Amerks.

Gorman also made an offer of $25K for the rest of the Eskimos' starting lineup. Edmonton countered at $50K. Gorman got back on the train to New York.

The other players Gorman walked away from, over a $25K disagreement? Duke Keats... George Hainsworth... and Eddie Shore.
 

FrozenJagrt

Registered User
Dec 16, 2009
10,445
4,488
To this day when I see this I wonder which deal for Toronto would have been better? For me I can't decide between the trade they would have hard for Jeff Carter or Chris Pronger. If I had to choose I think I would have liked to seen the trade for Carter since Mats Sundin left after that season as a UFA and Carter would have been the Leafs new #1 Centre at that time.

Pronger probably makes them more of a contender than Carter at this point, throwing into question whether or not Sundin would have even considered leaving at all. I think if the Leafs have Pronger, Sundin sticks around for one last hurrah.
 

Ricelund

̶W̶e̶ ̶l̶i̶k̶e̶ ̶o̶u̶r̶ ̶t̶e̶a̶m̶
Apr 16, 2006
8,705
4,602
New York, NY
It was heavily rumored that the Wings nearly traded Datsyuk for Scott Gomez after Edmonton upset Detroit in the '06 playoffs. Datsyuk was known as a playoff choker at the time.
 

mydnyte

Registered User
Sep 8, 2004
14,938
1,644
Leafs had Gretzky agreed to a contract, only to have soon to go broke owner Steve Stavro kill it, saying that Gretzky wasnt worth the $$ offered and agreed. In 96
 

LeafsNation75

Registered User
Jan 15, 2010
37,975
12,506
Toronto, Ontario
Pronger probably makes them more of a contender than Carter at this point, throwing into question whether or not Sundin would have even considered leaving at all. I think if the Leafs have Pronger, Sundin sticks around for one last hurrah.
The trade for Carter would have happened during the 2007-2008 season, which was Sundin's last with Toronto. Cliff Fletcher who was the Interim General Manager not going to offer Sundin another contract which is what happened.
 

FrozenJagrt

Registered User
Dec 16, 2009
10,445
4,488
The trade for Carter would have happened during the 2007-2008 season, which was Sundin's last with Toronto. Cliff Fletcher who was the Interim General Manager not going to offer Sundin another contract which is what happened.

I'm aware of the situation. What I'm saying is if the Leafs had acquired Pronger, they never would have needed Carter. Management wouldn't be hell bent on tearing it all down, meaning they wouldn't have tried to force Sundin out, meaning Sundin would have been more likely to sign an extension while management made moves to acquire other pieces for a playoff push.

Come to think of it, if Pronger does indeed make the Leafs a playoff team, JFJ probably still has a job and Leafs fans wouldn't have been subjected to the atrocious ineptitude that was Fletcher in his second go with the team. This also means no Burke, probably no Wilson (who, as we all know, was brought in because everyone and their dog knew that was who Burke would have wanted).

Just looking at the Leafs roster in that year. Adding Pronger likely means fewer minutes for McCabe, insulates him. Does he perform better without the pressure of being top dog? I would suggest yes. But then, does Toronto bring in Kubina? Not so sure about that. Maybe instead they target a guy like Corvo or Spacek. Maybe they go after another center like Savard. I believe Hasek was a free agent. Does he take a chance with the Leafs knowing Pronger will be shutting down half the defensive zone? Hasek to Toronto means no Raycroft of course.

I'm letting my imagination run wild. Long story short, Pronger to Toronto changes absolutely everything for the Leafs. Different mindset for management, allowing them to shore up other weak spots while being a more attractive destination for some players, and gives management a chance to better allocate their assets rather than wasting money on guys like Kubina, or sending away a top prospect for Raycroft.
 
Last edited:

LeafsNation75

Registered User
Jan 15, 2010
37,975
12,506
Toronto, Ontario
I'm aware of the situation. What I'm saying is if the Leafs had acquired Pronger, they never would have needed Carter. Management wouldn't be hell bent on tearing it all down, meaning they wouldn't have tried to force Sundin out, meaning Sundin would have been more likely to sign an extension while management made moves to acquire other pieces for a playoff push.

Come to think of it, if Pronger does indeed make the Leafs a playoff team, JFJ probably still has a job and Leafs fans wouldn't have been subjected to the atrocious ineptitude that was Fletcher in his second go with the team. This also means no Burke, probably no Wilson (who, as we all know, was brought in because everyone and their dog knew that was who Burke would have wanted).

Just looking at the Leafs roster in that year. Adding Pronger likely means fewer minutes for McCabe, insulates him. Does he perform better without the pressure of being top dog? I would suggest yes. But then, does Toronto bring in Kubina? Not so sure about that. Maybe instead they target a guy like Corvo or Spacek. Maybe they go after another center like Savard. I believe Hasek was a free agent. Does he take a chance with the Leafs knowing Pronger will be shutting down half the defensive zone? Hasek to Toronto means no Raycroft of course.

I'm letting my imagination run wild. Long story short, Pronger to Toronto changes absolutely everything for the Leafs. Different mindset for management, allowing them to shore up other weak spots while being a more attractive destination for some players, and gives management a chance to better allocate their assets rather than wasting money on guys like Kubina, or sending away a top prospect for Raycroft.
I will say if Toronto had Pronger chances are they make the playoffs during the 2006-2007 season. That was the year they finished 9th in the Eastern Conference 1 point out of 8th behind the Islanders, who only got in because of their shootout win during the 82nd game of the season.
 

Voight

#winning
Feb 8, 2012
40,261
16,510
Mulberry Street
I will say if Toronto had Pronger chances are they make the playoffs during the 2006-2007 season. That was the year they finished 9th in the Eastern Conference 1 point out of 8th behind the Islanders, who only got in because of their shootout win during the 82nd game of the season.

The legend of Wade Dubielewicz!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Plus peak Jason Blake :laugh:
 

Sanf

Registered User
Sep 8, 2012
1,943
902
My only source for this is a old discussion in rec.sport.hockey (So the source is bit iffy) but here is something well... interesting.

16.3.1990
"Another "almost" trade I heard on CBC was a blockbuster: Vincent Damphousse
and Daniel Marois to Quebec for Joe Sakic and Quebec's first round choice
next year (read: Eric Lindros). Apparently the Leafs felt that the gamble
that Quebec would pick first was too high."
 

FerrisRox

"Wanna go, Prettyboy?"
Sep 17, 2003
20,239
12,848
Toronto, Ontario
Yzerman was a playoff failure who was almost traded for Alexei Yashin in the mid 90s.

Also Keenan was close to trading Naslund for draft picks, but someone got injured so they needed him.

Around that same time the Red Wings had deep conversations with the Montreal Canadiens for a deal that would have sent Mathieu Schneider and another piece to Detroit for Yzerman. Jacques Demers, who was coaching the Canadiens at the time was lobbying hard for the deal. He would be fired four games into the season coming out of the off-season they tried to get him.
 

BigBadBruins7708

Registered User
Dec 11, 2017
13,558
18,296
Las Vegas
Iginla to Boston 2013

Bruins almost certainly win the Cup with Iginla that year.

As it was the Cup Finals had only 1 game decided by more than 1 goal, had a 3OT game and 2 more OT games.

Iginla would've been more than enough to tilt things in the Bruins favor. Irony being he likely cost himself the Cup he was chasing as well.
 

billybudd

Registered User
Feb 1, 2012
22,049
2,249
Jan Hrdina for Dainius Zubrus. The "almost" trade that "almost" happened on like 7 different occasions.
 
  • Like
Reactions: iamjs

FerrisRox

"Wanna go, Prettyboy?"
Sep 17, 2003
20,239
12,848
Toronto, Ontario
Is that verified? I always thought it would have been great if Lafleur had gone to Edmonton in 1984 instead of retiring. He really could have helped them.

No its not verified and it's not true.

It's been widely reported, by Lafleur and by Serge Savard that the notion of trading Lafleur in 1984 was flatly rejected when Guy requested he be moved.

Savard felt that Lafleur was part of the fabric of the organization and trading him would be considered sacrilegious in Montreal and for Savard personally, a move that would be seriously damaging to his management career. He simply told Guy he wouldn't entertain the idea.

Sadly, with his ice time continuing to diminish and his pride hurt with no other options, Lafleur retired.
 

FerrisRox

"Wanna go, Prettyboy?"
Sep 17, 2003
20,239
12,848
Toronto, Ontario
Years ago Mike Bossy told me that in 1988, after being out of hockey for a year and a half, he was skating on his own and his back was starting to feel a little bit better. The Los Angeles Kings reached out to him to see if he was considering a return to the National Hockey League and if he was, they were going to contact the New York Islanders about acquiring his rights.

Bossy felt that going to LA would be a high-pressure situation as he would be paired with Gretzky and he thought that if he was going to return, he would not want to be a heavily relied upon part of an organization because he suspected he would require days off, might require skipping back-to-back games, etc. He didn't feel like it was a good fit.

He continued to work out on his own and I think a year later, 1989-90 he began to seriously mull over the idea of returning to the NHL to give it another go. His agent contacted the Islanders, who had this point had transitioned away from his era with only Bryan Trottier left from the Cup teams and they were moving toward a new era with younger players. Bossy was told they would be happy to move him wherever he wanted to allow him to continue his career. Bossy and his agent agreed that Montreal would be a good fit because he was living there (in Laval) the team was in good shape and he could be just another piece and not a key component. The discussions had just begun when his back flared up and it fell part.

Bossy long believed that Serge Savard held a grudge about the situation because for a few years in the 1990's he approached the team about working for the organization in some capacity and he never got a response.
 
Last edited:
  • Like
Reactions: brachyrynchos

Jim MacDonald

Registered User
Oct 7, 2017
703
180
sakic to the rangers circa 97, until colorado matched


This is a very good one! I didn't even know about this until after Sakic's career ended too! I think Sakic signed an "offer sheet" 3 yrs/21 million if I read/heard correctly?
 

Iron Mike Sharpe

Registered User
Dec 6, 2017
945
1,118
Clarke thought he had the following deal all wrapped up, until Arthur Griffiths pulled out at the last minute and went with the Bruins late offer.

Brian Propp, Rich Sutter, Dave Richter and a 1986 #1
for
Cam Neely, J.J. Daigneault and a 1986 #1

Vancouver media later disputed that deal saying that the flyers were not offering all of that--but through time more got added.

Propp was coming off of a 90pt 40 goal season and Pederson a 76pts 29 goal season

I am an oiler fan--so I do not have a dog in the fight

I call BS on this one, probably revisionist history made up once Neely became an impact player for the Bruins. But this one doesn't pass the smell test:

(1) Neely was never traded & was probably never on the trading block. The Canucks signed Barry Pederson as an RFA, & Neely was awarded as part of the compensation package by the arbitrator because the Canucks left him unprotected. Once Neely broke, the media retroactively rebranded the signing as a trade to paint Neely as basically the steal of the century, an everlasting symbol of the incompetence of Canucks management. Rolling into the 86-87 season, Vancouver media was still playing it as a high impact free agent signing, with Neely little more than an afterthought.

(2) The deal, on its face, makes little sense: while it is possible that Clarke was interested in Neely, I can't imagine him dangling Propp, a perrenial 40 goal guy, Selke & All-Star Team candidate & the team's leading scorer, including leading the team in their run to the 85 Cup Final. Propp would have had very high value, arguably even higher than Pederson, but Neely's own worth at the time would've been considerably less, & Clarke would not have had to offer up Propp to wrest Neely from Jack Gordon, who wasn't exactly known as a shrewd trader. Further, Neely never had the big hype in Vancouver other top prospects had, & was already on the hotseat for poor defensive play & was starting to be considered a bit of a bust of sorts, at least by coach Tom Watt. Heck, they were projecting Jim Sandlak higher than Neely. This was the 80s: if a young player had three years in the NHL & hadn't broken out yet, he was generally considered a bust, because most guys in this era who became elite players usually showed it in their first season.

(3) The Daigneault for Sutter-Richter trade happened the same day Neely was awarded to the Bruins. It's easy to sell an urban legend based off this years later because they can say "there was this last minute feeding frenzy for Neely & Clarke had a deal almost closed before Neely was traded!" giving some sort of illusion that Neely was a hot property on the trading block & there was some kind of race to get him, with bonafide NHL stars like Pederson & Propp offered up for the hot young talent. Nonsense: Neely was likely not on the radar of many GMs at that point.
 

Brodeur

Registered User
Feb 27, 2002
25,775
15,084
San Diego
Interesting one I stumbled on looking up the Iginla/Nieuwendyk trade when Iggy retired last week: What's An Iginla? Flames Know

Several teams, including the Panthers, were interested in Nieuwendyk. The Rangers reportedly offered Ray Ferraro and a prospect; New Jersey dangled Bill Guerin and a prospect; at one point Dallas offered Dave Gagner and others.

Can't classify it as "close" but I was amused to see that Lou went after Nieuwendyk back in 1995 before finally acquiring him in 2002. Nieuwendyk starred at Cornell during the tail end of Lou's tenure at Providence College.

Interesting that the Flames opted for an 18 year old Iginla over a 25 year old Guerin who had some moderate success to that point.

If the Devils get Nieuwendyk for 1995-96, maybe they don't bother trading for Doug Gilmour the following year? No Guerin means the Arnott trade maybe never happens. But as it unfolded, Arnott was used to get Nieuwendyk and Langenbrunner eventually.
 
  • Like
Reactions: brachyrynchos

brachyrynchos

Registered User
Apr 10, 2017
1,472
997
1995 Selanne to Washington, Jets would get defensemen Sylvain Cote and Nolan Baumgartner along with center Jason Allison. Caps owner Abe Pollin was worried about paying Selanne (rfa) his $3-3.5M asking price.
Washington Post 9/8/95
 

Brodeur

Registered User
Feb 27, 2002
25,775
15,084
San Diego
Speaking of Jason Allison.......

When Mike Keenan was in St. Louis, he had a deal in place to trade for Allison in 1995 which would have included the Blues' 1st round pick in 1996. The Blues owner didn't sign off on the trade since the team was hosting the 1996 Draft (and St. Louis hadn't had a first round pick from 1991-95 due to the Scott Stevens signing). The trade fell through and St. Louis would eventually take Marty Reasoner with the pick.

Edit: Keenan and Allison would eventually end up together on the 2000-01 Boston Bruins. Allison had a career year with 95 points after Keenan took over Pat Burns less than a month into the season. Keenan would be fired after the season and Allison would be traded to LA after a holdout.
 
Last edited:
  • Like
Reactions: brachyrynchos

CharlestownChiefsESC

Registered User
Sep 17, 2008
1,218
416
Laurence Harbor NJ
Interesting one I stumbled on looking up the Iginla/Nieuwendyk trade when Iggy retired last week: What's An Iginla? Flames Know



Can't classify it as "close" but I was amused to see that Lou went after Nieuwendyk back in 1995 before finally acquiring him in 2002. Nieuwendyk starred at Cornell during the tail end of Lou's tenure at Providence College.

Interesting that the Flames opted for an 18 year old Iginla over a 25 year old Guerin who had some moderate success to that point.

If the Devils get Nieuwendyk for 1995-96, maybe they don't bother trading for Doug Gilmour the following year? No Guerin means the Arnott trade maybe never happens. But as it unfolded, Arnott was used to get Nieuwendyk and Langenbrunner eventually.

If the Rangers grabbed Nieuwendyk they probably never go after Gretzky. Rumor had it Nieuwendyk wanted to come to NY, his cousin was Beukeboom
 

brachyrynchos

Registered User
Apr 10, 2017
1,472
997
Back in '96 Hartford GM Jim Rutherford offered 27yr old winger Brendan Shanahan to the Rangers. His asking price was Alexei Kovalev, Dan Cloutier, Christian Dube, and Jeff Brown (not that Jeff Brown, the other one), a price Neil Smith thought was too high.
A few years later, Brian Burke offered Pavel Bure to NYR in exchange for Cloutier, Manny Malhotra, Niklas Sundstrom, and a #1. Smith again refused.

NY Post 1/24/99 Brooks
 

Ad

Upcoming events

Ad

Ad

-->