On Sunday night, Newsday reporter Arthur Staple broke the news of a blockbuster deal between the New York Islanders and Buffalo Sabres.
In one way, it’s a perfectly logical trade: a rebuilding team moving a pending free agent to a club with playoff ambitions. In another, it’s fascinating because of what it says about the two teams involved.
Let’s start with the New York Islanders.
Conventional wisdom says that the team that comes away with the best player usually wins the deal, and there is no arguing that Thomas Vanek is the best player in this deal. The question is whether he’s enough of an upgrade over Matt Moulson to be worth the significant price (a first- and second-round draft pick) paid.
Contract-wise, both players are pending unrestricted free agents.
Vanek has been relatively durable, missing 27 games in total over the last four seasons. Moulson has been even better, with just a single game lost in that span. For all that Vanek’s reputation outshines Moulson’s, the scoring rates are comparable, too: Over an average 82 games Vanek scores ...
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Article written by Jonathan Willis
Islanders Gamble on Thomas Vanek; Sabres Play It Safe with Matt Moulson, Picks
October 28th, 2013 by Jonathan Willis Leave a reply »
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