There have been a number of controversial NHL trades over the years. The deal that sent Wayne Gretzky from the Edmonton Oilers to the Los Angeles Kings immediately comes to everyone’s mind, while others remember the Joe Thornton trade that saw Jumbo Joe traded from the Boston Bruins to the San Jose Sharks.
In their own way, each trade changed hockey. In Los Angeles, Gretzky put the Kings on the hockey map, while in San Jose, Thornton lifted the franchise from also-ran into perpetual Stanley Cup contender.
While not on the same level, the deal that saw Phil Kessel traded from the Boston Bruins to the Toronto Maple Leafs has also been deemed highly controversial—especially here in Toronto where, prior to this season, many Maple Leaf fans deemed the trade to be a disaster.
On September 9th, 2009, Toronto Maple Leafs general manager Brian Burke traded a first and a second round pick in 2010, and a first rounder in 2011 in exchange for Kessel.
Kessel immediately agreed to a five-year, $27 million deal, effectively changing the course of the Maple Leafs franchise, for better or for worse.
At the time of the deal Burke stated that he felt his ...
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Article written by Mark Ritter
Toronto Maple Leafs: The Phil Kessel Deal Was Worth It…Really!
April 4th, 2011 by Mark Ritter Leave a reply »
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