If the trade deadline is Christmas morning for NHL fans, today is Easter — a day when their favourite team can be reborn.
Pundits and experts will debate ad nauseum through out the weekend over who were the saints and the sinners of tonight’s draft, but the fact is it will take years to compile a proper Book of Life.
There are many strategies to executing a successful draft, the best approach, however, seems to be just to take the best player available regardless of your team’s needs — and if you’re drafting early enough that player is likely a need anyway.
The thing is, by the time that player reaches the NHL or his full potential — for those prospects that make the jump to the show the next season — the team will look far different than on draft day.
It’s also a huge risk to get too cute at the draft when it comes to trading down, especially early in the draft where the chances for a prospect’s success are the highest.
The Florida Panthers had the first overall picks in 2002 and 2003 and both years traded down to No. 3. In 2002 the Columbus Blue Jackets took Rick Nash first overall while the Panthers got Jay Bouwmeester. In 2003 the Pittsburgh Penguins surprised some by jumping up and taking goalie Marc-Andre Fleury with the top pick while the Panthers took Nathan Horton with the third pick. But that left the Carolina Hurricanes open to take Eric Staal at No. 2.
The benefit to the Panthers out of all of this — the option to swap first-round picks in the 2003 draft with Columbus, and swapping a third-round pick for a second-rounder with Pittsbugh and Mikael Samuelsson.
None of those assets remain in Florida and they have had nothing but early tee times since as the franchise flounders in Miami. Those top picks, meanwhile, are still with their original clubs and among the elite of the NHL. The Penguins and the Hurricanes also have gone on to win the Stanley Cup.
This would be what we call a complete fail on the part of the Panthers.
Even if the top prospect you want has no intention of ever signing with you, like Eric Lindros with the Quebec Nordiques, you still draft them. It still gives you the asset to move.
The trade the Nordiques made with the Philadelphia Flyers set the franchise up for the next decade.
Always take the best player.
The most famous draft day trade of all time was pulled off by Brian Burke in 1999 when, through much finagling and dealing, worked his way into the second and third spots overall and the Vancouver Canucks walked away with a pair of Swedish twins.
But even then it took upwards of nine seasons for them to reach their full potential.
What looks like a genius move now was a critical lightning rod for years.
Impatience by a fan base and ownership group can cost a general manager his job.
And patience is the hardest thing to ask for fans to deal with, especially with all of the immediate positive PR they are hit with by the organization — which has its hands out looking for season ticket renewals — following the draft.
Post-lockout the draft has reached new heights of importance.
It is a high stakes game.
Guessing right about the long-term abilities of a kid who can’t yet shave is the difference between irrelevance and lost jobs and re-emerging as a Stanley Cup contender.
It is a complete crap shoot that will result in hockey heaven or hell.
And not every team gets reborn.
jaldrich@www.reddeeradvocate.com
twitter.com/Ridingthepine03