We're into the second half of the hockey season, and the push for the playoffs begin!

Teams Learning From Others’ Mistakes

Written by: Tyler Bodman on 2nd March 2009

Teams Learning From Others' Mistakes | read this item

The trade deadline is hours away and many general managers are trying to decide if winning today is worth giving up future assets.

There are plenty of teams every year that make deals just to get into the playoffs due to pressures of their market place. Two years ago the New York Islanders made the biggest move of the day by acquiring forward Ryan Smyth. The cost? Three former first-round picks. Same thing happened with the Atlanta Thrashers, they sold their soul only to be swept in four games.

Now look at these two teams. Last and second last.

This season, a few teams are in similar situations; The Florida Panthers haven’t made the playoffs since being ousted by the New Jersey Devils in the first-round in ‘00; Columbus has yet to make the playoffs since coming into the league in the ’01-’02 season; and St. Louis hasn’t made the playoffs since ’04 after going a record 25-years in a row in the playoffs.

“We’re not in that panic,” said Davidson. “We can relax a little bit, not have to rush into it as much as we have in the past.”

So, is it worth mortgaging the future for a chance at short-term success?

In a word, no.

As Blues president John Davidson stated in a conference call, “we have to sell hockey in the City of St. Louis and surrounding areas. Right now they’re on board with us with the way we’ve gone about our business.”

The Blues have been rebuilding for a few years now and would rather try to win with the group they have than going out and dealing future pieces away. Which means don’t be surprised if forward Keith Tkachuk isn’t dealt on Wednesday. “We’re not in that panic,” said Davidson. “We can relax a little bit, not have to rush into it as much as we have in the past.”

The Blue Jackets are in a similar situation. GM Scott Howson is in his second year with the club, his first full season. He doesn’t have the pressure that other GM’s may have. And, the city is rallying around him and his team during their playoff push.

“There’s certainly excitement in the building and in the city right now,” said Howson. “You can see that in the buzz in the building. The building is different now than it was two months ago.”

However, like Davidson, Howson isn’t willing to deal top picks for just anyone.

“Not really, no. I think my thinking is that we would give up a first-round pick obviously for a really good player that’s going to be with the Blue Jackets for a while,” said Howson. “That’s the one case where we would do it. The other case where we’d do it is if we really believe we had a shot to win the Stanley Cup and we were in the top three or four in the count.”
As for the Panthers GM Jacques Martin, he agrees with the other two.

“Well, I think we appreciate our fans a great deal, but I think from a management standpoint,” said Martin. “You can’t manage your franchise or your hockey team according to the fans.”

Maybe it was because of the poor deals that the Thrashers and Islanders made two years ago or maybe it’s because of where those two teams are sitting in the standings this season. Either way you look at it teams are going to be more conservative when dealing top-prospects and picks at this yea’s deadline.

Topics: Columbus Blue Jackets, Florida Panthers, GM Jacques Martin, GM John Davidson, NHL Trade Deadline, St. Louis Blues, Trade Deadline 2009