HabsCast Hockey Blog

Some are going to mention Gretzky leaving Edmonton, but the Oilers were still competitive after he departed (ie Cup win in ‘90).

No doubt Gordie Howe is Mr. Hockey, but the Red Wings lost a lot when Ted Lindsay was held accountable for trying to form a player’s association.

To a smaller scale, the Sabres were among the league elite in the mid-70’s. Rick Dudley was a role player (but a catalyst) and he was never effectively replaced after jumping to Cincinnati of the WHA. It was believed that the Sabres were still a great team, but then they became mediocre as a result of Scotty Bowman’s moves as GM.

The trading of Kirk Muller to the Islanders helped accelerate the Habs decline in the 90’s, which the organization hasn’t fully recovered from. Muller was also an essential piece in the Habs ‘93 Stanley Cup team, and loved playing in the city.

What did the Muller trade give the Habs in return? A softie in Turgeon.

Quote:

I’m sitting between Eric Lindros and John LeClair in the Flyers locker room when word comes that the Canadiens have traded captain Kirk Muller, defenseman Mathieu Schneider and center prospect Chris Darby to the Islanders for center Pierre Turgeon and defenseman Vladimir Malakhov in what proved to be the biggest deal before the NHL’s trading deadline last Friday.

“No way,” LeClair says. “No way would the Canadiens trade Kirk Muller. No way.”

“Way,” says the teammate who delivers news of the trade.

“I just can’t believe it,” LeClair says. “Pierre Turgeon? He would have to score 150 points in Montreal to come close to doing for the Canadiens what Kirk Muller did.”

Article Edge goes to Islanders in biggest deadline deal

This trade directly contributed to the Habs becoming a one line team (Damphousse-Turgeon-Recchi) during the final days of Jacques Demers tenure. The Habs eventually realized the mistake, by bringing Shane Corson back to add grit, but this deal, coupled with the LeClair to Philly trade, damaged the organization for years.

[Topic via HFBoards.com]

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