Hull would go on to record three straight 70-plus goal seasons and win an MVP in St. Louis might hold the distinction of being the most lopsided trade in sports history that neither team is all that unhappy with.įrom the Blues’ side, it was a heist.

The trade that sent Brett Hull from Calgary to St. Francis was the franchise, and seeing him dealt away devastated the fanbase. It was, to put it mildly, a questionable move for the Whalers. 500 and coming off a four-game losing streak, GM Craig Patrick apparently decided that they needed something more.Īnd so, a week before the 1991 deadline, Patrick swung one of the biggest trades of the era, sending John Cullen, Jeff Parker and Zarley Zalapski to Hartford for Francis, Ulf Samuelsson and Grant Jennings. But with his team hovering just two games over. The 1990–91 Penguins were already stacked, boasting future Hall of Famers like Mario Lemieux, Paul Coffey, Larry Murphy, Joe Mullen and Bryan Trottier, not to mention a team-leading 113-point season from Mark Recchi and a rookie with funny hair named Jaromir Jagr. Ron Francis, Pittsburgh Penguins (March 4, 1991) Will this year’s deadline add anyone to the team? Time will tell. Consider it a reminder that every now and then, a smart and/or lucky GM can land a major difference-maker with the right deadline move. But that still gives us plenty of big names to choose from. We’re only looking at what each player did with his new team here, and we’re not counting draft picks that turned into stars ( we covered a few of those last week).

Today, let’s put together a full roster of the best trade deadline–week acquisitions in league history.

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