Over the past few years, the words "trade" and "trade deadline" have had multiple meanings for Capitals fans.
Firstly, they had a negative connotation. They were associated with the rebuilding phase that was taking place in the US Capital and with the subsequent trading of talented players for draft picks and prospects. This point in time could not be represented in better fashion than by the 2003-04 season, more precisely by the last month before the Trade Deadline. At this point in time, one after the other, Washington stars Jaromir Jagr (New York), Peter Bondra (Ottawa), Robert Lang (Detroit) and Sergei Gonchar (Boston) were sent on planes heading north of the Verizon Center. In total, these 4 trades amassed a surprising total of 4 players, including forwards Anson Carter, Brooks Laich and Tomas Fleischmann and defenceman Shaone Morrisonn, as well as 5 draft picks (2 first rounders in 2004, 2 second rounders in 2004 and 1 fourth rounder in 2006) and obtained an important salary relief. One year later, the Capitals continued to part ways with veterans for draft picks, as they did with fan-favourite Brendan Witt and forward Jeff Friesen. The following season, the tide seemed to change when the Capitals signed enforcer Donald Brashear and defencemen Brian Pothier and John Erskine, indicating the team might not be so distant from reclaiming its' past success. But another disappointing season led them once more to trading several veterans for some future hope, incarnated by draft selections. It was then a dark time in the Capital as there was no indication that the team was near any form of revival, even after all these sacrifices.
But suddenly all of that changed. The past failure seemed to subside and the sacrifices looked worthwile: the Capitals were now winning with a new coach and some of these draft picks coming into their own, such as Mike Green and Alexander Semin. The 2008 trade deadline offered Caps fans finally a glimmer of hope as the team was commencing its' historic comeback toward a Southeast Division championship. It was the first time general manager George McPhee had been placed in such a situation in several years: he was now a "buyer". Not knowing what to expect, the media and the fans awaited with excitement February 26th. On this day, the Capitals made a splash in the NHL pond as they acquired veteran goaltender Cristobal Huet from the Montreal Canadiens and forwards Sergei Fedorov and Matt Cooke from the Columbus Blue Jackets and the Vancouver Canucks, respectively. These acquisitions proved to be exactly what the club needed to obtain it's first playoff birth since the 2002-03 season, as it won 10 of its' last 11 games.
Heading into this year's trade deadline, we only remember too well George McPhee's potential to astound us with his creativeness. Among the names that have been linked to DC are forward Bill Guerin and defenceman Derek Morris. The Nylander situation has also been a source of media speculation. Unbeknownst to me is the pertinence of the acquisiton of Bill Guerin, since his offensive production, 16 goals and 20 assists in 61 games, would only make him another regular face in this already crowded bottom 3 lines. On the other hand, the acquisition of a veteran defenceman such as Derek Morris would provide some much needed stability to the back end of the Capitals' defensive corps, an important factor in the team's and in Jose Theodore's success. Lastly, as much as we would like Nyles to be traded, not due to him being a bad teammate or producer (give him a fair chance, he was put on the 3rd line as opposed to the 1st where he had been successful in the past), I guarantee he will remain part of the team through the 3:00 PM EST NHL Trade Deadline. But even then, with GMGM, you truly never know what might happen...
