Evander Kane Trade

Blockbuster: Not Just a Former Movie Rental Giant

Okay I understand that Hockey is not the biggest sport in America, so when Evander Kane and Tyler Myers headline a sports trade, most Americans will not bat an eye lash, but to Canadians, Europeans, and a select group of die hards in the U.S, this is a big conversation piece.  Evander Kane is a controversial athlete who made headlines while in Winnipeg for such instances as pretending stacks of cash was a phone and posting the pictures on social media a la Floyd "Money" Mayweather and displaying a careless attitude on and off the ice.  Tyler Myers is a huge defenseman who won the Calder trophy in 2010 after putting up 48 points and earning a +13 plus/minus stat and following that up with a  37 point sophomore season, his first two seasons had him on track for stardom but since then he has been plagued with injuries and declining offensive numbers.  Tyler Myers is 25 and Evander Kane is only 23, both have a few years until they reach their peaks and both were high picks in their respective draft years who were put into situations where they can be more successful.  Evander Kane was traded to The Buffalo Sabres today with Tyler Myers going the other way to The Winnipeg Jets.

The other pieces

As was stated above, Evander Kane was traded for Tyler Myers, those were the high profile guys that make this a blockbuster, however each team had other pieces being exchanged

Buffalo

Zach Bogosian- Bogo as he was affectionately called in Atlanta and Winnipeg was drafted in the same class as Tyler Myers, but 9 spots ahead of Tyler.  Zach has not had the same success as Drew Doughty (who has) the only d-man selected before him in 2008, or even equal success to Myers for that matter, he started off his career in 2008 scoring 19 points in 47 games, following that up with 23 points in 81 games his sophomore season, his numbers were going up but he was still a negative player in the plus/minus department, in fact aside from his rookie season, he was not a plus player until the 2013-2014 year and this current season.  Zach is a hard worker on the ice, his numbers are going down on the offensive side but as a defensemen he is becoming a stalwart and should be a good presence for the influx of talent that Buffalo will be getting in the coming years.  Bogosian is also a New York state native from Massena so this should be a pleasant change of scenery for him.

Jason Kasdorf- Kasdorf is a big man in net, 6'4 and nearly 200 pounds, that being said he was a 6th round pick in 2011 with decent, down to mediocre stats at a not so good ECAC team in RPI.  Kasdorft was a throw in piece in this trade, he is 22, almost 23 and only a junior in college who was an unsigned piece for Winnipeg.  Jason represents a guy who could do well in the system and be a steal, or stay the same and be a trivia answer for years to come referencing this deal.

Winnipeg

Joel Armia- This Finn has the frame to be a power forward, drafted in 2011, he is listed at 6'3 and 187 pounds, at the time he was only about 160 pounds so his talent and size did not make him a top 5 or top 10 pick that season.  Joel has taken some time, but has also played against men in Europe for 3 seasons until he was 20, and then he came over to play in the AHL, scoring at almost a point per game rate in Europe and a half point per game in his rookie season in America.  This season Armia made his NHL debut, playing in one game and scoring zero points, however he has been successful in the minors with 25 points in 33 games.  Joel could have been a piece to the future for Buffalo, but will be taking his talents to Western Canada instead, where I believe he will blossom, slowly but surely into a stud power forward in the NHL and olympics for years to come, The Sabres were not smart in giving him up, they must have felt that their hand was forced.

Drew Stafford- Stafford was a long time Sabre who will probably miss the fans, but he could very well be playing in the playoffs this April instead of seeing who his team will choose with their lottery pick.  Drew had fluctuating success over the past 10 years in Buffalo, ranging between near point per game stats, and years of below half point per game stats.  Overall in 563 games in a Sabres sweater, Drew amassed 322 points, on average he had a successful, long term run, but it's time for the 29 year old to seek team success and the ultimate goal.  Winnipeg wins this acquisition too as they add and experienced piece who saw playoff minutes regularly in the late 2000's.

Brendan Lemieux-  Lemieux is a big body left hand shot winger who shares my birthday, The difference between me and him is that he is a 18, almost 19 year old current junior player who has the build and borderline 1st round talent to make it in the NHL, he was picked this past June in the 2nd round but with the first pick of that round.  Lemieux is currently enjoying a 50 point in 46 game season with the Barrie Colts of the Ontario Hockey League.  Brendan has 35 goals in those 46 games so there's no hiding the fact that he can put the puck in the net.  The 18 year old goal scorer has a famous hockey father for an agent, that's right, a Lemieux who enjoyed a successful hockey career in the pros, okay it's Claude and not Mario, but he did score 786 points in 1215 games and win 4 stanley cups with Montreal, New Jersey, and Colorado.  This would be an awful loss for the Buffalo organization but Claude made it known that his son would not sign with the Sabres so it is good that Buffalo got rid of him as part of a package without seeing him go for nothing.  Brendan is a big body who could replace the hole left by Evander Kane down the road.

1st Round pick in 2015- The Sabres have 3 picks this season and it is up to them which one will go to Winnipeg, unless The Buffalo brass is brain dead they will likely pick the later round pick and not their first pick which will likely be generational player A or B, Connor McDavid or Jack Eichel.  first round picks are always nice regardless of where they sit and you can always catch a diamond in the rough in the later stages so this could be good for Winnipeg or it could mean nothing, they can't lose because they got the better pieces in this deal.

Conclusion

At first glance you may think that Buffalo won this trade, they acquired Evander Kane who could be paired with either Jack Eichel or Connor McDavid on their first line for the next decade and put up unreal points.  Zach Bogosian could revel in the role as a veteran defenseman, patrolling the blue line with youngsters Nikita Zadorov, and Rasmus Ristolainen.  Jason Kasdorf could be a steal and turn into a franchise goaltender or another piece in another big trade in the future.  The Sabres are a rebuilding franchise, and they gave up a long time veteran, a monster defenseman, a possible stud first rounder, and a number 1 goaltender in a trade made later in the day for a forward with attitude problems who gave up on his former team, an average defenseman, and a 6th round college goalie who could likely get dealt again, in their later trade where they gave up Jhonas Enroth, they got back a crappy back up in Anders Lindback.  Winnipeg got a stud prospect, a Huge Defenseman who can protect another solid blue liner, Tobias Enstrom, and a veteran forward who could be plugged in on the 3rd line and produce.  On top of all Winnipeg got for sure, they could turn their draft pick they received into another piece for a successful future.  Buffalo was bold today and I admire what Tim Murray is trying to do there, but his hand seemed forced in who he gave up and what he got in return is a huge question mark, time will tell but I proclaim Winnipeg as the immediate Winner.