jkrdevil
03-02-2009, 05:30 PM
ESPN.com is running a story where they talked to current GM's about past trade deadline experiences. Pierre Lebrun talked to Lou about the 2002 Trade deadline, the one that brought Nieuwendyk and Langs over from Dallas.
Lou Lamoriello, New Jersey Devils
Devils GM Lou Lamoriello had already performed shock treatment on this team in January 2002 when he fired coach Larry Robinson and replaced him with Kevin Constantine. But things still didn't sit well with the veteran hockey man, so he pulled the trigger on a huge deadline deal.
On March 19, 2002, Dallas traded center Joe Nieuwendyk and winger Jamie Langenbrunner to New Jersey for center Jason Arnott, winger Randy McKay and New Jersey's first-round pick (later traded away by Dallas) in the 2002 draft.
"At that time, our team needed sort of a wake-up call," recalled Lamoriello. "We weren't really, in my mind, achieving where we should. Sometimes you have to make decisions that you don't like to make. The two players that we gave up, Jason Arnott and Randy McKay, were real good players for us. But we had the opportunity to get Joe Nieuwendyk and Jamie Langenbrunner."
In Nieuwendyk, the Devils were adding a quality veteran with two Stanley Cup rings, a star player oozing character and leadership. Langenbrunner was the lesser-known quantity at the time, but Lamoriello had long ago put him on his wish list.
"Jamie I had on the Olympic team [in Nagano in 1998]," said Lamoriello. "In fact, Jamie was the next player to be selected when we put the team together, and when Shawn McEachern came down with a sore back, I called Jamie and I'll never forget the conversation I had with him. I said, 'I know that your wife is expecting any minute, so if you feel this isn't the right thing to do now …' He didn't even let me finish talking. He said, 'What's my flight arrangements?'
"In saying that, I had seen his character and work ethic with the Olympic program, and when we had that opportunity to get those two players, we felt really good. It certainly paid major dividends the following year when we won the Cup."
And that's the point. While the deal itself didn't pay off right off the bat (the Devils lost in the first round in 2002), those two players had a huge part in the 2003 Cup-winning team.
"Joe Nieuwendyk was hurt in the playoffs of '03, but his presence and character played a role," said Lamoriello.
Lamoriello couldn't remember the exact time frame of the talks with former Dallas GM Bob Gainey, but knows it's a deal that didn't just pop up on deadline day.
"It was a big deal, so it wasn't something that just happened in two minutes," said Lamoriello. "It's either going to work or it's never going to work. And both Bob and I were in similar situations at that time, as far as the thought process of what both our teams needed. Two quality players were traded for two quality players. It was a win-win for both teams."
Dangling a star player like Arnott would bring a lot of attention, but Lamoriello doesn't remember being close with any other team on a deal.
"Funny, but I never remember the things that don't happen," he said with a laugh. "Unless it was something that was very, very close, and there really wasn't at that time. This was something that Bob and I talked about and found a way to get done." --Pierre LeBrun
http://sports.espn.go.com/nhl/news/story?id=3946240
There are other stories from guys like Holland, Rutherford, Poile ect. It's a good read.
Lou Lamoriello, New Jersey Devils
Devils GM Lou Lamoriello had already performed shock treatment on this team in January 2002 when he fired coach Larry Robinson and replaced him with Kevin Constantine. But things still didn't sit well with the veteran hockey man, so he pulled the trigger on a huge deadline deal.
On March 19, 2002, Dallas traded center Joe Nieuwendyk and winger Jamie Langenbrunner to New Jersey for center Jason Arnott, winger Randy McKay and New Jersey's first-round pick (later traded away by Dallas) in the 2002 draft.
"At that time, our team needed sort of a wake-up call," recalled Lamoriello. "We weren't really, in my mind, achieving where we should. Sometimes you have to make decisions that you don't like to make. The two players that we gave up, Jason Arnott and Randy McKay, were real good players for us. But we had the opportunity to get Joe Nieuwendyk and Jamie Langenbrunner."
In Nieuwendyk, the Devils were adding a quality veteran with two Stanley Cup rings, a star player oozing character and leadership. Langenbrunner was the lesser-known quantity at the time, but Lamoriello had long ago put him on his wish list.
"Jamie I had on the Olympic team [in Nagano in 1998]," said Lamoriello. "In fact, Jamie was the next player to be selected when we put the team together, and when Shawn McEachern came down with a sore back, I called Jamie and I'll never forget the conversation I had with him. I said, 'I know that your wife is expecting any minute, so if you feel this isn't the right thing to do now …' He didn't even let me finish talking. He said, 'What's my flight arrangements?'
"In saying that, I had seen his character and work ethic with the Olympic program, and when we had that opportunity to get those two players, we felt really good. It certainly paid major dividends the following year when we won the Cup."
And that's the point. While the deal itself didn't pay off right off the bat (the Devils lost in the first round in 2002), those two players had a huge part in the 2003 Cup-winning team.
"Joe Nieuwendyk was hurt in the playoffs of '03, but his presence and character played a role," said Lamoriello.
Lamoriello couldn't remember the exact time frame of the talks with former Dallas GM Bob Gainey, but knows it's a deal that didn't just pop up on deadline day.
"It was a big deal, so it wasn't something that just happened in two minutes," said Lamoriello. "It's either going to work or it's never going to work. And both Bob and I were in similar situations at that time, as far as the thought process of what both our teams needed. Two quality players were traded for two quality players. It was a win-win for both teams."
Dangling a star player like Arnott would bring a lot of attention, but Lamoriello doesn't remember being close with any other team on a deal.
"Funny, but I never remember the things that don't happen," he said with a laugh. "Unless it was something that was very, very close, and there really wasn't at that time. This was something that Bob and I talked about and found a way to get done." --Pierre LeBrun
http://sports.espn.go.com/nhl/news/story?id=3946240
There are other stories from guys like Holland, Rutherford, Poile ect. It's a good read.