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NHL Trade Deadline: Ranking every team’s worst ever trade

By David Rouben

SACRAMENTO, CA - APRIL 3: Wayne Gretzky of the Los Angeles Kings in action against the Edmonton Oilers at the Arco Arena on April 3, 1994 in Sacramento, California. The Kings defeated the Oilers 6-1. (Photo by Rocky Widner/Getty Images)
SACRAMENTO, CA - APRIL 3: Wayne Gretzky of the Los Angeles Kings in action against the Edmonton Oilers at the Arco Arena on April 3, 1994 in Sacramento, California. The Kings defeated the Oilers 6-1. (Photo by Rocky Widner/Getty Images) /
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1975: Phil Esposito
1975: Phil Esposito /

11: Chicago Blackhawks

The Chicago Blackhawks are a modern day dynasty, but before they were they were sub-par for a long time. Blackhawks fans probably couldn’t tell you that, though, nor could they tell you who their captain was before Jonathan Toews.

Even during the down years, Chicago boasted one of the best goalies of all time in Tony Esposito. His brother, Phil, was a legend and they could’ve played together. But during a team party, Phil said to his coach and general manager: “We’ve got a great team here, you could almost have a dynasty, but you two are gonna screw it up.” And boy did they.

Phil Esposito, Ken Hodge, and Fred Stanfield have all established their place in Bruins folklore. Pit Martin turned out to be pretty good for the Blackhawks – he lasted 10 seasons there and often scored anywhere between 70 to 90 points per season. But Jack Norris spent most of his time in the minors, only getting called up 10 times over the course of two seasons while Gilles Marotte got shipped off to the Kings within three seasons. And Martin’s production doesn’t hold a candle to the numbers their Bruins counterparts put up.

After being a basement dweller for so long, Chicago practically made Boston a powerhouse team. While Hodge, Stanfield, and Esposito were there the Bruins made the playoffs every year and won the Stanley Cup twice. Esposito led the league in points five times in addition to being a two-time Hart winner. While with the Bruins, Ken Hodge hit the 105-point mark twice and proved a nice complement to Esposito’s scoring. And when opposing teams were sick of dealing with those two, Fred Stanfield would terrorize secondary units. He put up consistent tallies, scoring at least 20 goals in every season with the Bruins.

Luckily for the Blackhawks, they were finally able to break their 49-year long Stanley Cup drought in 2010 but you’ve got to imagine it would’ve been over a lot sooner had this deal never happened.

Next: 10: Calgary Flames

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