Fansided

Looking back at the 5 worst trades in NHL history

By Dave Stevenson

BOSTON,MA. - 1980's: Patrick Roy #33 of the Montreal Canadiens makes stick save against the Boston Bruins in game at the Boston Garden. (Photo by Steve Babineau/NHLI via Getty Images)
BOSTON,MA. - 1980's: Patrick Roy #33 of the Montreal Canadiens makes stick save against the Boston Bruins in game at the Boston Garden. (Photo by Steve Babineau/NHLI via Getty Images) /
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There have been a lot of awful trades in NHL history, but here are the five worst. 

In every trade, there’s a winner and a loser. It’s usually clear. Sometimes, you can argue both teams won. But that’s just a lie used to justify trades. Throughout the NHL’s 100-plus years, there have been a ton of trades. A few of them stand out because of how awful they are.

Let’s set some guidelines. First of all, hindsight is allowed. If you trade a Hall of Fame player in his prime for nothing, there’s no justifying that. Secondly, how much did the trade hurt the team? Thirdly, just how horrendous was the trade?

Before the top five, let’s look at some honorable mentions. The Filip Forsberg for Martin Erat and Michael Latta trade was horrible. It led to the Washington Capitals firing both general manager George McPhee and head coach Adam Oates.

However, the Forsberg trade also led the Caps to eventually hire Brian MacLellan and Barry Trotz, who led the franchise to their first Stanley Cup. Also, if Washington still has Forsberg, guess what? The T.J. Oshie trade doesn’t happen. It’s hard to imagine the Caps winning the Stanley Cup without his valuable production in the playoffs.

Now let’s look at which trades are the worst.

Photo by Bruce Bennett Studios/Getty Images
Photo by Bruce Bennett Studios/Getty Images /

5. Calgary Flames Trade Brett Hull

In 1987-88, the Calgary Flames were on the verge of winning a Stanley Cup. To get some reinforcements, they traded for defenseman Rob Ramage and goaltender Rick Wamsley of the St. Louis Blues.

The Flames, however, paid a very hefty price in forward Brett Hull, who had 26 goals and 50 points in just 52 games in his rookie season. Yes, Calgary eventually won a Stanley Cup in 1989. But Ramage and Wamsley didn’t play huge parts in the run.

Calgary could have had a borderline dynasty, as  Hull went on to be one of the best goal scorers of all-time. Within two years, he went on to have one of the most prolific three-season spans of all time, scoring 228 goals in three years. Hull is most famous for scoring a goal that shouldn’t have counted but got the Dallas Stars a Stanley Cup.

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