Sweet Tea, Barbecue, and Bodychecks
4 March 1991. Eddie Johnston–then the GM of the Hartford Whalers–trades away Whalers captain Ron Francis, defenceman Ulf Samuelsson, and forward Grant Jennings to the Pittsburgh Penguins for John Cullen and Zarley Zalapski. As soon as the Whalers’ season ends shortly thereafter, Johnston himself resigns and takes a job with–dun dun dun!–the Penguins, who go on to win the first of their two Cups that season. To this day, anyone who was a fan of the team back then still considers that move a deliberate kneecapping by a dishonest scuzzwipe.
Why do I bring this up? Because of the following letter that appeared in the N&O’s sports section this morning:
Canes could be repeating history
Flashback to March 4, 1991: General manager Eddie Johnston of the Hartford Whalers trades fan favorite Ron Francis to the Pittsburgh Penguins, alienates fans, and the Penguins go on to win the Stanley Cup.
Brilliant.
It would appear that fools are bound to repeat history. Shortsighted, one-sided trades are the most damning legacy of this team.
Will we have to wait eight years and slog through a dearth of lousy replacements before we see Erik Cole in Raleigh again? And will Edmonton win the Stanley Cup this year?
Jennifer Fitts
Raleigh
Thanks for that letter, Ms. Fitts–in one fell swoop, you and your errant grasp of history have managed to further the stereotype of female fans as dim-witted puckbunnies who know dick-all about hockey (and the tool who write the same thing to the Fayettenam Observer furthers the stereotype of Hurricanes fans in general as a bunch of uneducated rubes who know dick-all about hockey).
I fail to see the comparison between The Eternal Captain and the super-caffeinated Erik “Espresso” Cole, and it’s a little early to call the trade “one-sided”. Have you watched Pitkanen play? More than likely not. Have you read any scouting reports about him? More than likely not. I’m more than happy to reserve final judgement until the middle of December, but really? The team needed (still needs) defence, and Cole was the only tradeable asset. Had more been given up along with him, then yes–the trade would have been one-sided. But really? As it stands now it’s pretty even.
So please, people–before getting all up in teh dramaz and making comparisons that don’t exist, learn a little bit about history. Seriously.
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Everyone thought we got the raw end of the Commodore/Stillman trade, but look how that turned out! Corvo is one of the backbones of our defense & Eaves has every bit of potential to make folks forget Eric Cole ever played here. Stillman is a Panther & Commie is a Blue Jacket now.
Guess we didn’t get burned after all.
Captain,
I’m not sure if I know anybody who ever thought that the Canes “got the raw end of” the Commy Stiller / Corvo Eaves trade. Almost immediately, most people I know saw the deal as “even” at worst, or “slightly tilted toward the Canes” at best. The main reason for this, as I pointed out the day of the trade, is that the Sens were getting two free-agents-to-be, and the Canes were getting Corvo (who was under a multi-year contract) and Eaves (who could be — and was — re-signed relatively cheap).
Of course we all know that the way the season (and off-season) has played out, Carolina definitely got the better end of that deal.
Footnote: When Ron Francis “returned” to the franchise, he said it was nice to be among familiar faces. But, IIRC, the only ones left from his Hartford days were the team statistician, the radio broadcaster, and Adam Burt.
More importantly: Google search for “dishonest scuzzwipe” now brings up Eddie Johnston.