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Regier Owed It To Fans To Make Vanek-Moulson Trade

October 27, 2013, 8:40 PM ET [15 Comments]
GARTH'S CORNER
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Sabres GM Darcy Regier traded Thomas Vanek for Matt Moulson, a 1st and 2nd rounder on Sunday night. Regier said that this trade isn't about the Sabres of today as much as it is about the Sabres of tomorrow.

"I don't love where we are, I like what we're doing and believe in the direction we're going."


Regier is a man with his back to the wall right now. He had to make this trade. The booing and the negative attitudes towards the Sabres in the Buffalo community and over the airwaves in the U.S. and in Canada. The Sabres management and ownership can talk all they want about not listening to the media and letting outside influences play a role in their decision making processes, however, its hard to ignore the cries from the rooftops from the loyal fans who are not happy with the product that the Sabres have been putting on the ice in the month of October. Nor is it easy to ignore comments from loud mouthed bufoons like Mike Milbury whose on-air swipes at the Sabres have a de-valuing aspect to them.

The fans wanted change, now they get a change. A big change. Regier just traded one of the best players in Sabres history. This sin't the Pat laFontaine deal, but its awfully close. Back on 10/25/91, the Sabres traded their former first overall pick in the draft Pierre Turgeon, Uwe Krupp, Benoit Hogue and Dave McLlwain to the NY Islanders for Pat LaFontaine, Randy Wood, and Randy Hillier.


The trade worked out well for both teams. Just the same way that I feel like the Vanek-Moulson trade will end up working out. Moulson is a Mississauga boy and a former Cornell University grad. He knows the Buffalo area well. His sister played college hockey at Niagara University. Moulson will be more apt to want to re-sign a long term deal to stay in Buffalo as he'll be closer to family in Toronto. Just ask Steve Ott, Cody Hodgson and some of the other Sabres what it means to ahev family and friends at every home game.

Moulson has six goals this season. he is now the leading goal scorer for the Sabres. He thrives on the PP, a department that the Sabres need a kick start on.


Regier owed it to the fans of the Sabres organization to get multiple assets in exchange for one of his three soon-to-be-unrestricted-free-agents instead of watching him skate away for little compensation like Dominik Hasek had done years ago.


Regier says that Vanek was "shocked and very professional" when he told the Austrian sniper he'd been traded to the Islanders.


Thanks, Sabres,com

Islanders GM Garth Snow told Newsday that he doesn't like the way his Ilsanders have been playing. It was time for a change. His D and goal tending have been awful, however, he opted to shake up his forward ranks. Interesting move.


"I didn't like the way we'd been playing," Islanders general manager Garth Snow said after the Vanek-Moulson trade went down on Sunday night.

"We're better than our record indicates and we need to take the next step. Thomas is an elite player in this league and he'll help us now and in the future."



Vanek, 29, UFA this summer, has scored 254 goals in eight-plus seasons in Buffalo.


Moulson, who turns 30 on Friday, has been John Tavares' good luck charm for four season on Long Island. Moulson scored 118 goals as an Islander since Snow signed Moulson to an AHL contract in 2009. Tavares was drafted in 2009. It remains to be seen if trading Moulson may have a negative impact on Tavares.

Moulson will be UFA July 1, 2014. I like Buffalo's chances of re-signing him considering they have $32+ million in cap space for 2014-15 with 14 players under contract.

"Matt has been a great player for us the past few years," Snow said. "Obviously he's a good person. But I can tell you I'm not happy with where we are record wise. We're better than this. We need to take the next step and I wasn't just going to sit by and let games pass."




Great deal for both teams.

I give Regier the TKO in the bout. He gets a 1st and 2nd rounder for a rental player who may not like the hustle and gridlock on the Long island Expressway, nor the hipster lifestyle in Brooklyn, NY.





________________________________________________________________________


The birth of a Buffalo legend.

Stick tap, Thomas Vanek. Thanks for the decade of thrills, chills, and skills!






Vanek won't have to have any contact with Lindy ruff at the rink on Monday morning. Betcha he's bummed out that.



____________________________________________________________________

Updated 9:58pm EDT:


I asked Vanek's Rochester-based agent, Steve Bartlett if he feels that the Islanders will want to start talking about a long term contract extension for Vanek now.


"I'm sure they will have the proper time. Right now he just wants to concentrate on playing this season" .

Vanek has told me that in recent weeks that all he wants to do is concentrate on his hockey. At the time, he wasn't concerned with anything but helping to win games for his struggling Sabres. He'll use the same tact on Long Island. Vanek is an intense competitor and woll want to jump into the lineup with his Islanders and start winning games, something that his Sabres couldn't do much of this season.

Personally, I see Vanek taking his time and just moving along.


Vanek will have many options available to him as this season unfolds. He becomes UFA on July 1. The Minnesota Wild will have their chance to make a king's ransom of a UFA offer to Vanek when the time is right. The Wild will be a team that will compete hard for Vanek's services come the NHL trade deadline when their cap space situation improves. Translation, whne Dany Heatley's $7.5M AAV is all but gone. If the islanders fall out of the playoff race and sense that they won't be able to sign Vanek to a long term extension, they could then send Vanek to Minneapolis/St. Paul for a monster haul of players and prospects.


Vanek likes to have options open. Right now, the only thing on his mind is scoring goals and making a great first impression with his new team.



______________________________________________________________________

Breaking:


The Sabres have traded one 30 goal scorer for another.


The Buffalo Sabres have traded Thomas Vanek to NY Islanders for Matt Moulson and a 2014 1st round draft choice and a 2015 second round pick.

Darcy Regier, a former NY Islanders front office man before he started in Buffalo in 1996, enticed Islanders GM Garth Snow to take a high risk gamble on a rental deal for Vanek. It worked. Snow now has 9 months to convince Vanek to stay and play in Brooklyn next season and beyond. The Islanders will move into the spacious and beautiful Barclay's Center in Brooklyn next season.


According to Kevin Snow of Sabres.com, the Sabres will now have 17 total 1st and 2nd round picks over a four year span from 2012-2015.

Darcy Regier has said repeated in the past couple of weeks that the Sabres will re-build this team into a champion via the NHL draft, not through free agency.


Vanek is UFA on July 1 therefore he is only a rental player for the Islanders. If Garth Snow cannot convince Vanek to stay in NY then Vanek will likely sign as UFA in Minnesota next summer.

Sabres issues this statement moments ago:

Buffalo Sabres General Manager Darcy Regier has announced that the team has traded forward Thomas Vanek to the New York Islanders in exchange for forward Matt Moulson, the Islanders' first-round draft selection in the 2014 NHL Entry Draft and the Islanders' second-round selection in the 2015 NHL Entry Draft.




Here's Vanek's last interview as a Buffalo Sabres player, following the 3-2 loss in Tampa on Saturday night.


Thanks, Sabres.com


Now, Steve Ott is the full time Sabres captain with Vanek gone.


The New York Islanders announced today that they have acquired Thomas Vanek from the Buffalo Sabres in exchange for Matt Moulson, a first round selection in the 2014 National Hockey League Draft and a second round selection in 2015.

Vanek, 29, joins the Islanders after playing in 13 games with Buffalo this season, accumulating nine points (four goals and five assists). He was named co-captain of the Sabres this season and has worn the “C” during the team’s home games.

The Vienna, Austria native has played nine NHL seasons, totaling 254 goals and 243 assists for 497 points with a plus-29 rating in 598 career games. Vanek had a career year in 2006-07, averaging over a point per game with 84 points (43 goals and 41 assists) in 82 games, while leading the NHL in plus/minus rating with a plus-47 rating. Vanek led Buffalo in power-play goals in seven of his nine seasons in the league and finished first in the NHL with 20 in 2008-09.

The 6’2, 217 pound left wing has played in 36 career NHL playoff games, totaling 20 points (15 goals and five assists).

The Sabres selected Vanek in the first round (fifth overall) of the 2003 NHL Draft, making him the highest selected Austrian hockey player in league history. He represented Buffalo at the 2009 NHL All-Star Weekend in Montreal, QC.

Internationally, Vanek has represented Austria the World Junior Championships (2001-02, 2002-03 and 2003-04) and World Championships (2003-04, 2007-08, 2008-09 and 2012-13).

Prior to his professional career, Vanek played two seasons at the University of Minnesota (WCHA). Each season he averaged well over a point per game, totaling 113 points (57 goals and 56 assists) in 83 games with the Golden Gophers
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Do you like the Vanek trade?

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