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I want to take a look back at major and some minor trades that our current leader, General Manager Bob Murray, has made to see if his current approval rating is justified. Murray assumed the role of General Manager in 2008, so I will look at his body of work dating to that year.
1st Trade - Dec 3, 2008
Joakim Lindstrom
Logan Stephenson
Analysis — These players were both AHL players and never contributed to any team. I think Bob Murray just wanted to get his feet wet 5 days after being the General Manager.
Grade — D
February 26th, 2009
To Anaheim Ducks
Ryan Whitney
Chris Kunitz
Eric Tangradi
Analysis — Personally, I feel we got hosed on this deal. Whitney ended up being a rental and didn’t give Anaheim much in the long run. We ended up losing a great left handed shooter that could have played well with Getzlaf and Perry for many years. Eric Tangradi was a consistent bottom 6 role player and didn’t contribute much to the team.
Grade — F
March 4th, 2009
To Anaheim Ducks
Nick Bonino
Timo Pielmeier
2009 conditional 4th round pick (dependent on Sharks playoff performance or if they or Ducks re-sign one of the traded players)
To San Jose Sharks
Kent Huskins
Travis Moen
Analysis — I like this trade a lot. It brought in Nick Bonino who was a cheap 3rd line center for Anaheim. We lost Travis Moen and our infamous 3rd line combo which had been just okay since Moen started to go downhill after the Stanley Cup season. Pielmeier never really amounted to much and essentially was a toss-in to even out contracts. The draft pick was never awarded to Anaheim.
Grade — B
June 26th, 2009
To Anaheim Ducks
Joffrey Lupul
Luca Sbisa
2009 1st round pick #21 (this was traded the same day at the NHL Draft)
2010 1st round pick #29 (Emerson Etem)
2010 or 2011 conditional 3rd round pick (if Flyers win 2010 Stanley Cup; Ducks did not exercise)
To Philadelphia Flyers
Ryan Dingle
Chris Pronger
Analysis — Obviously the picks that the Ducks received in this trade never panned out. Obtaining Lupul and Sbisa helped the organization inthe short span, but mainly helped us acquire better players in future trades.
Grade — B+
February 9th, 2011
Jake Gardiner
Joffrey Lupul
2013 conditional 4th Round Pick
To Anaheim Ducks
Francois Beauchemin
Analysis — Even though we got rid of a future injured player we lost a solid defenseman Jake Gardiner to the Maple Leafs and could have changed the future of Anaheim and their plan with draft picks. Acquiring Francois, as much as I like him, he didn’t help Anaheim much to push them to another Stanley Cup.
Grade — F
June 21th, 2011
To Toronto Maple Leafs
2011 1st round pick #22 (Tyler Biggs)
To Anaheim Ducks
2011 1st round pick #30 (Rickard Rakell)
2011 2nd round pick #39 (John Gibson)
Analysis — This trade was both the best trade of Bob Murray’s career and even better for the future of the organization. Tyler Biggs never panned out. Rickard Rakell is a future star and current star along with John Gibson who is projected to be one of the best goaltenders Anaheim has ever dressed.
Grade — A+
June 25th, 2011
To Toronto
2012 6th round pick #157 (Ryan Rupert)
To Anaheim Ducks
2011 6th round pick #159 (Josh Manson)
Analysis — Again, another trade that helped Anaheim pick up another stud later in the draft. Ryan Rupert never played an NHL game. Keep trading those draft picks, Toronto.
Grade — A+
July 12th, 2011
To Anaheim Ducks
Andrew Cogliano
2013 2nd round pick #56 (Marc-Oliver Roy)
Analysis — Cogliano never fit into the Oilers future plans and ended up trading him. It did take a couple of seasons for Ducks coaches to find a place for the speedy center-turned-winger. He is now a pivotal player for the shutdown line and our penalty kill units. Oliver Roy never signed with the Oilers and never played an NHL game.
Grade - A
July 5th, 2013
To Ottawa Senators
Bobby Ryan
To Anaheim Ducks
Jakob Silverberg
Stefan Noesen
2014 1st round pick #10 (Nick Ritchie)
Analysis — This is arguably the most notable trade in the history of the Anaheim Ducks, obviously after the Teemu Selanne trade. If you were to ask anyone when this trade was first made, they would say that the Ducks fleeced the Senators. You could say they received 2 1st round picks.
Jakob Silfverberg took a couple of years to find his place in the organization and now is a pivotal player on our shutdown line with a good scoring touch. I still don’t think he has peaked yet.
Stefan Noesen was a 2011 1st round pick by Ottawa and never really panned out for the Ducks after a major injury he sustained in the minors. The top 10 pick they received from Ottawa was unheard of because they probably expected to do much better after receiving Ryan, but the team selected Nick Ritchie who has yet to live up to his expectations.
Many of us at Anaheim Calling hold a soft spot in our hearts for Bobby Ryan, but he signed a gigantic contract with the Senators and has not been able to keep up the success he had with Anaheim in addition to becoming injury-prone. With Ritchie having yet to live up to expectations, the trade can probably be considered a wash at this point.
Grade — A
June 27th, 2014
To Anaheim Ducks
Ryan Kesler
2015 3rd round pick #84 (Deven Sideroff)
2014 1st round pick #24 (Jared McCann)
2014 3rd round pick #85 (Keegan Iverson)
Nick Bonino
Luca Sbisa
Analysis — Looking back on this trade I still believe the Ducks scored. Ryan Kesler has done everything we expected him to and has fit in perfectly with our organization. Deven Sideroff is still a prospect for Anaheim at this time, playing with the San Diego Gulls.
Nick Bonino didn’t do much for Vancouver and ended up being traded for another center from the Pittsburgh Penguins to go on and win two Stanley Cups. Luca Sbisa never panned out as the top 4 defenseman he was projected to be and is now on the expansion team, the Vegas Golden Knights. Jared McCann ended up getting traded to the Florida Panthers and is struggling to find his way. Keegan Iverson is now playing for the Ontario Reign and never signed a NHL Contract.
Grade — A
March 2nd, 2015
To Pittsburgh Penguins
Ben “Rev” Lovejoy
To Anaheim
Simon Despres
Analysis — Anaheim won the trade initially by obtaining a top 4 defenseman, but obviously due to concussions he is no longer playing in the NHL.
Grade — A
June 26th, 2015
Kyle Palmieri
To Anaheim Ducks
2015 2nd round pick #41 (Ryan Gropp)
2016 3rd round pick # 76 (Rem Pitlick)
Analysis — Bob Murray made it sound like we couldn’t afford an extension for Kyle, but the what the winger received would have fit for Anaheim. The success of Palmieri has made this trade an obvious loss. Anaheim ended up trading both of these picks. The 2015 2nd rounder went to the New York Rangers with the Carl Hagelin trade. The 2016 3rd rounder was difficult for me to track, but I eventually found it. That pick was traded for McGinn from Buffalo. Little back story on that pick: it was originally Minnesota's pick which was traded to the Florida Panthers. The pick was then traded to New Jersey which was used to acquire Jaromir Jagr. New Jersey then gave the Ducks that pick for Palms, which was then traded to Buffalo for McGinn. Buffalo then traded that pick to Nashville for the rights of Jimmy Vesey.
Grade — F
June 27th, 2015
To Anaheim Ducks
Carl Hagelin
2015 2nd round pick # 59 (Julius Nattinen)
2015 6th round pick # 179 (Garrett Metcalf)
Emerson Etem
2015 2nd Round Pick # 41 (Ryan Gropp)
Analysis — At first glance Anaheim won this trade because Hagelin was an up and coming star and Etem was regressing. Hagelin ended up not doing well for us and was traded at midnight to the Pittsburgh Penguins for David Perron. Julius Nattinen is a prospect for Anaheim currently playing for the Gulls and Garrett Metcalf is a goalie in college who has yet to sign an NHL Contract. Etem ended up getting traded away from New York to Vancouver and was lost to waivers where Anaheim picked him back up. He currently plays for the Tuscon Roadrunners in the Arizona Coyotes system.
Grade — B
June 30th, 2015
To Anaheim Ducks
Kevin Bieksa
To Vancouver Canucks
2016 2nd round pick #55 (Filip Gustavsson).
Analysis — Kevin Bieksa was out of his prime years ago, but Bob Murray decided to trade for him and then sign him to a terrible contract that would end up hurting the team in expansion draft by forcing the team to lose Shea Theodore.
Grade — F
June 20th, 2016
To Toronto
Frederik Anderson
To Anaheim Ducks
2016 1st round pick # 30 (Sam Steel)
2017 2nd round pick # 50 (Maxime Comtois)
Analysis — This trade was forced because the Ducks wouldn’t have been able to keep two top 10 goaltenders on the roster. I think Bob Murray got a smoking deal in this. Sam Steel ended up scoring the most points last year in the WHL and all of junior. Maxime Comtois had a concussion in the beginning of this season from a dirty player who ended up getting suspended for his actions. Comtois has bounced back and has 15 goals and 9 assists in 25 games.
Grade — A
November 30th, 2017
To Anaheim Ducks
Adam Henrique
Joseph Blandisi
2018 3rd Round Pick
To New Jersey Devils
Sami Vatanen
2019 or 2020 Conditional 3rd round pick (if Henrique re-signs with Anaheim)
Analysis — Initially I would have to say that this is the most even trade there could have been for both teams. It helps both clubs instantly. Vatanen was having issues fitting with Randy Carlyle’s system and with the resurgence of Brandon Montour, Vatanen became the odd man out. Adam Henrique helps the Ducks center depth, but it sounds like Bob Murray could eventually want him as a left handed winger. Joseph Blandisi is bit of a guess at this point. Based on eliteprospects.com he will round out to be a Steve Ott type of player. Throws in the occasional goal and will use his weight as needed.
Grade — A
Overall, I honestly think Bob Murray has made a few mistakes but has won most of his trades. He will never be the General Manager that will make colossal trades to lose out on prospects and will always protect the organization’s internal assets first.
Sometimes, though, you have to think if that will actually benefit the organization. If you look at the Chris Pronger trade, the Ducks had to give up a lot to receive a solid player to help push the team to a Stanley Cup. I still hold a lot of respect for a GM that had made as many wins as he has and has had very few catastrophic loses. This is why Bob Murray is still our GM and probably still will be for years to come.