Poor asset management starting from when we signed him long term. We should have signed him to a reasonable 3 year deal or forced him to go out and get an offer sheet and then decided if we wanted to match it.
Then when we went to trade we should have shopped him to maximize value, and focused on getting one asset back or picks and prospects. Not players which are easy to find on the free agent market. We gave up the best prospect and best player in the deal. That is never the making of a good deal.
I think I said I would wait and see how Ian White panned out before judging the deal and he turned into Babchuk a 6/7 defensemen. Trading Phaneuf was definately the right call, but they type of trade we made and the process was flawed.
Sutter's worst move as GM was firing himself as coach and becoming soley a GM.
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