Quote:
Originally Posted by SebC
Let us also not forget that the Sabres turn that down.
Both teams came out of that looking like idiots.
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That's easy to say in hindsight, but at that time it wasn't so clear. The Sabres had just won the Presidents' Trophy and lost 2 of the their top 3 scorers, losing Vanek would make it all 3. To go from literally the best team in the league to rebuilding would be unheard of. Teams don't give up on making the playoffs when it's a very achievable goal. Again in hindsight it's easy to say that the Sabres weren't a contender, but at the time who was saying that a Conference Finals finalist and Presidents' Trophy winner aren't going to be a threat the following season?
At the same time Vanek as a 22 year old had just put up 43 goals and a league leading +47 season, to give up on him so quickly could have been a huge mistake. And the Oilers very possibly make the playoffs that year with Vanek instead of Penner so it wasn't like it was a guarantee 4 (not 5) first overall picks. Edmonton making the playoffs in 2008 changes everything, delays the complete gutting of the team, and those 4 picks might end up being middle of the pack rather than Hall and Hopkins.