Blockbuster NHL Trade

[yankeessuck013]

Thrashers deal Heatley to Senators for Hossa

By PAUL NEWBERRY, AP Sports Writer
August 23, 2005

ATLANTA (AP) -- The Atlanta Thrashers traded Dany Heatley to the Ottawa Senators for Marian Hossa on Tuesday, a blockbuster deal of two high-scoring right wingers.

The 24-year-old Heatley combined with Ilya Kovalchuk to give the Thrashers two of the NHL's most prized young players. The deal was finalized after Hossa signed a three-year, $18 million contract earlier in the day.

Hossa led the Senators with 36 goals and 46 assists in 2003-04, the last season before the lockout. The Thrashers will also receive a defenseman, who has yet to be identified, in the trade.

Heatley's best season was 2002-03, when he had 41 goals and 48 assists. He has been plagued by misfortune since then, most tragically when he was driving a car involved in a high-speed crash that killed teammate Dan Snyder.

Heatley sustained a serious knee injury in the wreck that caused him to miss 51 games the following season. He returned to tally 13 goals and 12 assists in 28 games, but was injured again while playing in Switzerland during the lockout. A puck struck him in the face, breaking the orbital bone.

[stocker323]

I did not see this one coming at all. I heard Atlanta was also getting a defenseman, Wade Redden perhaps.

[yankeessuck013]

Could this be sour aftertaste in Atlanta with Heatley and the Snyder fiasco?

Unless that d-man is Redden (which it probably isn't), the Thrashers may have gotten thrashed in this deal.

Hossa's good....but he needs talent around him to feed him the puck (not gonna be Ilya!)

Heatley can create offense on his own. This is not good for the NE division

Anyways This is not good. I'm a sabres fan and I would rather face Hossa, than Heatley any day...

[yankeessuck013]

Word from fans on a thrasher message board is that Heatley requested this trade because of the Snyder situation. Apparently it was tough for him to stay, especially with Atlanta being far from a hockey town and Heatly being better known there as the guy who killed his friend than as a hockey star. Another rumor has it that Kovalchuk isn't sure he wants to play without Heatly and has held off negotiating his contract renewal until he knew what Danny was doing.

reportedly the defenseman is de vries.

This trade may do for Heatley's career what getting dealt out of Boston to Edmonton did for Craig MacTavish.

MacTavish was playing for the Bruins in 1984, when he crashed his car into another, killing a woman. He had just left a notorious strip club and was drunk. Spent a year in prison for vehicular manslaughter, but after he was traded he ended up on 4 Stanley Cup winning teams.

[stocker323]

Word from fans on a thrasher message board is that Heatley requested this trade because of the Snyder situation. Apparently it was tough for him to stay, especially with Atlanta being far from a hockey town and Heatly being better known there as the guy who killed his friend than as a hockey star. Another rumor has it that Kovalchuk isn't sure he wants to play without Heatly and has held off negotiating his contract renewal until he knew what Danny was doing.

reportedly the defenseman is de vries.

This trade may do for Heatley's career what getting dealt out of Boston to Edmonton did for Craig MacTavish.

MacTavish was playing for the Bruins in 1984, when he crashed his car into another, killing a woman. He had just left a notorious strip club and was drunk. Spent a year in prison for vehicular manslaughter, but after he was traded he ended up on 4 Stanley Cup winning teams.
Wow never knew that about MacTavish.

[ARod2212]

Wow that's nuts. As long as he stays healthy Heatley is going to be a hell of a player. Hossa is a pretty good scorer, but Dany is going to be a star.

[Ray10]

This trade shocked me. Ottawa won this trade. Heatly is gonna to help that team alot.