Eurolanche

Eric Lindros is Brandon Gormley

Eric Lindros. Pariah. Rebel. Egomaniac. That’s just a couple names the 1991 first overall pick was called after he got drafted by the Quebec Nordiques. Not only did Lindros refuse to put on the Nordiques’ jersey, he also refused to play for the team, which didn’t go well with the fans at all. Lindros held out and only played in the juniors and for Team Canada the following season.

As the season ended, Lindros was granted his wish and he was traded to the Philadelphia Flyers one year after he was drafted. The value the Nordiques got back in the trade was unprecedented – a total of 7 players, a first-round pick and 15 million USD in cash. Little did the teams know what they put into motion with the said trade. The now infamous trade shaped the legacies of both the Nordiques and their successors, the Colorado Avalanche.

The so-called Lindros Trade Tree, available at AvalancheDB.com shows how much of an impact the trade had on both franchises. Taking a look at the players the Nordiques got for Lindros shows that his decision to force a trade out of Quebec paid huge dividends for the team. His role in shaping the history of both franchises, however, didn’t end with him going to Philadelphia, as the players received in his exchange were also later traded, starting a long cycle of player exchanges and thus further impacting the Avalanche franchise. Because of this, the aftermath of the Lindros trade is still felt today. The trade cycle continues to this day, but seems to be nearing its end.

Taking a closer look at the players the Avalanche got in exchange for Lindros, we get to understand the role Brandon Gormley plays in all of this. If a player isn’t mentioned to have brought a trade return, the said player left the team without compensation. The respective trades are split into levels based on their complexities, not based on a timeline. This means that higher level numbers indicate that the respective trades are further away from the original Lindros trade.

Every trade is accompanied by a short commentary. Players thought to have had the biggest impact on the Avalanche are written in red.  Written in brackets are the respective players’ current clubs, or the year they retired and the team they played for last.

Level 1

Joined the team in exchange for Lindros:
Steve Duchesne (retired in 2002, last played for the Red Wings)
Ron Hextall (retired in 1999, last played for the Flyers)
Kerry Huffman (retired in 1999, last played in a minor league in North America)
Mike Ricci (retired in 2007, last played for the Coyotes)
Peter Forsberg (retired in 2011, last played for the Avalanche)
Jocelyn Thibault (retired in 2008, last played for the Sabres)
Chris Simon (retired in 2013, last played in the KHL)

Commentary: Duchesne, Hextall and Huffman only played for the Nordiques, with Duchesne having the biggest impact as the experienced defenseman recorded 82 points in 82 games. Ricci was part of the Stanley Cup-winning Avalanche team, playing on the team’s bottom lines. Forsberg’s impact needs no further analysis. Simon was a prototypical enforcer, while Thibault played a role in the deal for Patrick Roy.

Level 2

Joined the team in exchange for Duchesne:
Gart Butcher (retired in 1995, last played for the Maple Leafs)
Bob Bassen (retired in 2000, last played in Germany)
Ron Sutter (retired in 2001, last played for the Flames)

Commentary: Butcher, Bassen and Sutter were mostly symbolic additions, as neither of them played more than a single season for Quebec. Butcher went on to play one more season before calling it a career.

Joined the team in exchange for Hextall:
Mark Fitzpatrick (retired in 2001, last played in a minor league in North America)
A first-round pick (Adam Deadmarsh – retired in 2003, last played for the Kings)

Commentary: Fitzpatrick never played a game for the Nordiques, while Deadmarsh became an important member of the team. Needless to say, Deadmarsh was picked by the Nordiques’ scouts, who thus played an integral part in making the trade successful.

Joined the team in exchange for Ricci:
Shean Donovan (retired in 2010, last played for the Senators)
Alex Tanguay (currently plays for the Avalanche)

Commentary: Donovan had a very brief stint in Denver, while Tanguay went on to score two goals in the seventh game of the 2001 Stanley Cup Finals.

Joined the team in exchange for Thibault:
Patrick Roy (retired in 2003, last played for the Avalanche, is the team’s current head-coach)Mike Keane (retired in 2010, last played in the AHL)

Commentary: Needs no further analysis. One of the most lopsided trades in NHL history.

Joined the team in exchange for Simon:
Keith Jones (retired in 2001, last played for the Flyers)
Scott Parker (retired in 2008, last played for the Avalanche)
A fourth-round pick (Krys Barch – last played for the Panthers in 2014)

Commentary: Out of the trio, only Parker had any impact whatsoever. Parker became a fan favorite in Denver. Jones’ stint in Colorado was rather disappointing.

Level 3

Joined the team in exchange for Butcher:
Wendel Clark (retired in 2000, last played for the Maple Leafs)
Sylvain Lefebvre (retired in 2004, last played in Switzerland, served as an assistant coach for the Avalanche)
A first-round pick (Jeff Kealty – retired in 2000, last played in a minor North American league)
Landon Wilson (retired in 2010, last played in the AHL)

Commentary: Three of the aforementioned players were traded within a year. Only Lefebvre stuck around, winning Colorado’s first Stanley Cup while playing on the bottom lines.

Joined the team in exchange for Sutter:
Uwe Krupp (retired in 2003, last played for the Thrashers)
A first-round pick (Wade Belak – retired in 2011, last played for the Predators, committed suicide in the same year)

Commentary: Krupp scored the overtime game-winner in Game 4 against the Panthers, clinching the franchise’s first Stanley Cup. Krupp became a staple on the Avalanche’s blue-line. Belak didn’t get a real opportunity with the Avalanche.

Joined the team in exchange for Deadmarsh:
Rob Blake (retired in 2010, last played for the Sharks)
Steven Reinprecht (currently plays in Germany)

Commentary: Blake’s arrival was the final piece of the puzzle that brought the Avalanche their second Stanley Cup. Reinprecht was popular among fans thanks to his selfless play.

Joined the team in exchange for Donovan:
Rick Tabaracci (retired in 2001, last played in a minor North American league)

Commentary: Tabaracci only played two games for the Avalanche. Those games proved to be his last in the NHL.

Joined the team in exchange for Tanguay:
A second-round pick (Codey Burki – currently plays in the second-tier Swiss league)
A second-round pick (Trevor Cann – currently plays in the ECHL)
Jordan Leopold (retired in 2015, last played for the Wild)

Commentary: Leopold was slated to become the Avalanche’s defensive leader after the team lost a number of key players following the 2005 lockout. His stint in Denver was riddled by injuries. Neither Burki nor Cann played a single minute for the Avalanche.

Joined the team in exchange for Jones:
Shjon Podein (retired in 2006, last played in Asia)

Commentary: Podein was a big character guy and a very laid-back and likeable person.

Joined the team in exchange for Parker:
A fifth-round pick (Brad Richardson – currently plays for the Coyotes)

Commentary: Richardson never panned out in Denver and was later traded.

Joined the team in exchange for Barch:
A third-round pick (Evgeny Lazarev – last played in 2007 in a minor North American league)

Commentary: Lazarev never played in the NHL.

Level 4

Joined the team in exchange for Clark:
Claude Lemieux (retired in 2009, last played for the Sharks)

Commentary: Another key addition. Left his mark on the franchise by igniting the heated Avalanche –Red Wings rivalry.

Joined the team in exchange for Wilson:
Robyn Regehr (retired in 2015, last played for the Kings)

Commentary: Regehr never played for the Avalanche and established himself after being traded to Calgary.

Joined the team in exchange for Reinprecht:
Keith Ballard (last played for the Wild last season)

Commentary: Ballard never played for the Avalanche.

Joined the team in exchange for Leopold:
Lawrence Nycholat (retired in 2012, last played in Germany)
Ryan Wilson (currently plays in the KHL)
A second-round pick (Stefan Elliott – traded to the Predators two weeks ago)

Commentary: Wilson had several solid seasons in Denver, but his progress was hampered by injuries. Elliott was supposed to become a star defenseman, but never lived up to his expectations. Nycholat only appeared in 5 games for the Avalanche.

Joined the team in exchange for Podein:
Mike Keane (retired in 2010, last played in the AHL)

Commentary: Keane reappears in this list, which only underlines how specific this whole trade tree is. Compared to his first stint in Denver, Keane’s second stint with the Avalanche was quite disappointing.

Joined the team in exchange for Richardson:
A second-round pick (Peter Delmas – last played in the ECHL in 2014, it’s unclear whether he’ll continue his career)

Commentary: Delmas never played for Colorado.

Level 5

Joined the team in exchange for Lemieux:
Brian Rolston (retired in 2012, last played for the Bruins)
A first-round pick (Martin Samuelsson – retired in 2008, last played in the second-tier Swedish league)

Commentary: Both players played their role, as they were later traded for Ray Bourque. Only Rolston played for the Avalanche, suiting up for a total of 50 games.

Joined the team in exchange for Regehr and Belak:
Theo Fleury (retired in 2006, last played in Northern Ireland)
Chris Dingman (retired in 2008, last played in Denmark)

Commentary: During his stint with the Avalanche, Fleury played more games in the play-offs (18), than he did during the regular season (15). His off-ice problems were said to be a distraction for the team, as the Avalanche made a disappointing play-off exit. Dingman was a prototypical grinder.

Joined the team in exchange for Ballard:
Ossi Vaananen (currently plays in the KHL)
Chris Gratton (retired in 2009, last played for the Blue Jackets)
A second-round pick (Paul Stastny – currently plays for the Blues)

Commentary: Vaananen failed to establish himself while with the Avs. Gratton only played 13 games for Colorado. The biggest acquisition in the trade was without doubt Stastny, although this is mostly thanks to the team’s scouts.

Joined the team in exchange for Elliott:
Brandon Gormley

Commentary: Currently plays for the Avalanche and is later mentioned in the notes.

Level 6

Joined the team in exchange for Samuelsson:
Ray Bourque (retired in 2001, last played for the Avalanche)
Dave Andreychuk (retired in 2006, last played for the Lightning)

Commentary: Both veterans proved to be key acquisitions. Bourque finally got to win the Stanley Cup with the Avalanche, while Andreychuk played great in the 2000 playoffs, but didn’t have an overly big impact.

Joined the team in exchange for Dingman:
A fifth-round pick (Mikko Viitanen – currently plays in Finland)

Commentary: Never played for the Avalanche.

Notes:

- Reinprecht and Tanguay are the remaining two active members of the 2001 Stanley Cup-winning team (the 1996 Cup-winning team has no active member left)
- Brandon Gormley is the latest member of this “trade tree”, together with Tanguay, both players are the only players from the list to currently play for the Avalanche
- One could say that Gormley joined the Avalanche because of Lindros
- If neither Gormley nor Tanguay gets traded, the trade cycle will finally end after 24 years
- There’s another bizarre link between Gormley, Tanguay and the whole Lindros trade: Colorado received a draft pick at Level 2 in exchange for Ricci, who came to Denver in exchange for Lindros. The Avalanche used the aforementioned draft pick to draft Tanguay. Tanguay was later traded at Level 3 in exchange for Leopold and two draft picks. Leopold was later traded for two players and a draft pick. This draft pick was used to select Elliott at Level 4. Level 5 is the icing of the cake, as Elliott was traded to Arizona in exchange for Gormley
- This means that both Lindros’ and Tanguay’s trades were vital for the Avalanche in order to acquire Gormley
 - To make the situation even more bizarre, Tanguay returned to the Avalanche, which means he’s now in the same locker room as Gormley – a player the team would’ve never acquired if not for trading Tanguay away

P.S.

The title of this story is marked in blue on Eurolanche's homepage, Eurolanche.com. We will use this method of promotion for any interesting, and/or exclusive stories in the future.

Michal Hezely translated David Puchovsky's original story from Slovak to English.