Tim Chiasson

Halifax • Canada • 33 Years Old • Male

If I Had A Gun To My Head

I’m going to start by saying, if you haven’t noticed already, that I don’t want to trade Thornton and Marleau. I don’t believe they are the problem with San Jose, but I’ll entertain Doug Wilson’s tyranny.

I’m going to trade both players in this blog.

First up on the chopping block is Joe Thornton. This trade idea started with Matt Henderson’s post from the 21st of August where he offered up David Perron and the 2015 1st Rounder for Joe. I’m going to amend it slightly.

To Edmonton
Joe Thornton
5th Rd Pick 2015

To San Jose
David Perron
Dillon Simpson
1st Rd Pick 2015
3rd Rd Pick 2016

Like Matt said, Thornton fits the bill for Edmonton. Perron gives the Sharks a top six winger who knows the rugged life of the Western Conference. Dillon Simpson is an underrated defensive prospect who could find life in the Sharks system, you can never have too many options. The picks are what they are, the first rounder will give San Jose their highest first round selection in years, and it happens to fall in a deep draft. The 3rd rounder the following year gives the Sharks a chance to find a diamond in the rough, making the deal the trade that keeps on giving.

Next up, Patrick Marleau.

To Buffalo
Patrick Marleau
3th Rd 2015

To San Jose
Nikita Zadorov
Marcus Foligno
1st Rd 2015 (NYI)

Marleau isn’t bringing back as much as Thornton, but he will still bring back a good package. Zadorov is an expendable prospect in a deep blueline system. He’s another big bodied defenseman who has the potential to be a solid NHL player. The Islanders pick is what I’m really after, though. I don’t see the Islanders being as awful as Sabres fans hope they will be, so this pick isn’t going to be a top five pick. I do believe, however, the pick is going to be 9-12 which will give San Jose another quality player in a deep draft. Foligno is a bottom six role player that can bang and crash. He might be a piece to the elusive playoff puzzle in a Sharks uniform.

Sabres fans might throw up at the sight of this deal, and that’s fine. Marleau has missed only 31 games in his entire 16 year career and continues to be a 30 goal scorer. He’s an offensive weapon whether you like him or not. Zadorov may not find the Sabres lineup for 4-5 years given their depth and that lottery pick you were dreaming about isn’t going to happen. The Islanders just aren’t that bad.

Now, both players have NMC and I highly doubt either would want to waive such a clause to go to Edmonton or Buffalo right now, but that’s the beauty of imagining things, they don’t have to be real. At the end of the day I don't want to see either player wearing a different uniform, but I'd do these deals with a gun against my head for the sake of salvaging a return.

That’s all for now, thanks for reading!

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