Beginning in 1981, Dale Hawerchuk became one of the most dominant centers in
the National Hockey League and was the face of the Winnipeg Jets. After a
junior career in the QMJHL in which he scored 81 goals and 102 assists in all
of 72 games for the 1980-81 Cornwall Royals , he was at the top of the draft
charts. Winnipeg selected Hawerchuk with the first overall pick of the 1981 NHL
 Entry Draft. From there he forged a 16-year career that ended in Hockey Hall
of Fame induction.

The finest years of Hawerchuk';s success came as a Jet and lasted for nearly a
decade. Therefore, when he was eventually moved from Winnipeg to a rightful
suitor, it became a landmark move that kicked off the NHL of the 1990s with
blockbuster fashion. The man affectionately known as "Ducky" was bade farewell
from Manitoba, and forged the later portion of his great career. All with one
eye-popping move.Setting the Stage

During the 1980s it seemed that nearly every NHL team had a premier centerman.
"The Great One" in Edmonton with the Oilers. The Penguins belonged to "Super
Mario" in Pittsburgh. Then you had Denis Savard with Chicago, Bernie Federko
with St. Louis, Bryan Trottier on Long Island, Peter Stastny in Quebec City,
Ron Francis with the Hartford Whalers, and so on and so forth.

Though star centers were in abundance, the Jets'; Hawerchuk was arguably one of
 the top-five in the game for the entire decade. He would win the Calder Trophy
 in 1982 as the NHL';s Rookie of the Year after scoring 45 goals and 58 assists
 for 103 points during his first season. Hawerchuk would score 100 points or
more five more times for Winnipeg - six times total in just nine seasons. His
highest point total was seen during the 1984-85 season when he scored 53 goals
(a career high), 77 assists and 130 points in 80 games.Dale Hawerchuk, during
at game against the Canadiens at the Montreal Forum, was the face of the
Winnipeg Jets for nearly a decade prior to being traded to Buffalo (Photo by
Denis Brodeur/NHLI via Getty Images)

Hawerchuk and the Jets would miss the playoffs for the 1988-89 season. This
would be the first and only time the team did not make the postseason during
his tenure. The next year, after never falling below 91 points, Hawerchuk';s
numbers slipped substantially by his standards in what would be his final
season in Winnipeg. This was by no means a sign of aging or an off season for
the star center. Rather, first-year Jets Head Coach Bob Murdoch decreased
Hawerchuk';s ice time and tensions mounted between the two.

"I was getting 15 to 18 minutes (of playing time) a game after I used to get 30
 to 35", Hawerchuk was quoted as saying in a Jun. 17, 1990 article by Kevin
Oblobzija of the Rochester NY Democrat and Chronicle. "It was becoming
difficult for me, especially when you feel good physically. From the start, he
(Murdoch) really never had confidence in me. I have nothing against him, he';s
entitled to coach the way he wants."

Midway through the 1989-90 season, Hawerchuk requested a trade of Winnipeg GM
Mike Smith. Both Smith and his centerman agreed that it would be best to wait
until the summer to complete the deal. For the 1989-90 NHL campaign Hawerchuk
scored 26 goals and 55 assists for 81 points - the lowest goal and point totals
 of his time in Winnipeg.  Though Murdoch';s Jets assembled a winning record
of 37-32-11, they would suffer an opening round playoff loss in seven games to
the Edmonton Oilers. Hawerchuk led the team in playoff scoring that final year
with three goals and five assists in the seven games. By this point though, the
 damage had already been done and there was no reconciling between he and
Murdoch.Hawerchuk Is Shuffled off to Buffalo

True to his word, Smith would grant Hawerchuk his trade request after the
1989-90 season ended. Though he knew that he would be moving onward, the star
center knew not where he would be going. In what many referred to as "The Dale
Hawerchuk Sweepstakes", a trade would need to come at sizable cost no matter
which team ended up obtaining his services. Players of Hawerchuk';s skill level
 rarely came along, and most oftentimes there would be great hesitancy in
parting ways with one. The Jets of course needed a willing partner who had the
goods worth swapping for.Winnipeg';s Dale Hawerchuk and Buffalo';s Phil Housley
 were the main pieces of the Jun 16, 1990 trade between the two teams (Photo
Credit: Democrat and Chronicle Jun. 17, 1990, Rochester, NY USA).

General Manager Gerry Meehan and the Buffalo Sabres were willing to tango. The
28th NHL Entry Draft was held on Jun. 16, 1990 in Vancouver, BC, CA, with the
Canucks played host. With some tremendous prospects waiting anxiously to be
selected, Meehan and Smith pulled off a blockbuster deal that was announced for
 everyone present to hear. The Jets shipped Hawerchuk and their own first round
 selection to the Sabres in exchange for All-Star defenseman Phil Housley,
perennial third-liner Scott Arniel, tough guy Jeff Parker, and Buffalo';s top
pick in the draft.

After the swap, the Sabres then possessed the 14th overall selection in the
draft, while Winnipeg lowered down to 19th. Subsequently, both teams would
draft big, powerful wingers who each considered to have a scoring touch.
Buffalo would draft Brad May, while Winnipeg opted to select Keith Tkachuk.

In retrospect, the swapping of draft picks is very interesting to contemplate.
May, who never scored more than 18 goals in an NHL season played 18 years in
the NHL and won a Stanley Cup with the Anaheim Ducks in 2007. He played parts
of seven seasons with Buffalo - the longest stay of his lengthy career.Dale
Hawerchuk had requested a trade by Winnipeg';s GM during the 1989-90 NHL
season, but they agreed to wait until summer (Photo Credit: Democrat and
Chronicle Jun. 17, 1990, Rochester, NY USA).

Tkachuk on the other hand, who never won the Cup, goes down as one of the best
USA-born players in league history. He also played 18 seasons and scored 538
goals and 1,065 points - far more than May';s numbers of 127 goals and 289
points. Tkachuk played almost a full decade with the Winnipeg/Phoenix/Arizona
franchise, and only played one full NHL season in which he did not score at
least 20 goals.

In terms of draft picks, Winnipeg got the better player.How the Deal Panned out
 for Winnipeg

When we consider the two teams and how their respective history panned out
after the trade took place, Buffalo made out with the better end of the deal.
This stems from production, team performance, and longevity of the players
involved with the deal.

Let';s look first at Winnipeg';s payout. The centermost piece of the deal for
the Jets was Housley. An eventual Hockey Hall of Famer himself, the smallish
defender was one of the better offensive-defensemen of his generation. He often
 was overshadowed during the 1980s by Paul Coffey and Ray Bourque, but in an
offensive era he was one of the best. Housley had scored double digits in goals
 in every year since he had been in the league, and assembled more of the same
after arriving in Winnipeg.

Did a position switch in high school lead Phil Housley to the @HockeyHallFame?
https://t.co/ISmr0k7MoJ #HHOF2015 pic.twitter.com/k6pn9nzXlS

- NHL (@NHL) November 5, 2015

During his three years with the Jets his point totals went up each season, with
 him scoring 23 goals in each of his first two years. The highest seasonal
totals that Housley ever produced for assists and points came during his
1992-93 season in Winnipeg - 79 helpers and 97 total points in 80 games that
year.

Jeff Parker and Scott Arniel were more so role players. Parker never ended up
playing a game for Winnipeg. Sadly, he passed away at age 53 on Sept. 11, 2017
from complications of heart and lung infections. Arniel, who had actually began
 his career with the Jets before coming to Buffalo in a 1986 trade between the
two teams, played just the 1990-91 season in Winnipeg and then finished out his
 career with a brief stay in Boston the following year.How the Deal Panned out
for Buffalo

The Sabres were certainly the ones who got the better return on the deal.
Hawerchuk played five years with the Sabres as opposed to Housley';s three in
Winnipeg. Furthermore, he brought about more of a symbiotic relationship at the
 center position for Buffalo. Playing his first year with the Sabres and fellow
 center Pierre Turgeon, followed by four alongside Hall of Fame center Pat
LaFontaine, the one-two punch of Hawerchuk and Turgeon/LaFontaine down the
middle alleviated pressure from each center and paid major dividends for the
Sabres.

This guy seems pretty happy about being inducted into the Winnipeg Jets Hall of
 Fame tonight before the Jets and Coyotes drop the puck. Just another
accomplishment in the storied career of Dale Hawerchuk. #HOF #HockeyLegend
pic.twitter.com/sTwNQ7Qmn0

- Barrie Colts (@OHLBarrieColts) November 14, 2017

Hawerchuk';s scored his 1,000th NHL point during his first season in Buffalo,
coming Mar. 8, 1991 against Chicago when he tallied a power play goal - it took
 him only 781 games to accomplish the feat. Except for the lockout shortened
1994-95 season, Hawerchuk never scored less than 86 points during his four full
 seasons with the Sabres. Furthermore, he set his career high in assists during
 the 1992-93 season when he had 80 of them in 81 games, and also scored 16
goals. During that year';s postseason Hawerchuk had his highest playoff point
total of his career when he scored five goals and nine assists for 14 points in
 eight contests.

With extensive injuries happening to LaFontaine in the 1991-92 and 1993-94
seasons, Hawerchuk oftentimes assumed the role as the premier center in Buffalo
 and did so quite well. His performance as a Sabre was enough that he would
eventually be inducted into the Buffalo Sabres Hall of Fame in 2011.The
Eventual Evenness of the Deal

When we look back at the deal all these years later, there is a certain
evenness to both sides. Neither Buffalo nor Winnipeg won a Stanley Cup out of
the deal. Each team received an eventual Hockey Hall of Famer. The only player
conceivably involved to win a Cup was May, and he did so many years afterward.
Tkachuk had the longest tenure with one of the teams after the trade took
place. Still, it is hard to even count May and Tkachuk as true pieces in the
deal, since neither was specifically named in the transaction - they were
simply who each team chose after the main swap was all said and done.

If there is an edge it has to go to the Sabres for gaining Hawerchuk. He was
the centerpiece. While Housley was always thought highly of - and still is to
this day - Buffalo got on well enough without him. Parting ways with Hawerchuk
on the other hand, broke the collective hearts of Winnipeg. No matter how you
look at it, his departure from the Jets and arrival in Buffalo is the main
crux. To this day Murdoch';s brief tenure with the team sticks in the craw of
Winnipeg fans as it ultimately culminated in the farewell of their beloved
superstar.

The post Dale Hawerchuk Trade Revisited appeared first on The Hockey Writers.

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