The Detroit Red Wings set the gold standard for savvy trades throughout the 1990s and 2000s. The Wings’ stellar moves set the team up for multiple Stanley Cup wins a countless playoff appearances.
That’s why it’s worth digging up some history and looking back at the best trades in Detroit Red Wings history.
1997 Larry Murphy Trade
1997 was a big year for the Detroit Red Wings. The Wings finally won the Stanley Cup after failing so many times before. But getting there depended on plenty of help, particularly at the trade deadline.
One of the biggest moves was acquiring defenseman Larry Murphy at the deadline. But what makes this trade so remarkable isn’t the fact that the Red Wings landed Murphy. It was the price tag attached to him.
The Wings have the Toronto Maple Leafs to thank for gifting them Murphy on March 18, 1997. The Leafs’ core had run its course, and the team was getting ready for a teardown. One of the players moved in said teardown was Larry Murphy.
Detroit landed the veteran star for nothing. That’s right. The Maple Leafs helped the Red Wings by sending Murphy to Detroit for future considerations.
Murphy was part of the back-to-back Stanley Cup-winning Red Wings clubs in 1997 and 1998. Not bad for a guy who was given away for nothing.
1999 Chris Chelios deal
In 1999, the Red Wings fleeced the Chicago Blackhawks by landing franchise player Chris Chelios. Chelios had been the cornerstone of the Blackhawks for over a decade. But by 1999, the Blackhawks were looking to rebuild.
So, Chicago sent Chelios to the Red Wings for what appeared to have been a haul. The Red Wings got Chelios in exchange for Anders Eriksson, a 1999 first-round pick and a 2001 first-round pick.
In short, Chelios played a decade in Detroit, taking home two Stanley Cups. Meanwhile, Eriksson was an inconsequential player for the Blackhawks, with the two first-rounders being a huge swing-and-miss for the Blackhawks.
1996 Brendan Shanahan fleecing
The seeds for the 1997 season were sown when the Detroit Red Wings acquired Brendan Shanahan from the defunct Hartford Whalers. Shanahan, who had already been a star with the St. Louis Blues, ended up in Hartford following a trade in 1995.
Shanahan, however, was unwilling to remain in Hartford as the team’s future was uncertain. The Whalers would eventually become the Carolina Hurricanes. But before moving to Carolina, the Whalers shipped Shanahan to the Detroit Red Wings for what looked like a massive haul.
Shanahan went to the Motor City with Brian Glynn for Keith Primeau, a veteran Paul Coffey, and a first-round pick in the 1997 NHL Draft. That pick turned about to be Nikos Tselios, who played all of two games for the Hurricanes.
In Detroit, Shanahan went on to win three Stanley Cups. His best season came in 1996-97 when he scored 46 goals and 87 points. He had one more 40-goal, 80-point season in 2005-06 before leaving Detroit to play for the New York Rangers.
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