I have to admit, I took the day off from work to hang out at home and keep up with trade deadline coverage. It was the easiest way to keep myself from getting fired for continually checking my phone and not doing any actual work. I may very well be sitting on the couch all day and watching the talking heads at TSN talk about the 2014 Canadian Olympic team because there isn’t going to be much action.
Deadline day for the past couple of years has waned in activity. From 2003 to 2010, there were at least 20 deals done on deadline day with it peaking with 31 deals in 2010. The last two years have seen a total of 31 deals done on deadline day, 16 in 2011 and 15 in 2012. Most of those deals came near the deadline as there were 3 trades in each year that came before 1:00 pm Eastern.
With the shortened season and fewer true sellers in the market, that number of deals could hit single digits in 2013. There have already been a handful of major deals that have been completed in the days leading up to the deadline. Jarome Iginla was dealt to Pittsburgh over a week ago and already has his first goal. Derek Roy and Jaromir Jagr were dealt yesterday afternoon to pretty much complete the Dallas Stars fire sale.
The Sabres have already moved many of their rental pieces off and now have to consider if they are going to deal their core pieces to start a true rebuild. For the organization, there may not be a real rush to get a deal done with Pominville, Vanek, and Miller at the deadline. Each of those players have one year left on their contract after this season so they come with more value at this point. With the salary cap going down next season it may be easier to move during the draft or the offseason as teams will have a better sense of how much cap room they will have.
So here’s my word of warning to you if you are like me hanging out on your couch all day. Be prepared to have to find something else to do during the afternoon.