Reasoning behind the Claude Lemieux trade?

[Young Claybert]

Alright, the Malkin trade discussion on the main board had me thinking about Conn Smythe winners and what their value is on the open market. And after taking a look at the history's Conn Smythe winners, I see most of them go nowhere.
So then, I queston: why did the Devils trade Claude Lemieux right after the season he won the Conn Smythe? I'm too young to remember the mid 90's of hockey well. Was there some off the ice drama I'm unaware of? Was it considered a bad trade at the time? It makes little sense to me why a team would part with a playoff MVP.

 

[JSmith81x]

Claude Lemieux's first of two stints with the New Jersey Devils came to a sudden and rather bizarre end at the start of the 1995-96 season -- just months after he had won the Conn Smythe Trophy as the MVP of the Devils' Stanley Cup championship run. During the summer of 1995, while he was on his honeymoon in the Bahamas, Lemieux said he would not report to New Jersey's 1995 training camp because he felt the four-year, $5.2 million contract he had signed on March 22, 1995, was not valid and he deserved to be a free agent. As a show of his anger over the contract, he fired agent Steve Freyer on July 5, 1995, and later hired agent Howard Silber, his second wife's brother-in-law. Lemieux complained that he had only signed a faxed copy of the contract, and not an actual contract, but the Devils refused to renegotiate. Lemieux and Silber insisted the contract was not legal, and Lemieux took the Devils to arbitration on Sept. 19, 1995, in what turned into a two-day hearing with league arbitrator George Nicolau. On Sept. 29, 1995, Nicolau sided with the Devils, saying Lemieux had no right to free agency. The Devils then told Lemieux they would not allow him to return to the team, and promptly began engineering a three-way trade with the New York Islanders and Colorado. The deal, completed on Oct. 3, 1995, saw New Jersey send Lemieux to the Islanders in exchange for Steve Thomas. The Islanders then traded Lemieux to Colorado in exchange for Wendel Clark, who had been in a contract dispute with the Avs.


http://www.hockeydraftcentral.com/1983/83026.html

 

[guyincognito]

personal dispute. he signed a contract in March '95, and wanted out from under it after the playoffs. he claimed he only signed a faxed copy, which somehow made it invalid, so he should be a free agent.

the Devils wouldn't renegotiate with him, so he tried to sue for free agency and lost. the Devils threw him off the team and traded him right before the season started, to the Isles, for Steve Thomas. then the Isles traded him for Wendel Clark an hour or so later.

also, the team was exploring relocation at the time and that might have played a part.

 

[Young Claybert]

Oh, wow, okay. Can't believe I never heard that story before. Thanks for educating me a bit!

That really just reaffirms me belief that Conn Smythe winners probably shouldn't be on the block, if the situation was beyond NJ's control.

 

[vadim sharifijanov]

here's another one that, if i recall correctly, was due to a contract dispute:

August 18, 1997: Mike Vernon traded to San Jose by Detroit with Detroit's 5th round choice (later traded back to Detroit - Detroit selected Andrei Maximenko) in 1999 Entry Draft for San Jose's 2nd round choice (later traded to St. Louis - St. Louis selected Maxim Linnik) in 1998 Entry Draft and San Jose's 2nd round choice (later traded to Tampa Bay - Tampa Bay selected Sheldon Keefe) in 1999 Entry Draft, August 18, 1997.

 

[norrisnick]

here's another one that, if i recall correctly, was due to a contract dispute:

August 18, 1997: Mike Vernon traded to San Jose by Detroit with Detroit's 5th round choice (later traded back to Detroit - Detroit selected Andrei Maximenko) in 1999 Entry Draft for San Jose's 2nd round choice (later traded to St. Louis - St. Louis selected Maxim Linnik) in 1998 Entry Draft and San Jose's 2nd round choice (later traded to Tampa Bay - Tampa Bay selected Sheldon Keefe) in 1999 Entry Draft, August 18, 1997.

I don't think it was so much a dispute as it was the Wings didn't want to pay Vernon what he was due. Especially with Osgood in the system. There may have been an option year involved that the Wings weren't in favor of.

 

[Jumptheshark]

I remember the dispute. Claude went on TV and argued his point. THe talking head asked him why he signed the fax copy--Cluade went "That is beside the point". Another talking head(a lawyer) who was brought in to discuss asked "where you aware you were signing a contract"?

it comes down to the fact--after signing a contract--Claude had some good games and he decided he wanted more money--It was mantioned during his career--that Claude was not the brightest bulb in the world

 

[vadim sharifijanov]

I don't think it was so much a dispute as it was the Wings didn't want to pay Vernon what he was due. Especially with Osgood in the system. There may have been an option year involved that the Wings weren't in favor of.

that's pretty much what i meant. my memory is vernon was an RFA and wanted a three year extension at something like $3 mill per. the wings offered a two year deal (i don't remember exactly, but i assume the annual dollars were lower too), so they traded him to SJ while his value was high. i recall ken holland saying something like, "he deserved to get the deal he got in SJ. unfortunately, it wasn't in the interest of this team to give that to him."

 

[Peter9]

I remember the dispute. Claude went on TV and argued his point. THe talking head asked him why he signed the fax copy--Cluade went "That is beside the point". Another talking head(a lawyer) who was brought in to discuss asked "where you aware you were signing a contract"?

it comes down to the fact--after signing a contract--Claude had some good games and he decided he wanted more money--It was mantioned during his career--that Claude was not the brightest bulb in the world

This episode reflects a problem with his ethics rather than his brainpower. Ah, yes, the one-way contract. You can bet he would have argued it was enforceable had he had a terrible year or been injured and had the Devils sought to renege on it.

 

[TheMoreYouKnow]

He's unethical for going down that path, he's a moron for thinking it's going to work.

 

[GKJ]

He's unethical for going down that path, he's a moron for thinking it's going to work.

He did once say 'C' is for 'Selfish.'


Vernon being traded from the Red Wings I think was a classic case of sell-high. The Red Wings had been going on with the Osgood/Vernon saga for a couple years, and I think they were ready to live and die with whatever Osgood had, and they ended up repeating as Cup Champs the next year.