What is the single worst decision your team ever made?

[IWantSakicAsMyGM]

Colorado:
Signing Brad May.
Signing Brad Stuart.
Signing any Brads. Even you, Richardson!

Seriously though, it's gotta be one of the drafts.

Going back a bit further, I think the Drury trade deserves consideration.

Chris Drury
Stephane Yelle

to division rival Calgary for

Derek Morris
Dean McAmmond
Jeff Shantz


I'd also throw the Tanguay trade in there too.

Tanguay coming off back to back PPG+ seasons

to Calgary for

Jordan Leopold
2nd

 

[BobColesNasalCavity]

For Calgary, I'm torn on letting Martin St. Louis walk as a UFA, or trading up to take Trevor Kidd. With one of the picks that Calgary traded away to move up, New Jersey picked Martin Brodeur.

There's some pretty bad trades (Gilmour, Phaneuf, Roberts' rights) but none of the trades compare to those two franchise altering blunders.

Traded Marc Savard to Atlanta for Ruslan Zaynullin too

Could’ve had St.Louis-Savard-Iginla for a decade.

 

[SomeDude]

The Penguins have a lot, but one of the biggest ones was noted moron Howard Baldwin turning down the city of Pittsburgh's proposal to build a new arena when the Steelers and Pirates got their new stadiums in 2001. Instead, he asked for a "renovation" of the Igloo. Which constituted adding like a couple hundred nosebleed seats or something. A large part of the reason the Pens went through their bankruptcy in 1999 and almost had to move is because the lease for the Civic Arena was horrible for the team. I guess you could say all is well that ends well since we eventually got a new building, but a lot of the drama could have been avoided if that idiot wannabe movie maker wasn't owner of the team.

 

[AlwaysSunnyInTampa]

Not my team but the worst I can recall off the top of my head was Filip Forsberg for a handful of games of Marty freaking Erat. It was a bad move then and it still is now and it's easily forgotten as one of the worst moves of the generation.

My team: drafting Slater f***ing Koekkoek over Forsberg after swooning that he somehow fell to Tampa

Honorable mention: the 2007/2008 firesale and the embarrassing returns we got for Richards and Boyle

 

[CharlestownChiefsESC]

2003 draft Jessiman > Getzlaf. (Its now been said by Ryan Getzlaf himself that the Rangers planned on drafting him)

2006 draft Sangunetti > Giroux (Flyers wanted Sangunetti, because they were convinced the Rangers would take Giroux)

2010 draft McIlrath > Tarasenko (We have Tarasenko now but would have been nice to have had him 10 years ago)

Im not saying this screams dynasty but maybe it wins a cup or 2 with Lundqvist in net.

 

[Larry Hanson]

Haven't read the whole thread, hopefully this wasn't posted.
Flames need a goalie and draft Trevor Kidd over Martin Brodeur.
The salt in the wound is that the Flames actually traded picks with New Jersey and gave up an extra 2nd rounder in the deal.

 

[Ruggs225]

Hiring Sather.

2003 draft Jessiman > Getzlaf. (Its now been said by Ryan Getzlaf himself that the Rangers planned on drafting him)

2006 draft Sangunetti > Giroux (Flyers wanted Sangunetti, because they were convinced the Rangers would take Giroux)

2010 draft McIlrath > Tarasenko (We have Tarasenko now but would have been nice to have had him 10 years ago)

Im not saying this screams dynasty but maybe it wins a cup or 2 with Lundqvist in net.

While those where bad the rangers worst is probably hiring Sather.

Another could be argued how they went for the cup in 94. Did they really need to trade away Amonte, Weight and Garnter? Would they have won without bringing in all the oilers? Would they have had a dynasty by keeping them?

Also the trades of Zubov and Norstrom were awful.

We also had a ton of bad trades/signings post 2000. From awful returns on good players, to horrible contracts. Its amazing how we have fielded very good teams post lockout for the most part with all the horrible decisions that were made.

 

[Lazlo Hollyfeld]

Limiting it to ones I've experienced as a fan:

1) the Adam Oates trade

2) giving Dave Lewis the coaching job after Bowman retired

2) Not firing Holland when he refused to accept a promotion to make way for Yzerman as GM. It's like Kenny spent his remaining years screwing over the Red Wings for even asking. For example:

3) the Abdelkader contract. Had Yzerman not bought him out Abdelkader would still be on the team in the final year of his deal making $4.25 million. This is a player who has not been able to find a job in the NHL since 2020 when Yzerman bought him out.

 

[GrumpyKoala]

I know the Oilers have a list, but hiring Peter Chiarelli was pretty brutal.

This is only the top 10 bad moves. There are more.

Peter Chiarelli’s 10 Worst Moves as Oilers GM - The Hockey Writers Oilers History Latest News, Analysis & More

Peter Chiarelli made a countless number of questionable move as GM of the Edmonton Oilers. Which ones were the worst?

thehockeywriters.com

Remember that it wasn't only a hire...

It was a ''trade'' where we give up a 2nd Round pick for his ''right''

 

[CharlestownChiefsESC]

Hiring Sather.


While those where bad the rangers worst is probably hiring Sather.

Another could be argued how they went for the cup in 94. Did they really need to trade away Amonte, Weight and Garnter? Would they have won without bringing in all the oilers? Would they have had a dynasty by keeping them?

Also the trades of Zubov and Norstrom were awful.

We also had a ton of bad trades/signings post 2000. From awful returns on good players, to horrible contracts. Its amazing how we have fielded very good teams post lockout for the most part with all the horrible decisions that were made.

See not so much. Sather pre 05-06 was told what players to sign and that a rebuild was out of the question. When he got his way the team got much better, while im not saying he was a genius he was able to get them out of the dark ages and make them respectable again, those drafts speak for themselves though, although that was more Gordie Clark.

As far as 94 is concerned that stemmed from not winning in 92, I think alot of people including myself thought that 92 team should have got the job done and if they didnt blow game 4 vs Pittsburgh they probably do. If they win in 92 they win in 94 but without Keenan and those trades. Alas the not winning in 92 and a bad 93 forced Smiths hand.

The Zubov trade addressed needs, the Norstrom trade had Messier written all over it

 

[Lt Dan]

Single worst decision in Blues history ... well, let's go through the list of contenders.
.

You left this out

 

[Ted Hoffman]

You left this out
View attachment 658239

If we had worn those, yes. But we didn't - which, we can thank Mike Keenan for.

 

[Tripledeke333]

I guess the McDonagh for Gomez trade was bad, but worst move in team history?

I think its pretty easy to establish that something happened in the 90's that was worst... since the team hasnt "recovered" since.

I was born in 91 so was commentating more since I followed the team.

However, you could make a case that the McDonaugh move was worse. Patrick Roy was emotional and mad at the team. Habs were “forced” to trade him. Maybe they should have done a better job keeping Roy happy, but from strictly a trade perspective, Roy demanded out. Habs were also awful and I think Roy wanted to go to a stronger team.

The McDonaugh move was stupid as Koivu was a well liked captain who was better than Gomez. All reports indicated Koivu would have resigned but the Habs went in a different direction. Resigning Koivu made so much sense and it was a boneheaded move to give up McDonaugh for no reason.

Also the Habs lost to McDonaugh in the semi-finals and finals so that move stings extra.

 

[Alex Jones]

The year is 2001. The Avalanche have just won their second cup.

The Avs core is starting to age out. Sakic is 31, Roy is 35, Foote is 29, Blake is 31. Bourque is 40 and everyone knows he will be retiring. It's already clear at this point who the Avs next generation is, Chris Drury, Alex Tanguay, and Milan Hejduk.

Within the next couple of years Avs trade away Chris Drury for Derek Morris and Alex Tanguay for Jordan Leopold. Drury and Tanguay would go on to be two of the better players of the 2000's, while Leo and Morris were good but not great defensemen. Way to piss away your future.

 

[teal]

I'll answer this after Meier gets traded

It’s the Karlsson trade regardless. Too ambitious in an area that wasn’t necessary. Destroyed the team for at least a decade.

 

[KovalchukFistPump]

Devils: Getting rid of Lou Lamoriello

Literally set the franchise back so many years. We proceeded to be a bottom dweller for the next 10 years with only 1 playoff appearance (and a first round loss at that). We lucked out by getting the first overall twice with Hischier and Hughes but the reality is that Lou continued his success with other franchises without missing the playoffs.

What did I just read

 

[ORRFForever]

I hope your not paying alimony buddy

Not anymore.

 

[threeVo]

Anyone who missed getting a stud in the 2003 Draft.

 

[AuraSphere]

Well in the past decade - 2 moments stand out for the Leafs:

1) Signing David Clarkson to a monster contract
2) Signing Matthews/Marner to their monster contracts as 21-22 yos

 

[ORRFForever]

*looking back on pictures from your first marriage*

"Shit, at least I didn't trade Gretzky."

 

[Trafalgar Sadge Law]

The hiring of Bob Nicholson. Not only did he hire Peter Chiarelli and Ken Holland back to back which is bad enough as is just for on ice reasons, he also turned out to be the single most despicable individual ever hired by the Oilers, being the guy at the top of the Hockey Canada sexual assault fund scandals. Also made it insufferable for fans attending live games due to the concession price hikes, see:

 

[Thorton02]

Sabres fans may disagree but not solving the Peca issue was the biggest blunder. That 2002 team had prime Hasek and was built for the playoffs. With Peca in his prime, they would have made the finals imo and they matched up well against Detroit. Hell, Hasek might not have left Buffalo had ownership just paid Peca.

 

[abo9]

I was born in 91 so was commentating more since I followed the team.

However, you could make a case that the McDonaugh move was worse. Patrick Roy was emotional and mad at the team. Habs were “forced” to trade him. Maybe they should have done a better job keeping Roy happy, but from strictly a trade perspective, Roy demanded out. Habs were also awful and I think Roy wanted to go to a stronger team.

The McDonaugh move was stupid as Koivu was a well liked captain who was better than Gomez. All reports indicated Koivu would have resigned but the Habs went in a different direction. Resigning Koivu made so much sense and it was a boneheaded move to give up McDonaugh for no reason.

Also the Habs lost to McDonaugh in the semi-finals and finals so that move stings extra.

I guess you're right if we ignore the late 90's stuff.

And annoyingly enough we had MB emulate the same kinda trade with an even better viewed prospect (I think?)... losing Serg coulf haunt us similarly if we end up lacking a top tier LD

 

[Drij]

Even I was in the boat at the time let ROR go and we need to keep Duchene. ROR's leadership abilities and being a solid 2 way forward were developing, but not quite at the level he attained later on. Then Duchene being a whiny cancer who thought he deserved better.

Ironically, we eliminated both players in the way to the Cup. I never blamed ROR for going, but I was so happy when Duchene left.

Don't forget ROR sat out half a season because he wanted more money. Guy was a cancer also.

 

[The don godfather]

Trading seguin for a bag of coal. That was the worst .