The Ginner trade might be DW's worst. Right up there with Seto.
Right up there with the trade that brought in the most versatile player in the league? Brent Burns' impact as an elite puck-moving defenseman is more than enough to justify what the Sharks gave up. 6'5 defensemen who can skate like the wind don't grow on trees. A defenseman, especially one with his size and skating ability, that can promptly change into a legitimate top six forward is ridiculously valuable. I don't think people understand how difficult it is to do what Burns is doing. It's one thing for a player to occasionally switch positions in Midget or Juniors. Even in the NHL, you see a depth defenseman sometimes be used as a fourth line forward in an emergency situation. But Burns isn't doing that. He's an All-Star defenseman that is playing on the wing of one of the best playmaking centers in NHL history, and I think we would all agree that he has been fantastic. Burns is an incredibly valuable player. He has the offensive skill set of a top-six forward and the ability to adjust his style of play based on where he is playing. Someone made a thread asking if Boyle could potentially play forward the other day. He can't. He doesn't think like a forward because he hasn't played forward in about 20 years. That is what makes Burns even more valuable than just what he brings as a defenseman.
The McGinn trade I will give you. That looks pretty crappy right now, even to someone who didn't think much of it as recently as the beginning of this season. But really, the Burns trade was fantastic for the Sharks. Setoguchi and Coyle are certainly tough players to give up, but Burns brings more than enough to compensate for that. Plus, he passed on free agency (which would have happened after last year) to re-sign with the Sharks before he ever played a game here. In the world where far inferior UFA defensemen easily grab 5M a year, Burns is signed to a pretty bargain-rate deal.
