In the month of August, as the news in the hockey world slows to a crawl, we will be taking a look at the most consequential deals in Buffalo Sabres history (using the Hockey News Archives as source material) and ranking the 15 best and the 15 worst deals in the club’s 54-year history.
This required the input of a trio of veteran media members (Dave Reichert, Randy Schultz, and Pete Weber), as well as three lifetime Sabre fans (Chuck Bender, Todd Riniolo, and Joe Schwartz).
12. March 10, 2003 – Daniel Briere and a 2004 third-round pick from the Phoenix Coyotes for Chris Gratton and a 2004 fourth-round pick.
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There are times when it is better to be lucky than good, and the March 2003 trade between the Buffalo Sabres and Phoenix Coyotes is an example of that. The Sabres were finishing off a disappointing season in which they ended up 27-37-10 and in last place in the Northeast Division.
Before the trade deadline according to Bucky Gleason of the Hockey News, GM Darcy Regier was given marching orders to cut the club’s payroll and get younger players who could help the team down the road. Most of those deals were salary dumps of vets Vaclav Varada and Stu Barnes for prospects Jakub Klepis and Mike Ryan, but the one trade that consisted of two established NHLers was center Chris Gratton going to Phoenix for Daniel Briere.
The 27-year-old Gratton was a consistent offensive performer (49 goals in three-plus seasons) after being acquired from Tampa Bay for the stretch drive in 2000, while Briere (a 1996 first-rounder of the Coyotes) had been placed on waivers in 2001, scored 32 goals in 2002, and slumped to 17 goals in 2003 before the trade.
The trade showed immediate dividends for Buffalo, as Briere scored seven goals in 14 games to the end of the season and a career-high 65 points (28 goals, 37 assists) in 2003-04. Gratton struggled in Phoenix, finishing 2003 with one assist in 14 games, and tallying only 11 times before being traded to Colorado at the deadline in 2004.
The deal became obviously one-sided following the 2004-05 NHL lockout, as Gratton played two seasons in Florida, another two back in Tampa Bay, and a brief stint in Columbus before retiring at the end of the 2008-09 season.
The smaller and quicker Briere thrived in the post-lockout NHL with obstruction being penalized more often. He scored 58 points in 48 games in 2005-06(missing a large chunk of the regular season with an abdominal injury) and led the club in playoff scoring with 19 points, but the Sabres lost to Carolina in Game 7 of the Eastern Conference Final.
The next season, Buffalo tied with Detroit for the President’s Trophy and Briere led the club in regular season (95 points) and playoff (15 points) scoring, but the Sabres once again lost in the Eastern Conference Final to Ottawa. After the season, he signed an eight-year, $52 million contract with the Philadelphia Flyers. He played six seasons with them, one season in Montreal and finished his career in Colorado in 2015.
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