In the month of August and early September, 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).
8. December 17, 1990 – Buffalo acquires Lou Franceschetti and Brian Curran from the Toronto Maple Leafs for Mike Foligno.
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READ ABOUT OTHER SABRES TRADES
Best Trades In Sabres History – #8
Worst Trades In Sabres History – #9
Sometimes trades are evaluated on a player’s value and what is received in exchange, but also a factor is what it symbolizes. After the retirement of Hall-of-Famer Gilbert Perreault in 1986, Lindy Ruff served as team captain for more than three seasons before being traded to the NY Rangers in 1989, after which veteran winger Mike Foligno took over wearing the C.
Foligno was acquired by the Sabres in the massive seven-player deal with Detroit in December, 1981 and had scored 20 or more goals for eight straight seasons, but in his final full season with Buffalo, he scored just 15 times in 61 games.
According to Jim Kelley of the Hockey News in January 1991, the Sabres were struggling and were looking to shake up the roster. Foligno was unhappy after being scratched on opening night of the 1990-91 season and with the decreased ice time he was receiving from head coach Rick Dudley. Just before Christmas, he was dealt to the Maple Leafs for winger Lou Franceschetti and defenseman Brian Curran.
The 32-year-old Franceschetti was coming off a career-high 21 goals with the Leafs in 1989-90 after spending seven seasons in Washington but had only one goal in 16 games for Toronto before the trade. Curran was a massive blueliner who had 301 penalty minutes with Toronto in 1990 after stints with Boston and the NY Islanders.
The trade was fairly one-sided from the outset. Franceschetti had one goal the rest of the 1990-91 season and played one game the following year, before being sent to the minors, where he finished the final five years of his career. Curran played 20 games for Buffalo after the trade, left the Sabres as a free agent and except for a brief stint with Washington, finished out the last six years of his career in the AHL and IHL.
Foligno transitioned to being an effective role player with the Leafs. He had an injury-plagued 1991-92 season, playing only 33 games, but scored 13 goals in 55 games on a veteran-laden Leafs club in 1993 that got to within one game of the Stanley Cup Final. His final great post-season moment was a game-winning goal in overtime of Game 5 in the first-round series vs. Detroit, in which he celebrated with his trademark jump for joy.
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