Nearly two years later, the deal that fleeced New York

Imagine going into a car dealership and asking to trade your 3 year-old Honda Civic for a hardly driven Lamborghini. Seems unlikely they’d go for it. Never mind the fact that they don’t even have enough room for the Lambo on the show room floor and the Civic has a huge upside and is in great shape – they’re still not biting.

Somehow Wild GM Chuck Fletcher pulled the deal off. Not for cars, but players.

A little over a year and a half ago the Wild rattled their fan base by trading away favorite Cal Clutterbuck to the New York Islanders in exchange for Nino Niederreiter, a player unfamiliar to most Minnesotans  and only slightly better known in New York. A young forward lost in an organization that had an influx of young talent at his position and who branded him as a complainer who thought much higher of his game than it warranted.

Most hockey pundits at the time saw very little risk for the Wild in the deal considering Clutterbuck’s desire for a new contract, Nino’s virtually untapped potential and the fact that the team had essentially traded a third round selection straight up for a first rounder. But not many thought that it would end being this one-sided.

In 72 games last year Clutterbuck registered 19 points and he’s got 4 this year through 20 games. He is essentially what they thought he would be, a veteran who knew the game and who could produce with regularity in many aspects of the game. Clutterbuck can score, make plays and of course as we all know, he can and will hit anything that moves.

But most importantly for the Islanders, he can do it all now. His ceiling may not have been as high as Niedereitter’s, but he’s at it now. He is also apparently still quite a jokester:

Do yourself a favor and watch this:

 

As for El Nino, he’s been exceptional, scoring 24 goals through his first 101 games in Minnesota after netting just two in 64 games with New York. But Nino’s been more than just a great player. He’s been a model citizen, a great playmaker and a clutch goal scorer when the team needed him. Because of that the Wild rewarded him for that this offseason with a brand new contract.

So how in the world did the Wild pull this off?

At the time of the trade Niederreiter was unproven. Fletcher told the Minneapolis Star Tribune that Niedereitter was a player that was “knocking on the door”.

Still, the Islanders, like a lot of teams with high draft picks, were getting impatient and understandably so. When you take a player No. 5 overall you expect him to produce. But that doesn’t always happen immediately. Sometimes franchises can’t afford to be that patient, especially ones that have had a long history of losing.

The Wild had plenty of time to wait for him to mature into the player they wanted him to be. In fact, that might have been what Niederreiter need all along, the pressure to be off.

Nino Niederreiter’s wraparound attempt is denied by Arizona defenseman Connor Murphy in the Wild’s 2-0 win over the Coyotes on Oct. 24 at Xcel Energy Center in St. Paul.

The best part is, at 22 years old Nino has plenty of NHL tread left on the tire. He anchors a core of young players who are complementing a team with huge top line scoring talent. Even as good as he was last year he still wasn’t even figured to be their best young player coming into this season but, through 20 games (and his first career hat trick), it’s become evident that he is one of them.

Sure, you win some and you lose some and the Wild have lost their share like Martin Havlat, Cam Barker and Guillaume Latendresse.  The latter of which was a situation similar to Niederreiter’s – a player with lots of talent who just hadn’t found a team that was the right fit.

El Nino is proving to be a huge win for the Wild franchise.

Somehow, some way the Wild convinced the Islanders that they’d be better off with a proven commodity like Clutterbuck, instead of potential that had been untapped. In doing so they pulled off potentially one of the best deals in franchise history.

And one that, like Nino Niedereitter himself, could still prove to be of even greater value.

The post Schwartz: Trading Up for Nino appeared first on Minnesota Hockey Magazine.

Featured Image:
Kyle Okposo scores the first of two go-ahead goals in the third period of the Islanders 5-4 win over the Wild on Dec. 29, 2013 in St. Paul.
(MHM Photo/Jeff Wegge)

All but Ness registered points as they combined for seven points (3-4–7) and 12 shots while finishing a +3 as the Islanders spotted Minnesota a three-goal lead before outscoring the Wild 5-1 over the game’s final 37 minutes in front of the 18,851 announced in attendance. Okposo led the way with the Isles final two goals and chipped in an assist for his first NHL points in his fourth professional appearance in St. Paul.

“We just kept chipping away and kept chipping away,” Okposo said. “We were down 3-0 and kind of re-grouped. We decided to go after them and start moving our feet. For the first 22 minutes we weren’t doing that, so we decided to get pucks deep and go to the net.”

Okposo said the Islanders did a good job of dictating the play in the third period, something he had a lot to do with scoring two go-ahead goals in a 1:59 span culminating with the game winner with 5:48 to go.

“It was a good one to leave the hometown fans with,” Okposo said with a grin. “I heard about five or six cheers in the audience when I scored, but it’s nice to come home and get a win like that.”

Thomas Vanek
(MHM Photo/Jeff Wegge)

Islanders coach Jack Capuano praised his top line of Okposo, Vanek and John Tavares who conspired to produce six points (3-3–6) between them on the night.

“The first period they really struggled and were trying to do a little bit too much,” Capuano said. “In the second and third they got back to playing how they know to play. They generated a lot in the offensive zone and the puck protection was great. Their skill really showed.”

Clutterbuck, who accumulated a franchise-leading 1,457 hits in 346 games over parts of six seasons with the Wild, scored his fifth of the season with 1:02 to go in the second (assisted by Nelson) providing the Islanders with a huge momentum boost heading into the final period.

“We kind of gave ourselves a kick in the butt here in the room and decided to kick it into high gear,” said Clutterbuck, the 26-year-old former Wild fan favorite who returned for the first time since being dealt on draft day, along with a 2013 third-round pick, in exchange for Nino Niederreiter.

“It was different—it was a little odd and almost had a training camp split squad feeling to it—but it was good,” Clutterbuck said of his triumphant return. “I didn’t know what to expect, but it ended up working out pretty nice.

Cal Clutterbuck
(MHM Photo/Jeff Wegge)

“There’s a little bit of nostalgia but my mind has been so focused on this team and where we at that it’s nice to be back, but it’s nice to turn the page too.”

Niederreiter, selected No. 5 overall by the Islanders in the 2010 NHL Draft, was mostly relegated to fourth-line duties during his time on Long Island and his production—two goals and one assist in 64 games over parts of two seasons—reflected that. But Sunday he joined Mikko Koivu and Charlie Coyle on the Wild’s top line and chipped in a goal and an assist in his debut against his former team.

But Niederreiter admitted Minnesota’s fifth consecutive loss—at home and to a team currently last in its division—tarnished any satisfaction he may have otherwise received from those two points.

“We lost, so that’s the frustrating part about it,” Niederreiter added. “It was our fault, we were up 3-0 and we let them push back.

“At some point, I feel like we stopped playing the way we should be playing, made too many hope passes and hope plays. That cost us the game.”

The post A Happy Homecoming appeared first on Minnesota Hockey Magazine.

If the density of number 22 jersey’s filling seats wasn’t proof that he fell more in the beloved category than the hated, the applause that filled the building during a first period tribute to the returning warrior, surely was.

Tonight, “Know Your Enemy” takes on a friend turned foe who remains a supporter of the boys who now oppose him. With that being said, let’s get reacquainted with a former child of the strong and wild, New York Islanders forward, Cal Clutterbuck.

On a hot July morning this past summer, Cal Clutterbuck stood outside of Glen Abbey Golf Club in Oakville, Ontario Canada surrounded by Josh Harding, Kyle Brodziak and Tom Gilbert, men, who until recently had not only been trusted friends, but teammates. The men stood quietly chatting, all wearing orange shirts, preparing to golf in the NHLPA’s 21st annual golf classic in the pursuit of raising money for Harding’s Hope.

“Charity events are definitely important,” said Cal before tee off time, “but this one hits a little closer to home, having spent the last year and a half with Josh, it takes on a whole new meaning and it’s the least we can do to be here to support him.”

Cal would go on to lead his foursome of golfers to victory, banking $40,000 for Harding’s Hope and supporting his friend in the process. He also commented on his fresh trade to the Islanders on that hot July morning and while there was no predicting what would come to pass in coming months, he was ready to take on a new challenge in hockey.

“I think it’s a good opportunity for me and a bit of a different scenario. It’s a younger team and kind of growing into maturity,” said Clutterbuck, “I’m looking forward to getting in there with the team at a good stage and growing with them. I think it’ll be a good place for me and for my family as well.”

Unfortunately for Clutterbuck, he suffered a severe leg laceration from a skate during the first exhibition game of the season and found himself sidelined for an extended period of time.

“My injury at the start of the year was pretty tough and it was hard to come back from that.” He continued, “I missed all of training camp but I think things are starting to pick up for me and I’m starting to find my way.”

(MHM Photo/Jeff Wegge)

Injury aside, adjusting to a new city and team can be a challenging all on it’s own, something that Cal commented on, saying, “It’s a lot different even with just coming to the rink every day, coming to a different building, different people. It’s an adjustment period in itself to just get used to your surroundings and the people that are around you every day. Once you get over that I think it’s pretty easy.”

While the adjustment to his new surroundings may have been relatively smooth, Cal says, “It’s not Edina, Minnesota but it’ll do.”

Clutterbuck also felt the video montage welcoming him “home” was nice but unnecessary and when asked about the night he simply stated, “It was nice coming back tonight. Obviously it’s tough playing against some guys who are friends but it was fun. It was a different experience and obviously my first time doing that so I had a blast.”

Whether or not you consider Cal Clutterbuck to be a friend, foe or stuck in that gray relationship area known as a frenemy, there is no denying that at the end of the day he is a player and a man who stands solidly behind his teammates—both past and present—his family and the communities who cheer for him no matter which team colors or number are on his back.

~Quick facts about the NHLPA Charity Golf Classic mentioned in this article courtesy of the NHLPA:

* The tournament has raised over $3.2 Million for various charities throughout the years.

* This year the players competed for a total charity purse of $100,000, with the winning team receiving $40,000 for their designated charity, followed by $25,000 and so on.

* Team captains were: Josh Harding (Harding’s Hope); David Clarkson (Clarky’s Kids); Cory Conacher (JDRF); Marty Biron (Harding’s Hope); Chris Campoli (Look Good Feel Better).

* The following players were playing for Josh’s charity: Dominic Moore, Kyle Brodziak, Cal Clutterbuck, Tom Gilbert; Dwayne Roloson and Marty Biron.

*Make sure you’re following @MNHockeyMag on Twitter for all of our latest articles, game updates and events! You can also follow the author of this article @AmySnow17!*

The post Know Your…Frenemy? New York Islanders Cal Clutterbuck appeared first on Minnesota Hockey Magazine.