Ottawa Senators trade Dany Heatley to San Jose
Have the Sharks found the player tyoo lead them to a Stanley Cup? From AP-
The Ottawa Senators traded disgruntled winger Dany Heatley to the San Jose Sharks on Saturday, ending a lingering dispute with a player who felt he was not being used properly by the team.
The Sharks gave up Milan Michalek, Jonathan Cheechoo and a second-round pick. Ottawa also sent a fifth-round pick to San Jose.
The trade on the opening day of training camp ends a clash that has overshadowed the Senators in recent months.
The 28-year-old Heatley said he wanted out of Ottawa because he wasn’t being used properly. But he angered fans when he refused to waive a no-trade clause to move to Edmonton.
“When I signed in Ottawa two years ago, I felt it was to be an integral part of the team,” Heatley said in August. “Over the last two years and more recently over the past year, I feel my role was diminished. This past season, it diminished a lot more.
“I’m a player who can play in a lot of different situations. I don’t feel I was given that role on the team. I’d like the opportunity to go somewhere where I can play to the best of my capabilities and be the player I can be.”
The Sharks beef up their offense by acquiring a former 50-goal scorer. Heatley had 39 goals and 33 assists last season.
Heatley has 260 goals and 283 assists in 507 regular games, split between Atlanta and Ottawa. He is due to make $8 million this year.
Michalek, a 24-year-old winger from the Czech Republic, had 23 goals and 24 assists in 77 games last season. His salary is $3.5 million this year.
The 29-year-old Cheechoo, a hard-nosed winger, had 12 goals and 17 assists last season. He’s due to make $3.5 million this season.
From the point of view of what talent was exchanged, San Jose came out on top. When everything else is considered, I think Ottawa was a winner. Heatley is a very unhappy person in Ottaw, even though he was the Senators leading scorer and the team’s first or second most valuable player on ice.(A strong argument can be made that Forward Daniel Alfredsson is better than Heatley.) Heatley wanted out of Ottawa, claiming his role was diminished there but how so was it diminished. What’s really at play here is that Heatley is a troubled young man. His reckless driving killed his best friend and teammate Dan Snyder in 2003. NHL fans and Snyder’s family forgave Heatley but I’m pretty certain Heatley hasn’t been able to forgive himself and that’s why he asked for a trade from Atlanta in 2005 and his most recent trade out of 2009. He’s looking for a place to be comfortable. Heatley will never be comfortable anywhere he lives till he forgives himself. I don’t think that will happen before his hockey days are over. Playing the sport is a constant reminder of his friend who unlike him can’t play the sport they both loved so much.
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