BUFFALO, N.Y. -- Aiming for their first playoff run in 10 years, the
Minnesota Wild weren't afraid to go big and get a player like
Jason Pominville for the push.
The
Buffalo Sabres saw another opportunity to restock for the future, amid a season that's fast failing to meet expectations.
The
Sabres traded their captain and a fourth-round draft pick in 2014 to
the Wild before the NHL deadline on Wednesday for prospects
Johan Larsson and
Matt Hackett plus a first-round draft pick in 2013 and a second-round draft pick in 2014.
That's
a high price, but the Wild were willing to part with some assets for a
valuable two-way player in their attempt to reach the postseason for the
first time in five years. They haven't won a playoff series since 2003.
Sabres general manager Darcy Regier's high-priced
roster
has been one of the league's biggest letdowns this season, in danger of
missing the playoffs for a second straight year and the fourth time in
six seasons.
"It's going to involve rolling back a little bit
organizationally," Regier said. "Acquire the assets, the players, the
draft picks and do it in a way that's going to allow us to group enough
young players together, or players together, in order to win a
championship."
Pominville is an eight-year veteran and a six-time 20-goal scorer with significant special teams experience who could join
Mikko Koivu and
Zach Parise on the Wild's first line. He played next to Parise in 2008 with the U.S. national team at the world championship.
"We
played really well together. I like the way he plays. I think he's
going to help us a lot," Parise said in San Jose, Calif., before the
Wild played the Sharks. "He works hard. I just think you look at the way
he's been used. Power play, penalty kill, reliable. He puts pucks in
the net, he makes plays, he gets points. I think he plays a really
all-around game. That's what we're going to see."
After signing Parise and defenseman
Ryan Suter
to mega-contracts last summer, the Wild went all in. They've been
accumulating an impressive pool of young skaters in their system, so
trading Larsson won't leave their organization bare. Rookies
Charlie Coyle and
Jason Zucker have been top-six forwards this season, and
Mikael Granlund is waiting in the AHL in Houston for a second crack at the lineup.
"It
just gives you a sense that they believe in the way we've been playing
and they believe in our team," Parise said in San Jose. "Now it's up to
us to elevate our game even more."
Pominville is in the
second-to-last year of his contract, with a $5.5 million salary each
season. The 30-year-old right wing, a second-round draft pick by Buffalo
in 2001, had 25 points including 10 goals in 27 games for the Sabres
this season. He's sixth in the NHL with 33 takeaways and 11th in the
league with an average of 20 minutes and 53 seconds of ice time per
game. He was picked for the All-Star game last year.
"Players like
Jason aren't readily available, and that's why we paid a significant
price in terms of assets in acquiring him," Wild general manager Chuck
Fletcher said in San Jose. "Obviously, Buffalo felt they needed to move
in a different direction, and when I spoke to Darcy and found out he
might be available we were aggressive in our pursuit."
The Wild
play at Los Angeles on Thursday, and Fletcher said the team will try to
have Pominville at the arena for the game against the Kings. Whether
he's in the lineup after the cross-country trip has yet to be
determined. But whenever he debuts, the Wild will be eager to have him.
They're in third place in the Western Conference, with 3½ weeks
remaining in the regular season.
The Wild also acquired goalie
Jeff Deslauriers from Anaheim for future considerations and assigned him to Houston, then recalled goalie
Darcy Kuemper from the AHL club to be
Niklas Backstrom's backup against the Sharks.
"He's
like a few other players we have on our team like Parise and Koivu and
Suter and Backstrom in that he's a top-line player, but he has a
workmanlike mentality," Fletcher said.
Hackett and Larsson will be
sent to Buffalo's AHL affiliate in Rochester, N.Y. The 23-year-old
Hackett was a third-round pick in 2009. He has 13 career NHL starts. The
20-year-old Larsson was a second-round pick in 2010. He played in one
game last season for the Wild.
The underachieving Sabres are retooling for the future after making four trades in the last three weeks, including defensemen
Robyn Regehr to Los Angeles and
Jordan Leopold
to St. Louis over the past five days. Longtime coach Lindy Ruff was
fired after a 6-10-1 start, and the Sabres were in 12th place in the
Eastern Conference when Wednesday began despite ending Pittsburgh's
15-game winning streak the day before.
Regier said he wouldn't use
the "r-word" but acknowledged the beginning of a "process" to retool
this sputtering team. High draft picks are good way to start.
Regier
said he and Fletcher were discussing a different player when Fletcher
told him he wanted to focus on Pominville. Regier called the decision
"difficult" to trade such an integral piece of the team.
"It's no
fun being where we are. It doesn't matter whether you're a fan or in my
position. There's no enjoyment out of it, but there is an opportunity,"
Regier said. "And what we're going to do is seize on the opportunity."
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AP Sports Writers Dave Campbell in Minneapolis and Josh Dubow from San Jose, Calif., contributed to this report.
