The Velocity of trades, how your throwaway bitpart

[Allsmokenopancake 0]

I thought this was pretty interesting

In economics, the term “velocity†refers to the rate at which money changes hands in an economy. Let’s apply a variation of that to sports – specifically, trades. How can one trade’s velocity – the number of exchanges that trade influences in sequence to arrive at a result far down the road that is not at first glance at all related -- impact a club?

Let’s look at one trade in 1982. You’ve probably heard of it. On September 9 of that year, the Caps traded Rick Green and Ryan Walter to the Montreal Canadiens for Brian Englblom, Doug Jarvis, Craig Laughlin, and Rod Langway. Langway went on to become a Hall of Fame defenseman, but he is not what concerns us about this trade. Brian Engblom does . . .

On October 18, 1983, Engblom was traded to Los Angeles with Ken Houston for defenseman Larry Murphy. Murphy, who would later become an object of derision for Caps fans, put in six solid seasons with the club before his role in this adventure unfolded . . .

On March 7, 1989, Murphy was traded with Mike Gartner to Minnesota for Dino Ciccarelli and Bob Rouse. Rouse would be sent to with Peter Zezel to Toronto for Al Iafrate, which is a fork in this road we’ll come back to later. Meanwhile, Ciccarelli quickly become a fan favorite, spending parts of four seasons with the club before his moment would come . . .

On June 20, 1992, Ciccarelli was traded to Detroit for Kevin Miller. Miller – of the famous East Lansing Millers (that’s another story for another time) – was probably the least heralded of that family to make it to the NHL. Certainly his footprint in Caps history is not very deep . . . 10 whole games worth . . .

On November 2, 1992, Miller was sent off to St. Louis for Paul Cavallini. Cavallini was actually making his second stop with the Caps, having been drafted by the club in 1984 (he was sent to St. Louis in a totally forgettable trade – for a draft pick that became Wade Bartley). This time, Cavallini would last one season before he exited the stage . . .

On June 26, 1993, Cavallini was sent to Dallas for Enrico Ciccone. Ciccone spent 46 games with the Caps, during which he was on a first name basis with most of the off-ice officials manning the league’s penalty boxes. It was a short stay, but it would lead to the climax of our journey . . .

On March 31, 1994, Ciccone – with the Caps third round draft pick for 1994 and a conditional draft pick – was sent to Tampa Bay for Joe Reekie. Reekie would spend parts of nine seasons with the Caps, serving as “the steady guy†on his pairings, permitting guys like Sergei Gonchar to pile up some fine offensive numbers from the blue line.

Back to Bob Rouse . . . as we noted, he was sent to Toronto with Peter Zezel for Al Iafrate. Iafrate – the sort of character that defines the word “character†in hockey – spent four seasons in Washington before being traded to Boston for Joe Juneau on March 21, 1994. Caps fans will remember Juneau as the guy who scored the game and series-deciding goal against Buffalo in 1998 that sent the Caps to their first – and to date, only – Stanley Cup final.

As we ponder the big deals about to unfold in the next 24 hours, it might pay to think about the “throw-ins†in some of these deals and the road that leads from Brian Engblom.

[DarkStar50 679]

Following the same logic, here is a Rangers trade to track the velocity of.

1/1/87- From Washington Capitals, Bob Carpenter and 2nd round pick 89 draft(Jason Prosofsky- no NHL experience) to New York Rangers for Bob Crawford, Kelly Miller, and Mike Ridley.

3/10/87- Less than 3 months later- From New York Rangers, Bob Carpenter and Tom Laidlaw for Marcel Dionne, Jeff Crossman(no NHL career) and 3rd round pick 89 draft(Rob Zamuner- 9 games with Rangers, claimed by Tampa Bay in expansion draft, played 789 more NHL games).

So, the Rangers traded Bob Crawford, Kelly Miller, Mike Ridley, Bob Carpenter, and Tom Laidlaw for Marcel Dionne! Dionne played three seasons in New York with 118 games, 42 goals, 56 assists for 98 points.

The other 5 guys after they left the Rangers?

Bob Crawford 12 games, 0 goals, 0 assists, 0 points

Kelly Miller 972 games, 162 goals, 246 assists, 408 points

Mike Ridley 748 games, 254 goals, 403 assists, 657 points

Bob Carpenter 728 games, 141 goals, 210 assists, 351 points

Tom Laidlaw 195 games, 5 goals, 50 assists, 55 points

Totals 2655 games, 562 goals, 909 assists, 1471 points!

Another great Rangers trade.

[Chadd 916]

Unrelated but, Engblom and Laughlin are both doing TV work now.

[Allsmokenopancake 0]

Unrelated but, Engblom and Laughlin are both doing TV work now.

Yep, and there is a drinking game based on Laughlins comments. He is the color guy for the caps, I must see if I can dig it up

[Oberon 0]

I have not thought about Enrico Ciccone in a long, long time. I always disliked him as a player.

[Allsmokenopancake 0]

Here it is

The Unofficial Drink Along With Joe B. & Craig

Comcast SportsNet Drinking Game!

(not endorsed by Joe B., Craig, Comcast SportsNet, or the Capitals!)

Tune into Comcast SportsNet's coverage of tonight's game and take a drink whenever...

• Joe Beninati says either "a very pleasant welcome to you" or "a very pleasant good evening and welcome".

• Craig Laughlin says the word "partner".

• Craig speaks the phrase "and a lot more stuff".

• Craig uses a pun based on a player's name.

• Craig refers to anything he had to eat during the day.

• Joe B. says "bang-bang".

• Joe B. uses the word "scrum".

• Joe B. notes that a player "heard the train whistle coming".

Bonus for alcoholics: Also take a drink whenever...

• Comcast SportsNet fails to show a faceoff on screen.

• Comcast SportsNet cuts to a shot of somebody on the bench while the puck is in play.

• The slogan "Hockey Night in Washington" appears on screen.

• One of the CSN anchors mispronounces a name while showing highlights of other NHL games during one of the intermissions.

• A Pulte Homes commercial comes on and you hear the "We're building something together" song.

[topshelf11 0]

Let's see somebody figure that all out for the Lindros from Quebec to Philly trade. How many pages long do you think that would be?

[Allsmokenopancake 0]

Let's see somebody figure that all out for the Lindros from Quebec to Philly trade. How many pages long do you think that would be?

I reckon heads would explode following that particular tree of trades

[Chadd 916]

Velocity is just such a bad term for it.

[DarkStar50 679]

Would you prefer "synergy"? :lol:

[Chadd 916]

Would you prefer "synergy"? :lol:

I'd settle for legacy