There’s been plenty of huge blockbuster trades in the history of the NHL, many of them which the fans have loved and many who they’ve loved.
As a GM, the job in getting the best players for the lowest possibly return is always the goal. But even for GM’s, sometimes it can be tough to make trades especially if it comes to players the fans love.
Brian Burke didn’t have a great hockey career, but when moving into management, he’s been one of the most respected GM’s in the last 30 years.
Between 2009 and 2012, Burke was the GM of the Toronto Maple Leafs. And during the NHL Entry Draft going in to his last year in the organization, he chose to not make a trade because he was afraid to get booed.
Luke Schenn was widely popular among Leafs’ fans. But during the draft, it looked like he was heading to Philadelphia.
“This is the most embarrassing Brian Burke moment”, Burke says. “Paul Holmgren wanted to do the trade, Luke Schenn for James Van Reimsdyk, and I refused to do it on the floor in Pittsburgh because there were a couple of thousand Leafs fans there and Luke was so popular, so I did it in my truck on the way home so I wouldn’t get booed”
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