Trades cannot properly be evaluated until years after the transaction. The exception to the rule is when a team wins a Stanley Cup in the aftermath of making a deal.
So it will take either years or months to accurately assess the Rangers’ acquisition of Keith Yandle on Sunday from the Coyotes in exchange for Anthony Duclair, John Moore and a 2016 first-round draft selection.
But with the benefit of hindsight, we can break down the good, the bad and the ugly Blueshirts deadline-proximate trades over the last five decades now that general manager Glen Sather appears to have completed his business.
Our sliding scale: Any trade in which the Rangers acquired a player who contributed to 1994 is rated as a positive one, even the ones in which Doug Weight and Tony Amonte were sacrificed.
Right. You be the one to call the trade for Stephane Matteau a bad one.
Good
Feb. 22, 1964: Bob Nevin, Rod Seiling, Arnie Brown, Dick Duff, Bill Collins from Toronto for Andy Bathgate, Don McKenny.
Feb. 27, 1970: Ted Irvine from Los Angeles for Juha Widing and Real Lemieux.
Marh 3, 1970: Tim Horton from Toronto for Denis Dupere.
March 2, 1971: Dale Rolfe from Detroit for Jim Krulicki.
March 6, 1990: Mike Gartner from Minnesota for Ulf Dahlen, two fourth-round draft choices.
March 17, 1993: Esa Tikkanen from Edmonton for Weight.
March 12, 1994: Stephane Matteau, Brian Noonan from Chicago for Tony Amonte, Matt Oates; Glenn Anderson from Toronto for Gartner; and Craig MacTavish from Edmonton for Todd Marchant.
March 23, 1995: Pat Verbeek from Hartford for first-rounder, Glenn Featherstone, Michael Stewart, fourth-rounder.
March 3, 2004: First-rounder, second-rounder (Michael Sauer), Maxim Kondratiev, Jarkko Immonen from Toronto for Brian Leetch, fourth-rounder.
March 6, 2004: Blair Betts, Jamie McLennan, Greg Moore from Calgary for Chris Simon, seventh-rounder.
Feb. 25, 2012: Third-rounder, Mike Vernace from Florida for Wojtek Wolski.
April 13, 2013: Derick Brassard, Derek Dorsett, John Moore and sixth-rounder from Columbus for Marian Gaborik, Steve Delisle, Blake Parlett.
Bad
March 12, 1979: Josh Guevremont from Buffalo for two third-rounders.
March 5, 1991: Joe Kocur, Per Djoos from Detroit for Kevin Miller, Jim Cummins, Denis Vial.
March 8, 1997: Russ Courtnall, Tikkanen from Vancouver for Sergei Nemchinov, Noonan.
March 18, 2002: Pavel Bure, second-rounder from Florida for first-rounder, second-rounder, fourth-rounder, Igor Ulanov, Filip Novak.
March 19, 2002: Tom Poti, Rem Murray from Edmonton for Michael York, fourth-rounder.
Feb. 27, 2012: John Scott from Chicago for fifth-rounder.
Ugly
March 10, 1987: Marcel Dionne, Jeff Crossman, third-rounder from Los Angeles for Bobby Carpenter, Tom Laidlaw.
March 14, 1996: Jari Kurri, Shane Churla, Marty McSorley from Los Angeles for Ray Ferraro, Mattias Norstrom, Nathan LaFayette, Ian Laperriere, fouth-rounder.
March 10, 2000: Rob DiMaio from Boston for Mike Knuble.
March 9, 2006: Sandis Ozolinsh from San Jose for third-rounder.
April 2, 2013: Ryane Clowe from San Jose for second- and third-rounders.