from Damien Cox of the Toronto Star,
Larry Murphy one more time.
To the most cynical of Maple Leaf followers — and few bands of collectively-minded folk have more reason to be cynical — you can see why it might feel that way.
Just as Murphy was booed as a Leaf and transferred to Detroit only to become a Stanley Cup champion twice (!!) as a Red Wing, here we are in 2016 with Phil Kessel, a reluctant star found wanting as a franchise player in Toronto, just four wins away from earning a Stanley Cup ring with the Pittsburgh Penguins.
Same rotten deal, right?
Well, not quite. Murphy was traded in 1997 for future considerations, which were essentially nothing. Kessel, to boil it down, was dealt to Pittsburgh for a first-round pick next month and prospects Kasperi Kapanen and Scott Harrington, as well as $47.6 million (U.S.) worth of extremely valuable salary cap relief spread over seven seasons....
The similarity is Murphy wasn’t flourishing as a Leaf when he was traded but did so in Detroit, where he was surrounded by a much stronger roster. Kessel is having a heckuva playoff, but it’s useful to point out that on a talented Pittsburgh team he’s doing so as a third-liner facing third defence pairings, a big difference from his days as a Leaf when he always received first-line minutes against the best opposition checkers.
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