NHL

Heatley deal could be major steal for Sharks

If star shows up ready to play, San Jose just got much stronger

Ottawa Senators Dany Heatley skates during his team's practice for the NHL's Eastern Conference final

Shaun Best / Reuters

Despite Dany Heatley's differences with Ottawa that led to a trade demand, it's not hard to find defenders for him around the NHL.

OPINION

By Craig Custance

updated 6:56 p.m. ET Sept. 15, 2009

Looking only at the statistics, there was little risk in the major deal the San Jose Sharks pulled off Saturday. They get a potential 50-goal scorer in return for players whose combined stats don't approach 50 goals. Sending Milan Michalek and Jonathan Cheechoo to the Ottawa Senators for Dany Heatley is about as lopsided a hockey-trade a team can make.

If we're talking pure skill and hockey ability, go ahead and punch San Jose's ticket to the Western Conference finals.

But when that 50-goal scorer is Heatley, there's risk. And when Heatley comes with another five years left on his contract, with a salary cap hit of $7.5 million per season, there's even more.

Now the Sharks are committed to him long term.

Sharks GM Doug Wilson said there was no concern on his end regarding Heatley's past, one that includes demanding a trade twice even if it was for two different reasons.

"Absolutely not," Wilson said during a Saturday conference call. "We're completely comfortable with the type of player he is and more important, the type of person he is."

Smart general managers don't add this type of player and contract without doing serious homework, and Wilson is smart. Wilson said Sharks coach Todd McLellan coached Heatley during the world junior championships in Sweden, so there's familiarity there.

Wilson said he also gathered information from people who know Heatley, including Hockey Canada president Bob Nicholson and Team Canada GM Steve Yzerman.

"I believe [Heatley]'s a good guy. I know he's a good guy," Yzerman told Sporting News. "I don't believe him to be a selfish person, regardless of whether you agree or disagree with his decision."

It's not hard to find Heatley defenders around hockey. St. Louis Blues president John Davidson recently called Heatley a good kid who was vilified by fans and the media for his trade demands.

Heatley's first NHL coach, Curt Fraser with the Atlanta Thrashers, was adamant in his defense of Heatley during a recent conversation with Sporting News.

"He's the real deal, all these things he's going through now, I don't know if it's a business thing or maybe Ottawa has something going on, I don't know. But don't blame this on Dany Heatley," Fraser said. "He's a great kid and whoever winds up with him is going to find out what kind of guy he is and really enjoy the time they spend with him. He's a winner."

But so far, he hasn't been.

Heatley can't be blamed for the growing pains of an expansion team in Atlanta, but the Senators teams he starred with were inconsistent at best. There's no question Heatley is a talented pure goal-scorer but for $7.5 million per season, ideally you're getting a franchise player who is sound on both ends of the ice.

Ideally, you're getting the kind of guy you send over the boards to protect that one-goal lead in the final minute.

Ideally, you're getting a player who elevates the game of everyone around him.

That hasn't always been the case with Heatley.

The Sharks are a much more talented team today than they were before they added Heatley. But talent has never been the issue in San Jose. It's been grit, desire and leadership.

The Heatley trade is San Jose's gamble, because there's serious question whether he addresses any of that.

SportingNews.com