What Would Bure Get?

[Baratheon]

Just a hypothetical discussion!  Let’s say that Bure is in the same (or as close as possible) position today, that he was in when he left the team back in 99.  What kind of return would he get via trade?  And also what kind of contract would he be offered?

 

Note:  I am NOT asking what the modern equivalent of his return is.  I am asking what he would command if he existed right now.  (Also assume that his age and production history remain the same)

[Ghostsof1915]

6 minutes ago, Baratheon said:

Just a hypothetical discussion!  Let’s say that Bure is in the same (or as close as possible) position today, that he was in when he left the team back in 99.  What kind of return would he get via trade?  And also what kind of contract would he be offered?

 

Note:  I am NOT asking what the modern equivalent of his return is.  I am asking what he would command if he existed right now.  (Also assume that his age and production history remain the same)

Cam Neely in his prime.

[Baratheon]

Just now, Ghostsof1915 said:

Cam Neely in his prime.

 

Just now, Ghostsof1915 said:

Cam Neely in his prime.

No!!  Cam Neely in his prime does not exist today! The time machine only applies Pavel!  Unless you’re suggesting Bure only nets us an executive ( current Neely? ) lol!

[Alflives]

Didn’t Pavel return Jovocop? The return would be similar today. High end, younger, D man. 

[Baratheon]

1 minute ago, Alflives said:

Didn’t Pavel return Jovocop? The return would be similar today. High end, younger, D man. 

Yeah I that’s kinda where my mind was at.  So he’s a 28ish year old winger but WOW what a winger!  Also has an injury history.  Does that net us a top 2 D in the modern NHL?  And just for fun let’s say that he’s a UFA (or will be within 1-2 years). What kind of contract is he looking at?

[MeanSeanBean]

24 minutes ago, Baratheon said:

Just a hypothetical discussion!  Let’s say that Bure is in the same (or as close as possible) position today, that he was in when he left the team back in 99.  What kind of return would he get via trade?  And also what kind of contract would he be offered?

 

Note:  I am NOT asking what the modern equivalent of his return is.  I am asking what he would command if he existed right now.  (Also assume that his age and production history remain the same)

Roughly 100 point winger in his mid 20s, Jonathan Huberdeau and MacKenzie Weegar?

[Alflives]

Just now, MeanSeanBean said:

Roughly 100 point winger in his mid 20s, Jonathan Huberdeau and MacKenzie Weegar?

Cslgary sure got hosed on that deal. Hate them, so it’s funny. Loser Lames!

[Alflives]

9 minutes ago, Baratheon said:

Yeah I that’s kinda where my mind was at.  So he’s a 28ish year old winger but WOW what a winger!  Also has an injury history.  Does that net us a top 2 D in the modern NHL?  And just for fun let’s say that he’s a UFA (or will be within 1-2 years). What kind of contract is he looking at?

Pavel was the most exciting player in the game. I think he scored 60 in the hooking, holding, grab and tackle era. A team like Buffalo would cough up either Dahlin or Power. Pavel would get top dollar. 11 plus per. Without the grabbing and hanging on Pavel would be deadly. 70 plus goals of which many would be highlight reel. 

[Phil_314]

HockeyZonePlus - Salary History - Pavel Bure - NHL Net Worth: $66,377,654
Crazy to see that, factoring for today's dollars, he earned up to $16 million (that's what his $10 million AAV at the time would've been worth).  

That being said, to ensure that he fits in the salary cap, he'd probably get around the $10-$12 million highest echelon of players (Panarin gets $11.6, with a career high total of 96 points; Bure would his speed would probably get around that if he stayed healthy enough to be the top winger for his team consistently).    

[Miss Korea Bob.Loblaw]

Hehe he would've bolted at the deadline

[vancan2233]

Today in Trade History: Pavel Bure traded to the Panthers

On this day in 1999, the Vancouver Canucks traded Pavel Bure, Brad Ference, Bret Hedican and a 3rd round draft pick to the Florida Panthers for Ed Jovanovski, Kevin Weekes, Dave Gagner, Mike Brown and a 1st round pick.

The trade of Pavel Bure, who had scored 50 goals three times in his seven seasons with the Canucks, caught no one off guard. Bure was sitting out the 1998-99 season, and the accompanying $8 million in salary, until the Canucks moved him to another team. Three days after the trade, Bure went into his reasons for wanting to move on. These included a strained relationship with Canucks’ management, due in part to what he felt was dishonest dealings from team management. Chief among them was story in 1994 that Bure was threatening not to play during the playoffs unless his contract was extended, which he believed was planted by management. According to Brian Burke’s autobiography, Burke’s Law, Pat Quinn confirmed the story about the demand was not true, but there was no denial made by management at the time of the story.

Rumors about Bure’s eventual destination were abundant in the months leading up to the trade being executed. On December 2, Tony Gallagher of the Vancouver Sun suggested it looked like only the Kings and Rangers were potential suitors for the star winger. On December 7th, Larry Wigge of the Sporting News quoted Panthers’ GM Bryan Murray about his interest in either Bure or Islanders holdout Ziggy Palffy: “Are you kidding? We know one wants $8 million to $10 million — and the other is telling teams he wants the same. It makes no sense to pay one player two and three times more than any other player you have on your team. Even the Rangers. What do they say to Wayne Gretzky?”

Iain MacIntyre of the Vancouver Sun reported that Burke asked the Kings for forwards Jozef Stumpel, Glen Murray and 1997 3rd overall pick Olli Jokinen, but was denied. Rumors were consistent throughout December that Burke wanted three out of Stumpel, Murray, Jokinen, Aki Berg and Jamie Storr from the Kings.

Rick Carpiniello of the Westchester Journal News wrote on December 5th that any package from the Rangers would involve Niklas Sundstrom and Dan Cloutier, but the Rangers would refuse to include Todd Harvey or Manny Malhotra. Both Carpiniello and John Dellapina of the New York Daily News wondered if acquiring Bure would take the Rangers’ out of a potential offer-sheet for Peter Forsberg the following summer, lessening the Rangers’ interest in the Canucks’ winger. The Rangers were also aware of fellow wingers and pending unrestricted free agents Theo Fleury and Mark Recchi available on the market (the Rangers would eventually sign Fleury that summer).

There were rumors surrounding the Islanders involving their own holdout Zigmund Palffy. After Palffy signed a five-year contract with the Islanders, Burke indicated that the Canucks’ interest in Palffy was strictly to flip him to another team. Rumors were abound that the Canucks’ were using the Islanders to put pressure on the Rangers. Another Eastern team linked to Bure was the Washington Capitals. Pierre McGuire wrote in Sports Illustrated about a possible trade with Washington that would include Sergei Gonchar, Richard Zednik and a 1st round pick.

Brian Burke said on December 13th, about why no deal had been struck: “The deal will make sense or we’ll take five first-rounders. That’s our safety net. It wouldn’t bother me a bit if he sat out all year.” Bure was to be a restricted free agent the following summer and the compensation to the Canucks from a club signing him would be five first round picks.

Despite what was rumored, the trade that materialized for Bure was with the Panthers. Former #1 overall pick Ed Jovanovski was the centerpiece of the deal. The big blueliner burst on to the scene in his rookie season which saw the Panthers go to the Stanley Cup Finals when he was just 19 years old. In the three seasons with the Panthers following his rookie season, he failed to build substantially on his early success. Once Jovanovski was agreed to, the Panthers took promising young center Rob Niedermayer off the table.

The Canucks also received center Dave Gagner, goaltender Kevin Weekes, pugilist prospect Mike Brown and a 1st round pick in either 1999 or 2000 (at the Panthers’ discretion). Gagner, 33, put up 20 goals and 28 assists in 72 games in his first season with the Panthers in 1997-98. Kevin Weekes was considered a promising young goalie, but had asked for a trade from the Panthers after not being able to wrestle time from either Kirk McLean or Sean Burke in the Florida crease. Mike Brown finished the 1998-99 season with 28 goals (and 285 penalty minutes) with the Kamloops Blazers.

Ed Jovanovski would reach another level with the Canucks. After putting up 37 points in his first 106 games with the Canucks, Jovanovski set career-highs with 12 goals, 35 assists and 47 points in 2000-01. In seven seasons with the Canucks, Jovanovski put up 57 goals and 177 points, as he and Mattias Ohlund lead the Canucks’ defense during the Markus Naslund-lead era.

Kevin Weekes would carve out an NHL career, but played only 31 games over two seasons with the Canucks. He was traded to the Islanders in December 1999 in a trade that brought Felix Potvin to the Canucks.

Dave Gagner would finish out the 1998-99 season with the Canucks and proceed to retire at age 34. He was hired by the Canucks in June 2008 by Mike Gillis, Bure’s former agent, as Director of Player Development. He stayed in that role until 2013.

Once traded, Pavel Bure did report to the Panthers. They re-negotiated his 1998-99 contract. The new contract included no retroactive pay, something agent Mike Gillis called “cost of doing business to get out of Vancouver”. In 11 games in his debut season with the Panthers, Bure put up 13 goals and 3 assists.

In the two following seasons, Bure would win the Rocket Richard trophy with the Panthers scoring 58 and 59 goals respectively. His Panther career was cut to 223 games however, as he would finally be traded to the New York Rangers days before the 2002 trade deadline. He registered 12 goals and 8 assists in 12 games for the Rangers during their playoff push, which would fall short. His career would be limited to only another 39 games, as a knee injury would force his retirement.

[TiTaniuM]

I think comparable would be Marner who is rumoured to be shopped if Dubas returns as GM. Bure would be a better player with more goal scoring potential but with some nasty injury history. Bure would be 10mil+ player so he might not be as easy to move but if a trade does materialize it would be a blockbuster for sure. 

[Alflives]

2 minutes ago, TiTaniuM said:

I think comparable would be Marner who is rumoured to be shopped if Dubas returns as GM. Bure would be a better player with more goal scoring potential but with some nasty injury history. Bure would be 10mil+ player so he might not be as easy to move but if a trade does materialize it would be a blockbuster for sure. 

Bure is nothing like Marner. Bure is more like McDavid but with a goal scoring determination unmatched. Marner is a great player too, but he’s more like Rick Middleton. 

[TiTaniuM]

6 minutes ago, Alflives said:

Bure is nothing like Marner. Bure is more like McDavid but with a goal scoring determination unmatched. Marner is a great player too, but he’s more like Rick Middleton. 

I agree. I would choose prime Bure over current Marner any day too. I was talking more on where they would be if made available in the trade market where age, point production, cap hit etc would all be factored in. Marner would come close if you had to pick a comparable todays player pool. 
 

[rawkdrummer]

Better than a Burkie ride to the airport

[iceman64]

1 hour ago, Baratheon said:

Just a hypothetical discussion!  Let’s say that Bure is in the same (or as close as possible) position today, that he was in when he left the team back in 99.  What kind of return would he get via trade?  And also what kind of contract would he be offered?

 

Note:  I am NOT asking what the modern equivalent of his return is.  I am asking what he would command if he existed right now.  (Also assume that his age and production history remain the same)

Same as McDavid I imagine...

[-AJ-]

1 hour ago, Alflives said:

Didn’t Pavel return Jovocop? The return would be similar today. High end, younger, D man. 

Probably this. A high defenseman A+ prospect would be a reasonable part of the deal. A guy like Bowen Byram comes to mind.

[canucklehead44]

Jovanovski =  Byram
Weekes =  Annunen
Gagner = Rodrigues
Brown = Olausson

Hedican = Bear
Ference = Jurmo

To Avs
Bure
Bear
Jurmo

3rd

To Vancouver
Byram
Annunen
Rodrigues
Olausson

1st

The trade was seen as a pretty bad return at the time. The reason for it was Bure was sitting out - it wasn't like he was crushing it and the Canucks moved him to sell high like we did with Horvat.

 

Byram/Jovo are good young defensemen with upside but a bit disappointing given their draft pedigree and have high offensive potential plus a cup run, Bear and Hedican are smooth skating defenseman who are solid middle of the road guys and prime age, Weekes/Annunen 23 year old goalie with minimum NHL experience but a relatively high pick and looking ready to make the jump, Gagner and Rodrigues bascially short term filler who can put up decent point totals, Brown and Olausson both 1st round busts and Ference/Jurmo big defenders 3 years pro without NHL games. 

 

I remember Burke saying giving up Hedican stung a little bit - same thing would happen if we moved Bear. Asking for Gagner makes me thinkg of Allvin being stubborn on needing a 3rd line centre. The goalies are pretty comparable (and I could see Allvin wanting more goalie depth). 

One discrepency is the fact Ference was 10th overall vs Jurmo who was a 3rd round pick.But at the time I doubt the Canucks valued him like a 10th round pick and saw him as maybe a future bottom pairing guy. 

Edited May 18, 2023 by canucklehead44

[Slegr]

Most exciting Canuck in history. He’d get a big haul for sure.  It was sure fun watching that guy with the puck. So creative, fast, and hungry for goals.

[Drakrami]

4 hours ago, Alflives said:

Cslgary sure got hosed on that deal. Hate them, so it’s funny. Loser Lames!

100 point first line winger, top 4 RDmen, B prospect and a 1st rounder? 

Don't see any team offering a better deal than that. 

Hard to blame Flames on that one. Not to mention they had no rebuild, need to make the playoffs again this season in mind.