After much innuendo, talks starting, breaking off, and a last ditched effort to salvage the deal, Chicago GM Dave Yee consumated a deal with the New York Islanders that vaults the Chicago Blackhawk defense into the upper echelon of the league.
The team moved out it's prime prospect jewel Niklas Backstrom along with offensive blueliner Paul Mara, top prospects Enver Lisin and Viatcheslav Trukhno and Tomas Zaborsky to add unrestricted free agent Lubomir Visnovsky and Michal Rozival. The team added as well fourth liners Dan Hinote and Ville Peltonen and back up goalie Frederick Norrena.
"We know that adding Lubomir for this season is a bold move. As an unrestricted free agent, it is a dangerous thing to do, because it doesn't allow us the freedom to add other pieces at the deadline at a reasonable cost. For example if Buffalo isn't in contention at the deadline, a guy like Rolston is a huge boon for anyone. So now, we don't have that luxury." said GM Bachul
"What we do have though is a strong strong core. And if we can keep Lubomir for one more season after this one we feel that we should be able to put at least one championship under our belts. It is sad that we have to keep dipping into our prospect pool and move out all the great kids that we have drafted or could have drafted. But the name of the game is winning, and that is what we are trying to do."
