Remembering The Biggest Trade Deadlines in Hurricanes History: The Pre-Lockout Days

The NHL trade deadline is always one of my favorite days of the year. Unlike in most sports, this day is often chock-full of huge moves as playoff contenders and hopefuls look to bolster their lineups to make a late push for the Stanley Cup. Sometimes, those moves pan out beautifully. Other times, they fall flat. Throughout their history, the Carolina Hurricanes have seen plenty from both sides.

With this year's deadline approaching, I thought it would be fun to revisit some of the most notable deadlines in the team's history since moving to North Carolina. To avoid making one long article, I plan to look at various eras of the franchise to help paint this picture. I won't be touching on every deadline because that's a lot of trades, some of which have little to no bearing on the team overall.

To kick things off, I've started with the early days of the Carolina Hurricanes. With the Hartford Whalers relocating and taking up a new identity, the franchise was looking to establish itself as a serious force. In its first seven seasons, the team experienced the highest of highs and the lowest of lows. In Part 1, we'll cover the notable pre-lockout deadlines from 1998 to 2004.

1998

As is often the case, the best place to start is the very beginning. Two months before the 1998 deadline, the Hurricanes made a big deal with the Vancouver Canucks, acquiring Martin Gelinas and Kirk McLean for a package that included young 40-goal scorer Geoff Sanderson and goalie Sean Burke. Gelinas' contributions to the organization over the next several seasons are well-documented in the team's history books, including the series-clinching goal in the 2002 Eastern Conference Finals to send the team to their first Stanley Cup Final. McLean's tenure with the team wouldn't be as glamorous.

After eight appearances, Kirk McLean was sent to the Florida Panthers at the deadline for forward Ray Sheppard. While the Hurricanes failed to secure a playoff spot in their inaugural season, Sheppard's impact would be greatly felt the following season. En route to a division crown, Sheppard finished second on the team in goals (25) and third in points (58) as the Canes qualified for their first postseason.

In their series with Boston, Sheppard scored five goals in six goals, including the overtime winner in Game 2 to secure the team's first playoff win. He would depart that offseason, returning to the Panthers as a free agent. McLean made 37 appearances over the next two seasons for the Panthers, going 13-12-5 with a 2.85 GAA. The Canes aced their first deadline, making an impactful move to help push the team in the right direction.

2002

Jumping ahead a few years, the Hurricanes hadn't yet found any success in the postseason but were well on their way to winning their second division crown in four seasons. Leading up to the 2002 trade deadline, the team made three moves, two of which would be connected as they looked to improve in the net. Future Hall of Famer Tom Barrasso had been good for the team, but they needed to get younger. Two weeks before the deadline, the team decided to bring in 26-year-old goalie Kevin Weekes from the Lightning for Chris Dingman and current Canes television analyst Shane Willis. Ten days later, Barrasso was on the move, being sent to the Maple Leafs for a 4th-round pick in 2003.

Weekes served as the backup to Arturs Irbe for most of the remainder of the season, but he got his chance to shine in the postseason against the Devils. "The Save" on John Madden in Game 5 is one of the most iconic saves in franchise history. He would remain with the organization until the lockout, appearing in 117 games over the next two seasons while posting a 2.39 GAA and a .912 save percentage despite failing to make the playoffs in either season.

Barrasso only made four appearances for Toronto before making six with the Blues the following year, retiring at the end of the season. Neither Dingman nor Willis provided much for the Lightning during their stints, but Dingman did earn a ring with the 2004 Bolts when they won the Stanley Cup.

2004

The Hurricanes' struggles continued into the 2003-04 season as they were well outside of the playoffs once the deadline rolled around. While the team had been making moves before the deadline, including the addition of a certain Hurricanes Hall of Famer, the team's only deadline move sent longtime captain Ron Francis to the Toronto Maple Leafs for a 4th-round pick in 2005. Francis made an impact for the Leafs, scoring 10 points in 12 games leading up to the playoffs. However, he contributed just four assists in 12 postseason games as the Leafs were eliminated, thus ending Francis' Hall of Fame career.

The pick the team received went on a journey. While Sportsnet did a great job of outlining the movement of every piece involved in the trade, the 4th Round pick was sent to the Blue Jackets. The Canes received a player and a pick in return. That pick, a 2006 4th Round pick, was sent to Chicago for Anton Babchuk and a 2007 4th Round pick. The pick in 2007 was part of a larger package that the team sent to St. Louis in January of 2006 to acquire Doug Weight. As a playoff rental, Weight scored 13 points in 23 games during the regular season before scoring 16 points during the team's run to the Stanley Cup in 2006.