Jason Chen and Michael Amato discuss the good ol' hockey trade with a one-for-one swap between the Colorado Avalanche and Buffalo Sabres.
The Sleepers and Keepers fantasy hockey podcast hosts Jason Chen and Michael Amato both believe this trade makes sense for both sides.
Rarely do we see one-for-one hockey trades lately, considering the initial backlash that it sparked when the Oilers traded Taylor Hall in a one-for-one trade with the Devils for Adam Larsson. It's worth noting that public opinion has certainly changed significantly since that time.
However, it looks like the Avalanche and Sabres are both reaping dividends right away with the swap.
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Both teams dealt from a position of strength to address a position of need. The Sabres needed defensemen and there was a chance they couldn't fit Casey Mittelstadt under the salary cap, not to mention they have a wave of impressive young players coming up.
Bowen Byram was never going to reach his maximum potential playing behind Cale Makar and Devon Toews, and he joins a talented but thin Sabres blue line. With Mittelstadt, the Avs now have their No. 2 center behind Nathan MacKinnon after the Ryan Johansen experiment proved to be a disaster.
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