Only Matt Stajan remains from original Dion Phaneuf Flames trade
Posted Feb 9, 2016 2:23 pm.
Last Updated Feb 9, 2016 3:31 pm.
This article is more than 5 years old.
Tuesday’s nine-player deal sending Dion Phaneuf to the Ottawa Senators isn’t the first time a trade involving the blueliner made ripples across the NHL.
On Sunday, January 31, 2010, then Calgary Flames GM Darryl Sutter dealt Phaneuf, along with Fredrik Sjöström and Keith Aulie, to the Toronto Maple Leafs in exchange for Matt Stajan, Niklas Hagman, Ian White and Jamal Mayers. The deal came in the midst of a lengthy losing skid for the Flames, in an effort to shake up the team.
“It was a really bad stretch for the Flames,” Pat Steinberg, Flames game host on Sportsnet 960 the Fan, said. “They were struggling, they were falling out of the playoffs and it was the first year after they had made their big splash to bring in Jay Bouwmeester in the offseason.
“Darryl Sutter wanted to get things back on track. He went out and found a partner in Brian Burke, then the GM of the Toronto Maple Leafs.”
We fast forward to February of 2016, where all of the players involved in that original deal have moved on expect for one: Matt Stajan.
The 32-year-old centre is a valuable member of the Flames, both on and off the ice.
“He’s just one of the most genuinely nice and professional people I’ve ever been around in the sport of hockey,” Steinberg explained. “That continues now that he’s found his role and his niche with the Flames.”
And that role now includes being a mentor to the young Flames core, especially centres Sean Monahan and Sam Bennett.
“How to be an NHLer, he’s helped out with and how to deal with the finer points on the ice,” Steinberg stated. “Faceoffs, defensive zones, 200 foot play. I think Stajan’s been instrumental.”
Stajan is also an active member of the Calgary community. He’s a spokesman for the Alberta Children’s Hospital and supports Ronald McDonald House. He and his wife Katie host an event called “A Night Under the Stars”, which raises money for the neonatal intensive care unit at the Foothills Hospital. He’s also part of the Reading Give It A Shot! program.
As for the others included in that 2010 deal, Sjöström and Mayers retired. Aulie and Hagman currently play in European leagues, while White is an unrestricted free agent.
