Trade helps Rangers, Ducks

Sunday, January 8, 2006 | Feedback | Print Entry

After weeks of speculation, Mighty Ducks general manager Brian Burke continued his reconstruction project by dealing right wing Petr Sykora and a fourth-round pick in the 2007 draft to the Rangers for 22-year-old defenseman Maxim Kondratiev. In November, Burke had sent a fax to the other 29 clubs, seeking trade offers for Sykora.

Rangers GM Glen Sather and Burke, who are long-time friends, have been talking about this deal for a while. The two men were in Vancouver (and both stayed at the same hotel) last week to watch the young talent at the World Junior Championship. And, in fact, they were seen talking with each other on several occasions. Certainly, the friendly relationship between the two GMs made the deal a little easier to agree on.

The trade seems like a good fit for both clubs. The Rangers get another talented Czech player for their lineup. Sykora joins countrymen Jaromir Jagr, Martin Rucinsky, Martin Straka, Petr Prucha, Marek Malik and Michal Rozsival in New York. The Ducks, meanwhile, continue to dump salary and restructure their team for the future.  
 

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  • E.J. Hradek E.J. Hradek

    E.J. Hradek is a senior writer at ESPN The Magazine, joining the staff prior to its launch in 1998. He began covering hockey as a writer/editor for Hockey Illustrated in 1989. The following year, he beat the Stars to Dallas (by three years), taking over as the editor of Beckett Hockey Monthly. When the Stars finally did arrive in Big D, he hosted a weekly hockey radio show and tried (unsuccessfully) to convert ESPN's Skip Bayless to the greatest game on ice.

    In 1996, Hradek left Dallas, but not the Stars. Relocating back to the New York area, he became a part-time pro scout for the club, seeing more than 100 NHL/AHL games for each of the next two seasons. The scouting gig was a great learning experience, offering a different view of the game.

    Hradek grew up in Tuckahoe, N.Y., about a 40-minute train ride from New York City. Despite the proximity to the Rangers, Hradek embraced the Islanders when the expansion franchise debuted in 1972. Eight years later, he was part of the sellout crowd at the Nassau Coliseum that witnessed the Islanders' first Stanley Cup championship.


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