TSN: Brian Hayes and Jamie McLennan on TSN Overdrive on Buffalo Sabres forward Tage Thompson and how they almost traded him.
Hayes: “That’s the uncertainty of development. But that’s what makes it so difficult to I think trade young players because, especially if they’re players that you have drafted. That means you saw something very special. You’re committed to it, right? You believe it will blossom into something real.
And I think, I’m sure that has hamstrung a lot of GMs in a lot of spots in the past. Where if they could have a do-over five years late, they’d say, ‘I can’t believe I didn’t pull the trigger on deal to keep that player. What was I thinking.”
McLennan: “Well, I think there’s a story out there. I’ll double-check. I don’t want to speak out of turn, but I thought there was a story that I picked up on quite recently, that Buffalo was looking at potentially trading Tage Thompson.
Hayes: “I heard the same story.”
McLennan: “Something, sort of, it was in works and it kind of fell through at the last second.
Hayes: “For like a third-rounder and a fifth.”
McLennan: “Yeah, third-rounder, fifth-rounder, or something, Now, I don’t know if that’s true. Buffalo would deny it now obviously.”
Hayes: “Of course.”
McLennan: “Like, can you image? This kid is six foot seven, he’s got range. I watched him live the other day,
Hayes: “He is unreal right now.”
McLennan: “He is, and I think this isn’t a fluke now. He’s kind of arrived. I think what he’s realizing is that in today’s game, he can use his size. He can use his strength, and he can use his shot.
We marvel at (Auston) Matthews, and he had a beauty (the other) night. That was a laser beam under the bar. I’m not lying. I think Thompson is in that league of release. Thompson’s had the hardest shot on register, they register the velocity of every shot, especially every goal. He’s had like six of them this year that are 100 miles and hour, north of it. So he’s got a bomb.”