Torres Heading to Buffalo

			2009/2010 NHL Statistics
To Buffalo	Position	Age	GP	Goals	Points	2010 Cap Hit	2011 Cap Hit
Raffi Torres	Forward	28	60	19	31	$2.25 million	UFA
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To Columbus	Position	Age	GP	Goals	Points	2010 Cap Hit	2011 Cap Hit
Nathan Paetsch	Defenseman	26	11	1	2	$850,000	UFA
2nd Round Draft Pick

There was a suggestion that there was going to be a bit of a sweepstakes for Raffi Torres at the deadline and the Buffalo Sabres came up winners in that on Wednesday. The Sabres sent Nathan Paetsch, a defenseman slowly coming into his own, and a 2nd round pick, which was probably the closest offer to the Blue Jackets' asking price of a 1st rounder.

If you had the TradeCentre coverage from TSN on your TV on Wednesday, you would have learned from most of the former players and coaches that Torres is not only a clutch player on the ice, he's a great teammate to have in the room, which is definitely important for the culture of a team's dressing room. The Sabres are poised to take a good run in the playoffs with all their hard workers and Ryan Miller in net, so the addition of an already 19-goal scorer is excellent for the stretch run.

The Blue Jackets didn't do too badly either, getting another young-ish defenseman to add to their stable and a quality draft pick as well. Paetsch was somewhat buried in Buffalo behind some pretty good depth already, so going to Columbus, where Rostislav Klesla appears to be done and Mike Commodore out, Paetsch might have himself some ample opportunity to get some regular ice. That should help his development in the NHL along a lot faster. I'll say the Jackets did well to acquire him.

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