Midnight Madness

Courtesy of the man, the myth, the legend that is Michael Russo comes this article. Usually I would wait to put this up until the Walk, to give the Strib time to sell its papers, but the first part of the article is just too juicy to wait on. I mean, this is the stuff that I can only imagine Russo has volumes of sitting on forgotten notebooks never to see the light of day.

Is your spine tingling yet? Enjoy.

The untold: According to multiple NHL sources, the Wild traded enforcer Derek Boogaard (right) to the Tampa Bay Lightning on March 3 for third- and fourth-round draft picks and NHL penalty-minute leader Zenon Konopka. GMs Chuck Fletcher and Brian Lawton were talking trade all day, and just before the 2 p.m. trade deadline, Lawton called to sweeten the deal. It was accepted by Fletcher, but the Wild soon discovered the Lightning no longer owned one of the draft picks. By the time the mistake was resolved, it was past the deadline and the trade couldn't transpire.

A third, a fourth, and the PIM leader were offered and Tampa's GM called to sweeten the deal??? Wow. Chuck Fletcher is my hero. Even if this didn't go through, that is awesome. Un. Real. I wonder if Tampa is still interested.

Even later night update (12:45AM): Russo clarified (for my think head) that the third and the fourth picks were the deal sweeteners. I read it wrong, and for that, I will stand in the corner for twenty minutes.

In Fletch We Trust.