The Toronto Maple Leafs have a long and storied history. It’s one filled with success, disappointment and a long list of players that have donned the blue and white. Some came to the franchise through the draft while others were signed or traded for over the years.
Over the next little while, we’ll be looking back at some of the bigger trades in the franchise’s history. Some will remind readers of trades that helped the franchise over the next several years, while others will act as a subtle reminder of some of the darker days in Maple Leafs’ history.
With that, let’s head back to Sept. 19, 1991, when the Maple Leafs engaged in a trade with the Edmonton Oilers – a trade that landed them a long-time Oilers star and a proven goaltender.
Oilers Add Ing, Damphousse
It was a Thursday when the Oilers and Maple Leafs agreed on the deal. It was a move that saw the Oilers land Vincent Damphousse, Peter Ing, Luke Richardson, Scott Thornton along with cash and future considerations in exchange for Glenn Anderson, Craig Berube and goaltender Grant Fuhr.
Thornton was coming off his first season with the Maple Leafs – in fact, it was his rookie season – in which he tallied a goal and four points in 33 games for the blue and white. He went on to spend parts of five seasons with the Oilers following the deal with 23 goals and 53 points in 209 regular season games to go along with 385 penalty minutes. However, he saw just one playoff game in those five seasons.
Richardson was entering his fifth season in the NHL after spending his first four with the Maple Leafs. Over that span he had 11 goals and 47 points, along with 556 penalty minutes, in 278 regular season games. He would later return to Toronto for 21 games in 2005-06. But before that he played parts of six seasons with the Oilers. He had 13 goals, 78 points and 630 penalty minutes in 436 regular season games and saw 28 postseason games with the Oilers in 1991-92 and 1996-97 combined.
As for Ing, he played just 12 games for the Oilers as a 22-year-old following the deal. He finished with a record of 3-4-0 with a 4.27 goals against average and .869 save percentage. He went on to play three more games with Detroit in 1993-94 before calling it a career.
Finally, Damphousse – like Ing – only played one season with the Oilers. He suited up for 80 games and notched 38 goals and 89 points. He added another 14 points in 16 postseason games, but was traded to Montreal the following season where he won his first and only Stanley Cup with the Canadiens in 1993.
Maple Leafs Land Anderson, Fuhr
As for what the Maple Leafs got in return – it was quite a valuable package.
For starters, they landed Glenn Anderson. The long-time Oilers’ forward spent the first 11 seasons of his NHL career with the Oilers where he collected 896 points in 830 regular season games. With the Maple Leafs, he spent parts of the next three seasons with Toronto tallying 63 goals and 157 points in 221 games. He added another 18 points in 21 playoff games when the Leafs made their run in 1992-93 – but the team came up short.
Toronto also acquired Craig Berube in the deal, but he didn’t last long in a Maple Leafs’ uniform. Berube played just 40 games for the Maple Leafs in 1991-92 with 12 points to show for it and 109 penalty minutes. He was quickly moved to the Calgary Flames in a trade that brought Doug Gilmour to Toronto on Jan. 2, 1992.
Finally, the Maple Leafs got goaltender Grant Fuhr as the last piece of the deal. Like Berube, Fuhr’s time in Toronto wasn’t overwhelmingly long. He donned the blue and white for parts of just two seasons – 95 regular season games to be exact.
Related: Oilers History – The Return of Grant Fuhr
He finished with a 38-42-9 record with an .885 save percentage, a 3.50 goals against average and three shutouts. In Feb. 1993, the Maple Leafs moved Fuhr to the Buffalo Sabres in a deal that would eventually lead to them drafting defenceman Kenny Jonsson.
Any Clear Winners?
While both teams got some useful production from each of the players included in this deal, the Maple Leafs had Anderson longer than any of the other players remained with their new respective clubs.
Neither club went on to win a Stanley Cup in following few years so it didn’t put the Oilers and Maple Leafs over the edge, but Damphousse did win himself a Stanley Cup with Montreal just one season after the trade.
While it could be argued that the Maple Leafs were the winners of this trade, it could be further argued that Damphousse might’ve been the sole winner of the deal as the Oilers eventually sent him to the Canadiens and onto a Cup win.