The public trade request made on Sunday night by Jonathan Drouin and his agent Allan Walsh caught most off guard. A highly regarded prospect, faltering at the NHL level is looking for a change in scenery. This sounds all too familiar. Don Maloney, GM of the Arizona Coyotes faced a similar obstacle with his very own third overall pick, Kyle Turris.

Kyle was forced into the roster by the Phoenix Coyotes, the former label for the Arizona franchise, was a hyped prospect and was expected to put up big numbers. Not living up to those expectations took a toll on young Turris. Unhappy with the situation he was in, he requested a trade at the ripe age of 22.

After putting up mediocre numbers in the desert, being shipped to Canada’s capital was the best thing for his young career. He is now the Ottawa Senators number one center and on pace for his third straight 25 goal season.

Don Maloney swapped Turris for first round prospect David Rundblad and a second round draft pick. Rundblad didn’t pan out anywhere near planned and is now a Zurich Lion in Europe. Looking back, Maloney got shafted.

Yzerman can’t afford to get that kind of return on a talent like Drouin. This situation is eerily similar, Drouin will turn 21 after the trade deadline and with one year left on his entry level deal, he could very well be the next player out the door in Tampa. Drouin has the talent to eventually exceed the offensive production of Turris, should his skill set pan out.

The trade market will not be friendly to the 2015 GM of the Year, Steve Yzerman. With Drouin’s NHL point totals, he’d be hard pressed to muster much more than a 2nd round pick and a roster ready defenseman.

Like Turris, the move isn’t about money, it’s about fit. Kyle even reached out to Drouin back in June on a radio station back in June.

It can be tricky. In my situation in Phoenix, the organization was in a difficult situation and the idea was to kind of win immediately and have a kind of slower progression to develop the younger guys,” stated Turris.

Work hard and just continue to grow and develop. That can be a self-motivating situation where he’s trying to find little goals to continue to grow. Or, if he’s getting the opportunity, then trying to take that opportunity and run with it.”

The NHL is Drouin’s oyster. There will be tons of prospective suitor’s, it’s just finding the right deal for the Tampa Bay Lightning and Steve Yzerman that will be the trouble.

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