While the Thornton trade happened nearly 20 years ago, it still haunts the memories of some Bruins fans. It was so lopsided that it is generally considered one of the worst trades of all time across the major sports in North America, not just hockey.
After giving the Bruins 534 games played and 454 points, Jumbo Joe would go on to play over 1100 games for the San Jose Sharks, racking up 1055 points in the process, becoming the team's franchise centerpiece even ahead of Patrick Marleau. As they pointed out on the Spittin' Chiclets podcast, Thornton's trade marked the only time in North American major sports history where a player won the MVP trophy the same season he was traded. Not only that, Jumbo also won the Art Ross and was a first team all-star the season he was traded. The trade arguably could not have gone much worse for the Bruins.
Kevin Dallman, who played 21 games for the Bruins in the 05-06 season, went on the Spittin' Chiclets podcast to share some interesting stories about the team after the trade. Apparently, a bunch of the Bruins players brought their general manager Mike O'Connell for a meeting where they asked him why and how he could make such a dumb mistake.
It is a truly fascinating and somewhat unprecedented story in the hockey world. It is not every day we hear about players asking for a meeting with their GM to hold him accountable for a bad decision. Especially in the middle of a season. The full interview can be seen on the Spittin' Chiclets Youtube channel.
