Buffalo Sabres Lost Cody Hodgson Trade

Buffalo Sabres fans, let’s step back in time to February 27, 2012.

That day, the Buffalo Sabres completed a four-player trade with the Vancouver Canucks, sending Zack Kassian and Marc-Andre Gragnani to the ‘Nucks in exchange for Alexander Sulzer and Cody Hodgson.

Today, some three-and-a-half years later, none of those players are with either the Sabres or the Canucks anymore.

So the question begs: who won the Hodgson/Kassian trade?

To really answer this question, we need to look at the full trade tree for this one.

February 2012: Sabres & Canucks make trade.

Sulzer played 57 games for the Buffalo Sabres between 2012 and 2014, notching six goals and eight assists in that time. He was usually part of the regular defensive rotation for Buffalo. He also appeared in 10 games for the Rochester Americans during the 2013 lockout, notching seven points in that time.
Hodgson played for the Buffalo Sabres between 2012 and 2015, putting up 99 points in 218 games. His best season was the 2013-14 year, when he put up 44 points (20-24) in 72 regular season games. He also played with the Amerks during the lockout, notching 19 points in as many games at the AHL level.
Kassian played for the Canucks from 2012 until 2015, appearing in 179 games during that time. He had some issues with injuries, but still put up 59 points. He also played for the Chicago Wolves for 29 games in the 2012-13 season.
Gragnani played 14 games for the Canucks in 2012, notching three points and six penalty minutes.

July 2012

Gragnani becomes a free agent, signing with the Carolina Hurricanes. He would play for the Canes organization for one year before signing with Prague Lev and Bern overseas.

May 2014

Sulzer signs a five-year deal to play overseas with Kolner Haie.

June 2015

The Buffalo Sabres buyout Cody Hodgson. He would be signed by the Nashville Predators.

July 2015

Kassian traded to the Montreal Canadiens for Brandon Prust and a 5th-round draft pick.

Looking at it this way…. it was a bit of a rough trade on both sides. In the end, half of the players in that trade are no longer playing in North America, and none of those four original players are with their teams anymore.

I’d argue that of those four players traded that fateful day in 2012, Hodgson did the most for his new team, but even that wasn’t terribly great, aside from the 2013-14 season, and in the end, the results were disappointing.

The Buffalo Sabres have nothing to show for that trade anymore, but at the very least, the Canucks have Brandon Prust and a fifth-round draft pick as a branch result. We don’t know what that pick will turn into; it’s possible that the Canucks even end up flipping it for more, further extending the trade tree.

Maybe Canucks fans feel that they lost the Hodgson/Kassian trade; giving up a potentially great asset like Hodgson was a big loss, and Kassian didn’t end up developing quite the way anyone wanted.

But in the end, the Buffalo Sabres have to keep paying Hodgson even though he isn’t playing for the team anymore, and the Canucks have Prust and a future fifth-rounder, so at least for now… I’ll say the Canucks won the trade.

Next: Sabres Sign Free Agent Duo

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