In the early 1990s, the Buffalo Sabres were in need of a goalie and would complete a trade with the Chicago Blackhawks. At the time, it was a notable trade, but no one could imagine just how big a trade it would end up being in favor of the Sabres.
The Blackhawks had great depth at the position with Ed Belfour already on their roster, and decided to trade Dominik Hasek, who at the time was just their backup. Prior to the trade, Hasek had only appeared in 25 NHL games, and the Sabres were able to acquire him for only Stephane Beauregard, who never played a game for the Blackhawks, and a draft pick.
That draft pick turned into Eric Daze, who was productive and appeared in 600 games with one All-Star appearance and being named to the All-Rookie team.
However, regardless how the trade is looked at there was one clear winner and that was the Buffalo Sabres.
Dominik Hasek emerged as one of the best goalies in NHL history with the Buffalo Sabres
There are plenty of accolades for Hasek when discussing his career, which included winning the Vezina Trophy in six of nine seasons in Buffalo. He would lead the league in save percentage in six seasons and had 55 shutouts while leading the league in the category on four occasions.
When looking back at the trade, it is hard to blame the Blackhawks because even the Sabres didn't completely know what they had as Hasek began as the backup in Buffalo. However, midway through his second season with the team, he replaced Grant Fuhr who was injured and never looked back.
The Sabres had some of their most successful seasons as a franchise in the 1990s, and that was due largely to Dominik Hasek and the trade they made with the Chicago Blackhawks.