The trade should have never gone through to begin with. That much is now clear.
The NHL corrected that mistake Wednesday in announcing the Evgenii Dadonov trade between the Golden Knights and Ducks was being reversed after reviewing the matter with all involved parties over the last few days.
From the NHL statement Wednesday:
“The National Hockey League announced today that it has invalidated Monday’s trade of Player Evgenii Dadonov from Vegas to Anaheim. The trade could not be concluded because Dadonov’s contract includes a limited no-trade clause, which has not been complied with.’’
There were other layers to this thing, but it wasn’t nearly as complicated for the NHL Players’ Association. From its standpoint, the fact there was proof that the 10-team, no-trade clause was still in effect and included the Ducks made for only one possible outcome: The trade had to be voided because the player wasn’t waiving his no-trade clause.
But what the NHLPA didn’t appreciate was how Dadonov was left twisting in the wind for a couple of days. And I’m sure there might have been other players in his shoes who understandably would have relented and decided to accept the trade instead of deal with the awkwardness of it all.
So kudos to Dadonov because he not only stood up for his rights but in many ways the rights of players across the NHL who negotiate no-trade clauses in good faith.
Here’s what we believe went down from digging into the matter.
