Two Peas in a Pod

Traded for each other in the summer of 2011, Martin Havlat and Dany Heatley find themselves at a similar crossroads

By Marcus White

Carlos Gonzalez/Star Tribune

Martin Havlat and Dany Heatley are linked. Teammates in Ottawa during the 2005-06 season, the two have seen their careers follow very similar trajectories; now, they see their time in the league running out.

Both had been high-priced acquisitions with their previous teams in the summer of 2009, with the Wild signing Havlat to a six-year, $30 million contract, and the Sharks acquiring Heatley in a package centered around Milan Michalek. But, despite lofty expectations in their respective cities, the two underwhelmed, as Havlat’s point totals dropped and Heatley didn’t live up to his reputation as an impact performer in the playoffs. Hoping a change of scenery would bring out the best in Havlat and Heatley, the Sharks and Wild agreed to a swap of the two struggling players.

The initial returns looked promising. Heatley scored a goal and added an assist in his Wild debut, while Havlat had five points in his first four games as a Shark. But their quick starts proved to be a mirage, as both saw their point totals plummet in their first season with their new clubs. The Sharks and Wild began to face the reality that a fresh start might not turn the careers of Havlat and Heatley around.

Just as had happened the previous year, the two began last season with a bang. Heatley and Havlat both averaged at least a point per game in the first four games of the lockout-shortened season, only to go on lengthy point droughts soon after. But unlike the previous year, both saw their seasons cut short due to significant injuries.

Heatley tore his labrum in an altercation against, ironically enough, the San Jose Sharks. Havlat, meanwhile, missed the final eight games with a groin injury, only to re-aggravate it in the first game of the Sharks’ Western Conference Quarterfinals matchup against Vancouver. He would return in Game 3 of the next round against the Kings, but would once again re-aggravate the injury in the first period, and didn’t suit up for the Sharks over the remainder of their playoff run.

As big disappointments with their new clubs, rumors constantly floated over the offseason that Heatley and Havlat would each be subject to a compliance buyout, taking their cap hit off the books of Minnesota and San Jose. But, late-season injuries meant offseason surgery and recovery for the two. Since teams are prohibited from buying out injured players, Heatley and Havlat remained high-priced disappointments for the Wild and Sharks.

This year has not been better for the two, as each are on pace to produce the lowest point totals of their careers. Heatley has five points in 22 games, while Havlat has two in eight this season. With their production not matching their salaries, the two have become trade bait. In a couple of reports from the Ottawa Sun, Heatley and Havlat are the subject of trade speculation. But with high salaries and no movement clauses, it’ll be hard for Minnesota general manager Chuck Fletcher and his counterpart in San Jose, Doug Wilson, to move the two.

Fletcher may be able to just wait it out, as Heatley’s contract expires after this season. Wilson, on the other hand, faces a much more difficult task as Havlat still has a year remaining on his contract after this season. It’s unlikely that the Sharks will buy Havlat out, however, as Wilson hasn’t bought out a player during his tenure as GM.

Dany Heatley and Martin Havlat find their NHL careers on life support. If they are unable to regain their form of prior years, their days in the league are numbered. Teams may be willing to take a risk on Heatley as a free agent this offseason, as he won’t command anywhere near his current $7.5 million per year salary, or Havlat in a trade at the deadline, in hopes they could turn their careers around with a fresh start. But teams will be very cautious, as that same reasoning led the Sharks and Wild to make the trade in the first place.