Cal Clutterbuck Makes Unexpected Comments on How He Really Felt About Being Traded to the Islanders
Photo credit: Edit from The Hockey News
Cal Clutterbuck wasn't exactly thrilled about being traded to the NY Islanders, as he revealed his shock and disappointment on the Spittin' Chiclets podcast.
When the New York Islanders drafted Nino Niederreiter fifth overall in 2010, there was hope he'd become a top-six winger in the long term. That wasn't the case, though, as his stay on Long Island was short..
After being a majority of 2012-13 on the fourth line, Nino Niederreiter only had one goal and no assists on his line in 55 games. Frustrated, he requested a trade out.
Islanders GM Garth Snow was not bound to trade out his 21-year-old top-five draft pick, but at the 2013 NHL Draft did make the deal, trading Niederreiter and a third-round draft pick to the Minnesota Wild for Cal Clutterbuck.
It wasn't just Cal Clutterbuck who was Frustrated With the Trade, as Fans Were too
On paper, it was a puzzling return: a first-round prospect traded for a gruffly gritty depth winger. Fans didn't like it, and Cal Clutterbuck didn't either at first.
"I'll never forget it," Clutterbuck told the Spittin' Chiclets podcast. "I was in my basement in my old place in Brookhaven (Ontario). I thought I was getting traded to San Jose or California. I'm online looking at houses in Cali, and next thing you know, Gary Bettman gets up to thing and is like, 'I have a trade to announce,' and I'm like, 'Here we go, boys, I'm going out West!' And he's like, 'The Islanders trade for...' And I go straight to the fridge. I had a boot. Molson Canadian was giving out glass boots at the time. I had a boot, I filled it up from the tap at the time and put three of them down right away."
Nassau Coliseum wasn't the hottest address in the NHL, and players weren't precisely pushing to make it home. But Long Island did end up being his, and he adored it.
"It just turned out to be the greatest place for me."
- Cal Clutterbuck
- Cal Clutterbuck
Clutterbuck spent 11 seasons with the Islanders, a mainstay of the franchise's deep "Identity Line." Clutterbuck retired officially this summer, but his connection to the organization wasn't severed.
Clutterbuck is still on Long Island and is now included in the team within MSG's TV broadcasts.
In the end, what was once thought to be a brutal trade turned into an island landmark moment. Niederreiter departed, but Clutterbuck became an institution, both on the ice and off it.
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AOUT 23|328 ANSWERS Cal Clutterbuck Makes Unexpected Comments on How He Really Felt About Being Traded to the Islanders Was Cal Clutterbuck one of the better players in Islanders franchise history? | ||
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| No | 218 | 66.5 % |
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