Frozen Fantasy: Bad Endings

500 in 369. Connor McDavid hit that milestone this week to match Sidney Crosby. And so the greatness comparison began.

And somewhere, Jack Eichel fumed. And broke another stick.

The number two pick in 2015 – the one who told teams he'd be better than McDavid – hates to lose. And all the Sabres have done is lose, even with big offseason moves designed to change that.

Sorry Buffalo, this one looks like it will end badly. Trading a superstar of Eichel's caliber rarely works out for the team forced to move them.

Remind you of fantasy? Yep.

Everyone knows the Wayne Gretzky trade. The Great One left with Marty McSorley and Mike Krushelnyski and in came two players (Martin Gelinas and Jimmy Carson) and three first round picks (the best of which was Martin Rucinsky).

The hockey world was stunned when the Bruins moved Joe Thornton for Marco Sturm, Wayne Primeau and Brad Stuart.

The Habs' hands were forced when they sent out Patrick Roy (and Mike Keane) for Martin Rucinsky, Andrei Kovalenko and Jocelyn Thibault.

The Oilers struck out when they moved Taylor Hall for Adam Larsson.

The Blackhawks regretted their decision to send Dominik Hasek away for just Stephane Beauregard and a draft pick (Eric Daze).

The Sabres won that one. And then some.

But they won't win this time. It's hard to move a superstar that's hit the end of the line. And it feels like that time is near.

Irreconcilable differences. It's painful to watch. Now let's take a look at who caught my eye this week.

Josh Bailey, LW/RW, NY Islanders (8 percent Yahoo!) – Erase his first 11 games and ignore the nine points overall in 16 games. Bailey now has six assists in his last five games and half have come on the power play. The guy can dish. The Isles won't score a lot – they are a Barry Trotz team after all. But Bailey can help. And he's more than a one-category wonder.

Luke Glendening, RW/C, Detroit (2 percent Yahoo!) – Ignore Glendening unless you need face-off wins – he's been a single-category killer at the dot this past week. In four games since last Saturday, Glendening won 46. That's more than Ryan O'Reilly, Aleksander Barkov and Jordan Staal, three of the best in the biz. And just three behind league leader Bo Horvat over that span. Sometimes all you need is a single-category boost in some leagues. Glendening might be your guy.

Alex Kerfoot, LW/C, Toronto (2 percent Yahoo!) – His current output is tied to opportunity and that can dry up overnight on the Leafs. But for now, Kerfoot may be worth an add. He's on a three-game, four-point streak and has six points, including four helpers, in his last six outings. Zach Hyman is back Saturday, so he'll drop down to line three. But Kerfoot was producing even before his one-game audition with John Tavares and William Nylander on Thursday night. He's gaining confidence and may still help.

Nick Leddy, D, NY Islanders (6 percent Yahoo!) – Steady Leddy should not be overlooked. No, he's not a sexy pick, but he still has a pedigree of production – remember he had three straight 40-plus point seasons. Leddy has an assist in three-straight games heading into Saturday and overall, he's on a mid-40s scoring pace (for a normal 82-game season). He's getting PP time and adding SOG, blocks and hits. Leddy's a boring pickup that could help you win.

Brock McGinn, LW/RW, Carolina (18 percent Yahoo!) – McGinn caught my eye Monday with his four-point outburst – what a game. But I dismissed it as a career night and nothing more. And then when I finally looked back at him on Saturday morning, I discovered a mainly-available top-line winger who had scored seven goals and 10 points in his last 10 games. There's no PP time, but McGinn's production cannot be ignored. Goal scorers are goal scorers, and Sebastian Aho and Teuvo Teravainen can get him the puck. My bad for dismissing him earlier. McGinn should be on more active rosters. Period.

Martin Necas, RW/C, Carolina (9 percent Yahoo!) – I snagged Necas on Saturday morning – he's really clicking with Vincent Trocheck and Nino Niederreiter on the Canes' second line. In adding Necas, I officially gave up on Tomas Tatar, which I may come to regret. But moves need to be made. Necas put up two points, both on the PP, on Friday night and has four points in as many games since returning from injury. Under that is an unlucky shooting percentage (6.7), which has nowhere to go but up. I am banking on Necas being on the upswing of an offensive curve.

Jonathan Quick, G, Los Angeles (14 percent Yahoo!) – The former king of the crease has found new life this week. Cal Petersen has outperformed Quick this year, but the latter shut out Minny on Tuesday and beat Arizona on Thursday with just two goals allowed. This may not continue, but even a week of hot performances from a guy with his pedigree is better than rostering a guy like Laurent Brossoit or even Ilya Sorokin who rarely get to play. Yes, Quick is a risk. But you can only feed one thing – courage or fear. You won't win with the latter, but you might if you courageously take that risk.

Joe Thornton, LW/C, Toronto (42 percent Yahoo!) – Go check the wire in case your whole league has been asleep. Or maybe you have once-a-week pickups. Jumbo Joe is playing like he did 15 years ago. Six points in three games, plus two disallowed goals, in the three games heading into Saturday. Thornton is the hottest pickup out there. Maybe you'll get lucky. I didn't.

Back to bad endings.

The general manager that gets the best player usually wins the trade. In fantasy and on the ice. Gulp.

Only the Eric Lindros deal went the other way. Yes, he was great, but the best player in that deal was arguably Peter Forsberg. And the haul even more. Mike Ricci, Ron Hextall, Chris Simon, Kerry Huffman, Steve Duchesne and three first-round picks (one of which was traded for Patrick Roy).

Google anomaly. It's more than a word for Scrabble (right, Evan Berofsky?).

There are 30 teams that would love to get Eichel, but not everyone can take on that salary. The Kings and Rangers have room and great prospects to trade. Even the Canadiens offer appealing young players in the system.

But the return for the Sabres would be a long way away.

If they miss the playoffs this year, the Sabres will tie the NHL record for the longest postseason drought (10). And if they move Eichel, they'll likely miss it for an 11th straight year.

Or 12.

Bad endings are bad endings. I'm grabbing some popcorn – this one could be cinematic.

Until next week.