A year ago at the top of Entry Draft week, Phil Kessel was a Maple Leaf, Nick Bonino a Duck and Carl Hagelin a Ranger. Which is to say that in a league in which trades have become tools of last resort, Gentleman Jim Rutherford was able to pull off three of them over the course of seven months to construct what became the most dynamic line in hockey.
The Pittsburgh general manager remade his team and organization on the fly in a process that began with the July 1 acquisition of Kessel, included a coaching change in mid-December, and culminated with a Stanley Cup victory that proves championship windows that seem shut can reopen darn quickly, even in a cap world.