Yzerman fleeced the Caps on the Mantha deal, It was the single greatest deal of the day. Stevie Y made a masterful trade.
- Shady1962
I really do not think the Caps got fleeced.
They're an aging team that probably only has a few years left on their Cup window. They got the best player in the deal, on an affordable contract with three years left on it, and also unloaded a contract for a player they weren't really using and would have probably been an obstacle in a flat cap environment, especially if they want to get a few more solid kicks at the can.
You could argue that the Caps paid too much to make a relatively minor upgrade. I think I would agree with that criticism myself. But I definitely wound not say they got fleeced. Mantha is really really good and I think he is going to fit in very well in that system.
EDIT: In short, I think I would grade this as potentially a win-win, although I would generally agree that it's a bigger win for Detroit than for Washington.