Are you kidding me?

The biggest trade of the past few years went down wednesday night, when embattled GM Mike O'Connell sent his team's captain, Joe Thornton, to the Sharks for some mid-level talent.

Let's take a step back here. There really hasnt been a time over the past few years when Thornton has been off the trading block, but no one ever really expected him to be traded. Before Eric Staal emerged as a revelation this year, Thornton was the answer to the question "if you could pick one player to build a team around, who would it be?"

A big, tough, physical player with hands as soft as a pillow and vision of the whole ice? Alright, maybe he was thrust into a leadership role too early, or maybe he just isnt the motivational type. Either way, this is a player who was a late bloomer, true, but really blossomed into one of the prototypical power forwards in the league.

Now, after losing a draw against the Devils last night which led to the game winning goal, the perception is that O'Connel felt his owner breathing down his back and made a desperation deal. In my opinion, he would have been better off firing his head coach, Mike Sullivan, than dishing his best player- the best Bruins forward since Cam Neely- to the other side of the hockey world. At least he managed to get him out of the East, which is one thing other teams in the division and conference are happy about. Now if only Roberto Luongo gets traded to the west coast...

Anyway, let's take a look at the trade. Right off the bat, im a fan of Marco Sturm. He's been slumping, sure, but who hasnt on this Sharks team? Everyone has forgotten how key he was for San Jose's playoff run in 2004. He was scoring then, in the gritty way you dont often see Europeans scoring, and he could very well find his touch in the more wide open Eastern Conference this year. Im assuming he'll find his way to the top line of the Bruins at some point, and play with Sergei Samsonov and Patrice Bergeron or Alex Zhamnov.

As for Brad Stuart, this guy is an enigma. Back before the Nagano Olympics he was in the debate with guys like Wade Redden, Derek Morris and Eric Brewer. Now, he's fallen off the face of the earth, not least because he plays about as far away from the centre of the hockey universe as you can get without going to Siberia. What i mean is, San Jose doesnt get a lot of coverage in the western media.

Still, Stuart has been a solid NHLer. He's only 26 years old but has played close to 400 games over six seasons. He's a former third overall pick, so he's used to playing with pressure. Most importantly, he's going to a team that has just hired one of the all-time great defencemen- Ray Bourque- to help coach the team at all home practices. If you dont think working with Bourque will help a young d-man, you'd be mistaken. He should see some power play time too, especially if Leetch cant find his feet after the injury. Not to mention Jiri Slegr is their second option from the point.

As for Wayne Primeau, the third piece of this deal, he's a better player than people know. Credit O'Connell for sticking him in the package for Thornton instead of some of the other guys Wilson probably wanted to dump instead. Prim is the kind of guy every team wants, a gritty hard nosed player not unlike the Sens Mike Fisher and Red Wings Kris Draper, though id rather have either of those two.

Anyway, what does all this mean? Stuart, Sturm and Primeau are making a combined $5 million, which is a mil less than Thorny. However, Joe is a cornerstone, plain and simple. He's the kind of guy that comes along in a draft only every few years, and then only if a team gets lucky. This is a real coup-de-grace for the Sharks, because they havent had a player of such a marquee calibre since Owen Nolan in his prime. My apologies to Teemu Selanne, but the Finnish Flash never seemed in his element on the West coast.

With the depth the Sharks can boast down the middle- Patty Marleau, Alyn McAuley, young gun Marcel Goc and now Thornton- there is a solid nucleas to build around. Jon Cheechoo should reap the rewards of Joe's arrival, and of course Marleau will have more room with teams not being able to focus on him as much.

All in all, a real good hockey move for the Sharks, but if im a Bruins fan im mighty pissed right now. Here's hoping either O'Connell or Sullivan takes the fall for this dumb move. Odds are it will be both.