On February 21, 2011, the Dallas Stars made a blockbuster trade when they sent F James Neal and D Matt Niskanen to the Pittsburgh Penguins in exchange for D Alex Goligoski.
Many considered the trade to be ludicrous and still do to this day. Neal was one of the up-and-coming scorers in the NHL and Niskanen was becoming a reliable defenseman, while Goligoski was still a relatively young defender who was reaching for his potential.
But that trade ended up helping out Dallas in the long run. Goligoski played five and a half seasons with the Stars and provided a skilled and multidimensional presence on the blue line.