Like Rob Ramage obtained by Montreal in 1993. Or, like the Rangers acquiring Stephane Matteau, Brian Noonan, Glenn Anderson and Craig MacTavish in '94 to help them win their first Cup since 1950. Neal Broten made a big impact on the New Jersey Devils after coming over from the Dallas Stars in 1995. And though Colorado GM Pierre Lacroix was relatively quiet before the March deadline in 1996, he had already waved his magic wand to fashion deals to acquire Claude Lemieux and Sandis Ozolinsh before punctuating his trading period by obtaining Patrick Roy and Mike Keane from Montreal.

In 1997, the Red Wings traded future considerations to Toronto for a defenseman – Larry Murphy -- who was being booed out of town by Maple Leafs fans. Murphy -- a player who previously had won Cups in Pittsburgh in '91 and '92 -- teamed with Nicklas Lidstrom for the next couple years to form one of the most consistent defensive pairings in the NHL. That acquisition also helped make Detroit powerful enough to win again in 1998.

OK, the Dallas Stars really didn't beef up before their 1999 Cup run, but the Devils brought back the magic in 2000 when they reacquired Claude Lemieux and went after high-priced Alexander Mogilny, along with defenseman Vladimir Malakhov (there he is again).

The Colorado Avalanche, which went after future Hall of Famer Ray Bourque before the 2000 deadline but fell short in the chase for the Cup, traded for Rob Blake, another All-Star defenseman, before the 2001 deadline -- and, this time, they won it all.

And that brings us to the defending champion Red Wings and their non-important trade for defenseman Jiri Slegr.

''Chemistry is a big thing,'' two-time Stanley Cup Devils GM Lou Lamoriello says. ''You can really jeopardize your chemistry if you make the wrong trade.''

To win the Stanley Cup, a team can't be predictable because it might meet a finesse team in Round 1, a physical team in Round 2, a defensive team in the Conference Finals and then a uniquely skilled team in the Stanley Cup Finals.

A team also can't be too small. It can't be too big and slow or too fast with a lack of muscle. And it won't win without being accountable in all three zones.

''It's a bit of a gamble,'' says Red Wings coach Dave Lewis. ''We've lived through both in Detroit. We've made trades to go on a long run and we've made trades and stumbled along and not been successful.''

And while some point to deadline deals that didn't work out immediately, you can go back to 1988 when Calgary Flames GM Cliff Fletcher parted with a youngster named Brett Hull. He got Ramage for his defense and Rick Wamsley to back up Mike Vernon in goal. No one would argue that that pair was important in the Flames 1989 Cup victory. Ditto for Chris Chelios in Detroit last season after he was obtained at the deadline in 1999.

Along those same lines, I remember Devils defenseman Scott Stevens and Ray Bourque both talking about what St. Louis did in 2001, when they tried to add muscle in Scott Mellanby from Florida and Keith Tkachuk from Phoenix. The Blues made it to the Western Conference Finals before losing to Colorado.

''Now,'' Stevens said, ''St. Louis has two home-run hitters -- Mark McGwire and Keith Tkachuk.''

''If you ask me who was the best, most passionate left winger I've ever had to face, it would be Tkachuk,'' said Bourque. ''He doesn't take no for an answer when you try to clear him out in front of the net. It's like a wrestling match whenever he's around.

''And he doesn't lose those matches very often.''

You want impact? Presence? Tough to play against?

Ray Bourque finally accomplished his dream of raising the Stanley Cup in victory, but not until he was traded to Colorado after a long career with Boston.

''It's a coach's dream,'' former Avalanche coach Bob Hartley said earlier this season. ''Having a player like Rob Blake makes my job easier, just like when we got Ray Bourque from Boston before the trading deadline. You tap players like Blake and Bourque and Adam Foote on the back and forget about the defense, totally forget about the defense. You let them worry about how many minutes they can or can't handle.''

''This isn't tennis or golf, where a Tiger Woods can capture everyone's attention with his individual skills,'' Lamoriello says. ''This is a team game to the nth degree. Chemistry within the entire group is the most important commodity. If you have the best passer in the game, you'd better find someone who can put the puck into the net to make them both work out. If you have two talented finesse players on one line and they are being pushed around a little, you'd better find someone with size and grit to work with them.

''We're all looking for the most complete players we can find. But even if you took the five most talented players in the world, you might not have the best power play.''

Or even the best team.

It is rare indeed that so many teams go out and find players in a matter of weeks who perfectly define presence, impact and make their team tougher to play against like this year's group of contenders just might do this season because the competition for the Stanley Cup is expected to be so close.

So, to say it's mostly about chemistry wouldn't be wrong.

''Think about it,'' Torrey told me a couple of weeks ago, ''To have an outsider come in our room and say, ‘Who the heck is going to beat this team?' was huge for us. The way Butchie strutted around, he's a cocky little son of a gun. It had a huge impact on our team.''

Everyone talks about March Madness in college basketball. But hockey's March trading madness is usually just as fun to watch.

Larry Wigge has been a witness to much March Madness in the NHL, having covered the League since 1969.