Less than a year after the New York Islanders fulfilled the trade demand of Nino Niederreiter, they were forced to deal Thomas Vanek after the high-scoring forward spurned the club's sizable contract offer.
Both now are playing major roles in the Minnesota Wild's playoff push.
Vanek looks to extend his point streak to nine in his return to Long Island on Tuesday night as the surging Wild face an Islanders team that has dropped four straight at home.
New York drafted Niederreiter with the fifth overall pick of the 2010 draft, but he scored two goals in 64 games and asked for a trade after not being assigned to the NHL roster prior to the 2013 season.
Niederreiter was sent to Minnesota for Cal Clutterbuck following that campaign, and his career-best 22 goals have helped the Wild (41-25-7) grab the Western Conference's first wild-card spot.
They've gone an NHL-best 21-5-1 since the All-Star break after beating Toronto 2-1 on Monday, extending the franchise-best road winning streak to nine.
Vanek had a goal and an assist, giving him six and four, respectively, during an eight-game point streak. His career-best 10-game run came with the Islanders from Dec. 20, 2013-Jan. 7, 2014, after New York dealt Matt Moulson, a 2014 first-round pick and 2015 second-rounder to Buffalo to acquire him earlier that season.
Vanek rejected a contract offer last February, then was dealt to Montreal before signing a three-year, $19.5 million deal this offseason with the Wild.
"I wanted to hit free agency. I did enjoy my time there, but (the Islanders moving to Brooklyn for next season) I guess swayed me the other way, too," Vanek said. "I liked Long Island. I like where the rink is located. This will be my first time getting booed there."
He heard only cheers when he scored the tying goal in the third period and Niederreiter netted the winner less than four minutes later to help the Wild overcome a pair of three-goal deficits in a 5-4 victory over the visiting Islanders in the first meeting Dec. 9.
New York (44-25-4) scored four goals combined during a season-worst four-game losing streak before beating New Jersey 3-0 on Saturday. The slump has pushed the Islanders seven points back of the Metropolitan Division-leading Rangers, who also have two games in hand.
The Islanders are two points ahead of third-place Pittsburgh, which has played one fewer game.
"Every game from now on is going to be tight," said defenseman Travis Hamonic, who had a goal and an assist against the Devils. "I don't think we played terrible the last four games, but we just didn't get a win."
The Islanders got a boost from Jaroslav Halak, who made 26 saves after missing the previous two with a lower-body injury. Defenseman Nick Leddy, a first-round pick of the Wild in 2009, returned after sitting out the previous four with an upper-body issue.
"We need to play desperate hockey for the rest of the season," Halak said. "If you look at the standings, it's getting tighter and tighter."
Halak wasn't in net for the first meeting and hasn't faced the Wild since making 22 saves in a 3-0 win for St. Louis on Nov. 25, 2013.
Devan Dubnyk continued his incredible run for Minnesota on Monday, making 35 saves in his 32nd straight start. He started his final game with Arizona before being in net for all 31 with the Wild since being acquired Jan. 14, a stretch during which he has a 1.74 goals-against average.
If Dubnyk is in goal for this contest, it will mark the most consecutive starts in the NHL since Antti Niemi started 34 straight for San Jose in 2011.
