Something the media and bloggers and... well, let's face it, nearly everybody who's commenting on the situation keep bringing up is Dany Heatley's baggage.
Let's put things out in the clear here: he asked for a trade from Atlanta, and the team acquiesced. He asked for a trade because he had been involved in an accident that got a friend and teammate of his killed. He didn't try to dodge responsibility; he took what was coming to him legally, pleading guilty to 4 of 6 charges. He's never once said he didn't feel responsible for what happened.
How many of you delivering speeches from the throne about how Heatley has a history of selfishness have been involved in a car accident? One that got somebody killed? One that got a friend of yours killed? One for which you were responsible? How can you possibly know how you would feel in that situation?
Dany Heatley asked for a trade from a place that reminded him of his dead teammate. Every time he laced up skates in that dressing room, he'd look at his dead friend's empty stall and be reminded: I had a responsibility in Dan Snyder's death. Every time he'd drive to the rink or to his favourite places in town, he'd be reminded: I could be doing this with Dan, but he's dead.
How many of you can honestly say you wouldn't want out in such a situation?
Drawing a line between two points and calling it a trend is not only poor scientifically, it's poor understanding and it's a poor way to treat a human being. Next time you're writing about how Dany Heatley is a poor human being for requesting TWO TRADES, think about the circumstances of the first request. Look across at your co-worker, and imagine how you would feel coming in to work if that person was dead and it was your fault. Then hold yourself to the same standard you would hold Dany. Next time you snap at your wife or kid or co-worker, think: "Next time I do that, I'm trending and I am a poor human being and have no grounds for complaint."
I don't want Dany Heatley as an Edmonton Oiler, but it's not much to do with his character and everything to do with the hockey. Demonize Heatley for the position he's put the Ottawa Senators into, if you feel like it. Attack him for never winning a Stanley Cup and not scoring when it counted, if it makes the story better. But don't attack him for his tendency to request trades. The circumstances are different, and so should your story be.