Top 5 Montreal Impact Trades Of All-Time

Date: April 4, 2014. Manager: Frank Klopas

When making a list of top trades by a franchise, the top slot usually goes to a lop-sided exchange. A future Hall-of-Famer for a bit player or a draft pick for example. This is not the case for the Montreal Impact, as both clubs came away happy from this one.

Andrew Wenger was the first ever SuperDraft pick by the Impact (1st overall in 2012), but when three managers come through in as many years, it’s unlikely that all will be as hot for their predecessors’ acquisitions.

When Marco Di Vaio was suspended for the first three matches of the 2014 season, Wenger was given the chance to prove he could be the striker of the future. He ended up scoring only one goal in four games, getting himself sent off in his final appearance with Montreal.

He was shipped to his hometown club (he hails from Lancaster, Pa), the Philadelphia Union. Wenger has been strong at PPL Park, where he’s not being depended on to score day in and day out. Philly has experienced forwards Conor Casey, Sebastien Le Toux and C.J. Sapong, so Wenger is used more as a secondary striker, which I think fits his skill set very well.

Coming to Stade Saputo was one of the best young forwards in the league, Jack McInerney. At the age of only 21, the American had already played in nearly 100 MLS games, scoring 25 goals along the way. Many, including Impact management, thought Jack Mac had a brighter future than Wenger and so far he has been proving them right.

He has ten goals in 36 games so far – right on par with his output during his four seasons in Philadelphia – and looks like a threat to score every time he’s on the pitch.

It may take a few years to see just how good this trade was, but for now, both sides are happy. Then again, isn’t that what everyone says after a trade?