Deadline week thoughts

Been a while since I've posted on the blog, so maybe this will make up for it. It'll run a little long, I think, but here's some thoughts on the trades in the WHL since the Christmas break.....

December 27: 

•  Lethbridge trades Griffin Foulk to Swift Current for a conditional 2016 8th round pick.

Foulk had been sent home by Lethbridge so I think this is just them finding him another place to play. Depth pickup by Swift Current at a low price.

• Spokane trades Colton Bobyk and a 2016 4th round pick to Red Deer for Nick Charif, a 2015 2nd round, pick and a conditional 2016 6th round pick.

Rebels G.M. Brent Sutter setting up his team for next year's Memorial Cup hosting gig. Bobyk should be a key on the Rebels defence next year when he'll be 19. Meanwhile it's doubtful Charif would have made the cut as a Rebels overager next year.


January 2: 

• Regina trades Morgan Klimchuk to Brandon for Jesse Gabrielle.

Big move here as one of the major trade pieces (NHL first round pick Klimchuk) moves to Brandon, who are sitting in first place in the Eastern Conference and trying to solidify themselves as the premiere contender in the East. Big price paid though as Gabrielle is going to be a big player for the Pats for 2.5 years.


January 5: 

• Regina trades Kyle Burroughs and Dryden Hunt to Medicine Hat for Connor Hobbs, a 2016 2nd round pick and a 2015 3rd round pick.

Medicine Hat answers back to Brandon's acquisition of Klimchuk by picking up Regina's top scorer and best defenceman. Hunt is likely to play in the league as an overager too so the Tigers could get a year and a half from him. For the Pats, Hobbs joins Gabrielle as key 17 year olds they are building around.

• Red Deer trades Kolton Dixon to Saskatoon for Trevor Martin.

I think this is the Rebels finding Dixon a place where he can play more than he was in Red Deer. Martin has been assigned to Jr A but I can see him coming to Rebels camp next year to push Rylan Toth and Taz Burman for their jobs.

• Regina trades Connor Gay, a 2016 1st round pick, a 2015 2nd round pick, and a 2017 7th round pick to Red Deer for Jake Leschyshyn, 15, and a 2017 4th round pick.

Very interesting trade on both sides here. Red Deer picks up a good 19 year old forward who looks to figure in as one of their overagers next season, AND get a first round pick they can use next season to further bolster their lineup. In doing so, they have to give up last year's 1st round bantam pick in Leschyshyn, but Regina must really like Leschyshyn to make this deal.

• Spokane trades Reid Gow to Brandon for a 2015 or 2016 5th round pick at Spokane's option.

Gow declined to report to Spokane for his overage season this year, saying he wanted to play closer to home in Manitoba and enrolling at the University of Manitoba this past fall. This deal allows Gow to return to the WHL by putting him in the best WHL situation for him. Still, a 5th round pick is a bit low for an impact defenceman like Gow.....but maybe it was the best Spokane could do with so few options to trade him to.


January 6: 

• Kamloops trades Connor Clouston to Moose Jaw for a 5th round pick in 2017.

Kamloops making room on the roster for 16 year old defenceman Dawson Davidson. Clouston's not flashy but could help the Warriors.

• Lethbridge trades Taylor Cooper to Regina for Brady Reagan.

Regina gets older, moving a 17 year old for a 19 year old who can help replace some of the scoring they lost in moving Klimchuk, Hunt, and Gay. Reagan is a former 2nd round pick who didn't play much in Regina and might flourish with more ice time in Lethbridge.

• Moose Jaw trades Alexei Sleptsov, Justin Paulic, and a 2015 6th round pick to Victoria for Axel Blomqvist, a 2015 3rd rounder and a 2017 5th rounder.

This one is kind of a head-scratcher for me from the Warriors point of view. They are likely a non-playoff team so why do they want a NHL-signed 19 year old import who is only going to play half a season there? For that they gave up a good 19 year old goaltender who will likely be in the league as an overager, and a decent import defenceman. They must value that 3rd round pick? So I like this deal for Victoria.

• Portland trades Brendan Burke to Calgary for Evan Johnson and a 2016 4th round pick.

I only sorta get this deal for Calgary. They already have a 19 year old goaltender who's inconsistent in Mack Shields, so they pick up Burke, whose inconsistency the last two years have cost him his starting job at times last year (Corbin Boes) and this year (Adin Hill)? They must be hoping Burke will push Shields more than Johnson was.

• Prince Albert trades Leon Draisaitl to Kelowna for Kris Schmidli, Dalton Yorke, a 2015 1st round pick, a 2016 4th round pick, and a conditional 2016 or 2017 4th rounder.

This is a good deal for both teams IMO. The Rockets want to win it all this year and getting a guy who should be one of the best players in the league is obviously big for them. But the price is high, with Schmidli being a guy who is going to give the Raiders 1.5 seasons of a top-6 forward, plus that first round bantam pick is always a key thing even if it's likely to be the last pick in the first round.

• Prince Albert trades Tomas Andrlik to Prince George for a 2015 12th round pick.

Trade forced by the Draisaitl trade....Raiders forced to dump Andrlik for whatever they could get since they were getting Schmidli and can't trade Simon Stransky. Andrlik is a better player than a 12th round pick would indicate but this is a supply vs demand price.

• Saskatoon trades Adam Henry to Portland for a 2017 2nd round pick.

Good deal for the Blades to get a 2nd round pick for a guy who three months ago cost them Turner Ottenbreit, who was a 12th round pick himself. For Portland, a big and reliable presence on their blueline which they need. Portland now has no first OR second round picks in 2015, 2016, or 2017 though.

• Victoria trades Brayden Dunn and a 2017 1st round pick to Saskatoon for Alex Forsberg, a 2015 3rd round pick, and a 2016 4th round pick.

Initially I was very surprised that Victoria would part with a first round bantam pick in a deal for Alex Forsberg, who himself is one of the most disappointing former #1 overall picks in recent WHL bantam draft memory. He has resurrected his career (somewhat) as a point-a-game player in Saskatoon this year but still, it seemed a high price, But then I saw that Saskatoon had to include 3rd and 4th round picks on their end, which does offset the 1st rounder considerably.

• Kamloops trades Josh Connolly and a 2016 2nd round pick to Swift Current for Brycen Martin.

I really shouldn't even include this deal here since the WHL nullified it the next day when Connolly refused to report to Swift Current. No idea why he refused to play for what is a better team in the Broncos, but I would speculate that either he was concerned about ice time in Swift Current (as he would be one of five 19 year old defencemen if the trade had gone through) or perhaps it's that he is from Prince George and didn't want to potentially finish his career way out on the prairies.



January 7: 

• Kamloops trades Josh Connolly to Prince George for Marc McNulty and a 2015 6th round pick.

Kamloops scrambles to make something out of the Connolly situation and end up with a pretty good defenceman in McNulty. But, he's gone to the pros next year whereas the original trade for Martin would have netted the Blazers a rock on their blueline for next year, so this deal is really much worse for the Blazers than the original deal IMO.

• Red Deer trades Tyler Sandhu to Tri-City for 2016 and 2017 4th round picks.

When Red Deer acquired Sandhu earlier this year (again for two 4th round picks) the plan was for him to be an important part of next year's Memorial Cup team. Either the acquisition of Gay or Sandhu's performance (likely some of both) changed that and now he is off to his 4th WHL team.

• Saskatoon trades Jordan Thomson and a 2016 1st round pick to Swift Current for Brycen Martin and a conditional 2017 5th round pick.

Swift Current recovers from the Connolly/Martin nullification by sending Martin to a division rival for a guy who quit the WHL a year ago. That is probably overly harsh since Thomson has also resurrected his career this year, and the Broncos do get a first round bantam pick in the deal - although it's Red Deer's 2016 pick which is likely to be at the end of the round. Again though, I think this, like Kamloops, is a case where the team would probably be happier with the original deal.

January 8: 

• Lethbridge trades Lenny Hackman to Kootenay for a 12th rounder in 2015.

Hackman wasn't playing in Lethbridge and that might not have changed with the Hurricanes looking to use younger players. He probably isn't an overage guy next year but the deal allows him to finish his career on a playoff team, albeit in a depth role.

• Prince Albert trades Cory Millette to Seattle for a 6th round pick in either 2015 or 2016.

Forward depth for the Thunderbirds, while moving Millette opens up ice time for the younger players in Hockeytown North (do they still call it that?).

• Saskatoon trades a 2016 5th round pick to Victoria for Mitch Skapski and a 2015 5th round pick.

This one....isn't a 5th for a 5th and a player essentially getting the player for free? I mean, unless Saskatoon's 2016 5th rounder is higher in the draft order than Victoria's 2015 5th rounder is, won't this amount to Victoria essentially paying Saskatoon to take Skapski? Strange deal for what is a decent WHLer.

• Victoria trades Jayden Sittler to Lethbridge for a 2016 7th round pick.

Jayden Sittler has had some rotten luck this year. First he loses the battle for the backup job in Kootenay to Keelan Williams - although that may have been a blessing in disguise since Williams hasn't seen the ice in so long in Cranbrook that he is likely to finish the year with more splinters from the bench than saves - and then he is deemed the odd man out in Victoria despite posting a .921 save percentage in 10 games, and then he gets traded to Lethbridge, a.k.a Goalie Hell. But joking aside, I love this trade for both Sittler and the Canes. Sittler gets a deserved chance to play more minutes, and Lethbridge gets a potential (short-term) #1 goalie who will alleviate the need to play the hell out of 16 year old Stuart Skinner.



January 9: 

• Calgary trades Marshall Donald to Edmonton for a 2015 4th round pick.

Donald was the 7th or 8th defenceman in Calgary and was playing forward as much as defence this year. So this deal moves him to his hometown and gives him a chance to play on the blueline.

• Kamloops trades Mike Winther to Lethbridge for a 2017 8th round pick.

In 2012 Winther was a 2nd round NHL draft pick. A year ago Winther was centerpiece in a deal involving (former) 1st, 2nd, and 3rd round bantam picks. This past September he was traded for 4th and 6th round picks. Now he gets traded for an 8th round pick in a draft two years from now. Wile E. Coyote catching the anvil and falling off the cliff did not drop faster than Mike Winther's value.

• Lethbridge trades Zane Jones to Vancouver for Johnny Wesley.

Jones, one of the WHL's likeable guys, gets a chance to finish his WHL career contributing to a playoff team in a top-six role. Wesley has scored everywhere he has played and now we'll see if he can do it in the WHL as well.

• Prince George trades Chance Braid to Kelowna for Brogan O’Brien.

Braid is not the rough-and-tumble overager I thought Kelowna might go after. I kinda thought Eberle or Rodewald from Moose Jaw might be their guy instead, but maybe Braid had a more attractive price, albeit a much inferior player IMO. Is O'Brien (currently in the BCHL) even interested in the WHL or is this a flyer by the Cougars?

• Vancouver trades Joel Hamilton to Kamloops for a 2017 6th round pick.

Kamloops coach Don Hay is reunited with one of his character leaders.

January 10: 

• Lethbridge trades Bryton Sayers to Victoria for a 2016 5th round pick.

Guess Sayers didn't fit in with the rebuild in Lethbridge. 

• Moose Jaw trades Kolten Olynek to Spokane for a 2015 6th round pick

Olynek is like 5'7" and hasn't been able to be effective in the WHL yet. Maybe his third team will be the one.....

• Lethbridge trades Miles Warkentine to Swift Current for a 2017 7th round pick

Warkentine is a former 1st round bantam pick of the Warriors who has been traded twice now in the last year (oddly enough, he was previously traded for Kolten Olynek, who Moose Jaw also traded today). There has to be some upside here but two teams have not found it yet. Maybe Swift will be the lucky ones. 

• Seattle trades Scott Allan to Lethbridge for a 2016 5th round pick

Allan couldnt find regular playing time in Seattle after a trade from Medicine Hat. He'll get more ice time in this return to Alberta.

• Everett trades Carter Cochrane to Tri-City for a 2016 7th round pick

Depth acquisition, the theme of the day.

• Edmonton trades Mitchell Walter to Portland for a 2016 4th round pick

Portland forced to make this trade after two players (Predinchuk and Price) left the team for more playing time at lower levels. Walter brings a Memorial Cup ring to Portland and should add forward depth to the bottom six of their forward lines.

• Saskatoon trades Parker Smyth to Vancouver for a 2016 6th pick

Smyth was Saskatoon's first pick in the 2013 draft, although he was the last pick of the 2nd round due to them trading their first rounder. They really needed to make those picks work but obviously Smyth hasn't worked if he's being dealt for a 6th rounder.

That covers all the trades, so just a few comments on a couple other things here....

First, Lethbridge reassigned Brett Kitt to Junior A yesterday. For those with short memories (and if you're a Lethbridge fan, that may be a good thing right now) Kitt was one of the three pieces that Lethbridge got from Brandon in the infamous Reid Duke trade - Kitt, Kord Pankewicz and Ryley Lindgren to Lethbridge for Duke, Macoy Erkamps, and the rights to Tak Anholt. With Kitt seemingly out of the WHL now (if as an 18 year old he can't get ice time on a rebuilding Hurricanes team, can he get it anywhere as a 19 year old next year?) the deal is Duke and Erkamps (who are both key parts of Brandon's contender this year and likely to play for Brandon's contender again next year) for Pankewicz and Lindgren - two decent and reliable but by no means star WHLers. OUCH! OUCH! OUCH! OUCH!, say Hurricanes fans.

And just a few more thoughts on the Draisaitl trade.....it turns out that the Oilers handpicked the Rockets as where they wanted Draisaitl to play, and only returned him to junior on the condition the Raiders traded him to the Rockets.

We'll leave alone the questions about the ethicalness of an NHL team meddling in the affairs of a junior team - after all, despite being given only one trade partner, the Raiders still made out really well in this trade so they really weren't hurt by the directive from Edmonton. My question is whether the Oilers are really doing the best thing for Draisaitl's development here.

Presumably they want him in Kelowna because Kelowna is a favourite to win the WHL, which would mean a long playoff run from mid-March to mid-May, followed by the Memorial Cup in late May if they succeed in winning the WHL.

But, if you believe that Draisaitl is very close to NHL ready - and presumably the Oilers do since they've had him IN the NHL for the first 30-some games - then isn't it likely that junior hockey is probably not challenging enough for him if he's not in the NHL? Shouldn't he be in the AHL instead? After all, the Oilers currently have the very best AHL team in the league (the Oklahoma City Blazers), so a good long playoff run is likely there too.

Now, I know the rules prohibit him being assigned to the AHL right now. But they do allow him to be sent there after his junior team's season ends.

Given that, shouldn't the best option for Draisaitl be to play for a very poor WHL team? One who will miss the playoffs, meaning that by mid-March Draisaitl would be free to join Oklahoma City for the remainder of the AHL regular season and then the AHL playoffs. He could also be recalled to the NHL, if the Oilers were so inclined. As it is, assuming Kelowna goes on a long playoff run, Draisaitl will quite likely not play another minute of pro hockey this season.

So isn't it more logical that the Oilers would have specified that Draisaitl remain with the Raiders? The Raiders are not a horrible team but based on the current standings, they are not likely going to make the WHL playoffs either. Isn't 30 games in the WHL, followed by 10 games in the AHL and then a potentially long AHL playoff run better for him than 30 games in the WHL followed by a potentially long WHL playoff run?

Just wondering.