It's not a blockbuster that's going to shake up the league, but the Raiders and Tigers made a five player trade yesterday that amounts to the Raiders loading up their roster a little bit.
Going from the Hat to Prince Albert are 18 year old forward Jayden Hart (who left the Tigers requesting a trade last week) and 19 year old defenceman Dylan Busenius, plus a 2014 6th round bantam pick. Going the Tigers' way are 18 year old forward Logan McVeigh, 19 year old defenceman Zach Hodder, 15 year old defenceman Connor Hobbs (who was Prince Albert's 4th round pick in the 2012 bantam draft) and Prince Albert's 2013 2nd round bantam pick.
The swap of forwards - Hart/McVeigh - may actually be pretty close to a wash. They're both 18, similar in size and point production. It's the swap of defencemen which is a move for this year by the Raiders - and likely the reason they had to give up a decent prospect and a 2nd round pick, because Busenius is a huge upgrade over Hodder. Busenius is in the top-10 in the WHL in scoring by defencemen and was Medicine Hat's first round bantam pick in 2008. Hodder is a depth guy who has bounced around the league, playing only 88 games for four teams over 3.5 years in the league. Busenius is also an undrafted player by the NHL so there's a good chance he will be back in the WHL as an overager in 2013-14 so the Hodder/Busenius portion of the deal is one that will likely benefit the Raiders for two years.
Medicine Hat may still be in a multi-team race for the last two playoff spots in the Eastern conference, but this move is an acknowledgement by them that they are going to be sellers this year. For the Raiders, this is a boost to their blueline as they scrap with Edmonton and Calgary for the top three positions in the East.
So, not a mega-deal but the first of the post-Christmas run-up to the trade deadline. Who will be the next to pull the trigger.....
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