Coach Jim Ingram called me again tonight to let me know there was more to the Trail/Merritt deal than originally reported. In addition to
Cameron Brodie, the Smoke Eaters also gave up hard nosed 88 forward
Brad Davis. In exchange, Trail gets skilled 88 forward
Chad Gehon and
defencemen Tyler Johns (89) and
Shane Oatway (90).
Ingram waited on announcing the full deal so he could contact Davis directly. It's clear in talking to him that moving Davis was one of the last things the coach wanted to do. Brad was loved in the locker room and will do anything for his teammates. However, Merritt saw those same characteristics and made sure they got their man. The Centennials lost some serious skill, but they just became a lot tougher to play against. Cam Brodie and Brad Davis are going to punish road teams in that small barn.
I don't know a tremendous amount about Johns and
Oatway. Johns is a 19 year old listed at 6' and 200 pounds. He apparently plays a solid game in his own zone with a physical element. He scored 11 points last year and 10 the season before so he's not going to put up huge numbers.
Oatway is 6'1 and 180lbs at 18 years old. He scored 11 points in his rookie
BCHL season. There should be room for him to grow and add some muscle there. Both guys hover at around 50 penalty minutes so they clearly aren't goons. Ingram likes the depth and size these guys bring to the Smokies. Hopefully they can help the team replace some of the things they lose with a talent like Brodie.
Interesting note about
Gehon; he played Junior B hockey in the
KIJHL with Smokies Captain Ryan
Bulach. Playing on a line together in
Sicamous in 05-06,
Bulach put up 1.4 points per game while
Gehon scored at 1.5 points per game clip. Kevin
Walrod was also a part of a dangerous group of forwards that took
Sicamous to the
KIJHL title. Maybe
Bulach and
Gehon can find that magic together again.
Another question that will come out of this trade is how the Smokies will address toughness. Davis, Brodie and Patrick Martin probably accounted for 90% of
Trail's fighting majors last year. With Brodie and Davis in Merritt who is going to pick up that slack? Ingram says he's got some irons in the fire on that front. He also believes they've added a lot of size and grit in their recruiting this off season. However, he is looking to bring in some tough guys to battle for a spot on the team.
This is the second trade Ingram has made with Merritt. The Smokies also sent Dylan Herold to the Cents as the future considerations for Kevin Koopman. There will be some familiar faces in the line-up when Trail takes on Merritt a early next season.
OVERTIME AUDIO- New York Rangers Coach Tom Renney on the Smokies banquet, the Rangers and his history in Trail (Part 1, Part 2, Part 3)
- Smokies Goaltender Coach Pasco Valana on Grant Rollheiser's draft chances and his strengths (Part 1, Part 2, Part 3)
- Smokies Coach Jim Ingram on their trade with Merritt (Part 1, Part 2)
- New Smokies forward Chad Gehon on the trade from Merritt (Part 1)
- Smokies President Tom Gawryletz on the new schedule and the banquet/golf tournament weekend (Part 1, Part 2)
- New Smoke Eater Andrew Pickering discusses the trade from Victoria (Part 1, Part 2)
- New Smokies gaoltender Marco Raimondo discusses the trade from Cowichan Valley (Part 1, Part 2)
- Jim Ingram Interview (re: Andrew Pickering trade, re: Steve Ourosov to WHL, re: Stefan Decoss Div 3)
- Former NHLer from Trail, Ceasar Maniago dicusses the Smokies banquet on July 11th and his career (Part 1, Part 2, Part 3)
- Former NHLer from Nelson, Pat Price discusses the induction of his one time Oilers teammate Glenn Anderson into the Hockey Hall of Fame (Part 1, Part 2)
- Castlegar Rebels Coach Brent Heaven discusses Tony Johnston's return, retaining his coaching staff, a new deal with Selkirk College and players moving on (Part 1, Part 2, Part 3)
- Beaver Valley Nitehawks GM Terry Jones on their coaching change and new players (Part 1, Part 2)
- Trail's Travis St. Denis on U17 try outs and joining the Beaver Valley Nitehawks (Part 1, Part 2)
- Trail's Ashton Florko gets drafted by MLB's Chicago Cubs (Part 1, Part 2, Part 3)
NOTES...Just received word that Dallas Drake will be bringing the Stanley Cup to Rossland on Wednesday, July 16th. Mark that down! There will apparently be a parade. I'll let you know when I hear more.
...From the
BCHL website: "The Quesnel Millionaires Hockey Club transfer the playing rights of Tanner Hlookoff (88)(F) to the Souix Lookout Flyers Hockey Club of the SIJHL for future considerations." Hlookoff is a West Kootenay native so the SIJHL is a long way from home. Hopefully he finds a good place there.
...No Dalpe in the first round. That surprises me a little given what I think is his enormous potential. Someone will have a nice pick in the second round that's for sure. Consider the leaps he's made from Junior B in Ontario to the World Jr A Challenge gold and a BCHL championship. That shot could make him famous.
...A lot of trades in the NHL today. Most of them felt like minimal impact moves. We'll see. Tanguay to the Habs sure seems to limit their hopes of landing a big name free agent this summer, but at least they have someone.
...Everyone cross your fingers for Grant Rollheiser. Lets hope he gets picked up tomorrow. That being said, being a free agent at the end of his college career wouldn't be a bad thing necessarily. You can pick the right fit in that case. We'll see what happens. For those at Boston U who were wondering about Rollheiser's talents the audio above with Pasco Valana gets into it. I'll make a seperate post later.
...Another reminder that if you want tickets to the banquet you can get them at Re-Max All Pro Realty, AM Ford and Gerick Cycle. Get on that fast because you don't want to miss this. Brian Burke, Tom Renney, Ceasar Maniago, Danny Gare, Harold Snepts, Pat Price, the list goes on and on!
...Season tickets on sale Monday!
...With Decosse getting a Div 3 scholarship we're now up to seven guys from last year's team locking up spots to play at school. That's a great compliment to the organization and mostly to the players and young men themselves. Great job guys and good luck at the next stage of your lives. College goes by way too fast so enjoy it.
...I'm going on holidays for a couple of weeks and Jeff Sargeant will be filling in. He'll keep you up to date on everything in local sports and everything Smokies related. I should still be able to put a couple of posts up here when I'm away though.
I'm still in Ottawa continuing my well earned vacation in the beautiful nation's capital. If you've never had a Beaver Tail you've got to try one. Hope you're enjoying Overtime with Jeff, I hear things are going well.
Today is a great day for the Trail Smoke Eaters and the Nelson Leafs. However, above that today is a great day for Grant Rollheiser and his family. Just about two yeas ago Rollheiser was sitting in the back of a truck in Nelson wondering if he was doing the right thing leaving home to play for the Leafs in the KIJHL. A player who had nothing guaranteed to him earned the starting job in Nelson. He earned the starting job in Trail. He earned a scholarship to Boston University. Today Grant Rollheiser earned himself a ticket to the NHL.
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