Smokies trade Reardon for Lidster, Zmurchyk to Merritt

(Lidster and Reardon)

The Trail Smoke Eaters have made a deal with the Salmon Arm Silverbacks. Trail sent 1990 born defenceman Jayson Reardon to the Silverbacks for big 1989 born forward Colin Lidster. Lidster is listed at 6'4 and 225lbs. He's committed to play for Quinnipiac after next season so perhaps he and fellow future Quinnipiac star Travis St. Denis can get to know each other pretty well and develop some chemistry over this season.

My first impression is that Lidster is a player with a lot of potential who can contribute more than he has offensively if he's given a bigger opportunity to do it. In talking to Lidster today he also believes that he has a lot more to offer, but it's up to him to play with more consistency and emotion game in and game out.

Of note, Lidster is the son of former Vancouver Canuck Doug Lidster.

As for Reardon, he had some rookie struggles like everyone else on the team. However, Jayson really improved his play and decision making as the season progressed. He's a strong and physical player who is at his best when he's throwing his body around. Reardon didn't do much offensively last year, but he will be a strong stay at home option for the Silverbacks.

He's also got a big shot that we didn't see enough of in Trail. Reardon will drop the mits to stand up for the boys as well. Backs fans will like what they see when he throws that purple uniform on. He's a quiet but hard working, classy player. Reardon also has a lot of potential to become a real force in the BCHL. He'll get an opportunity to do that closer to home in Salmon Arm. Good luck Jayson!

Smokies Coach and GM Jim Ingram will join me on Mountain FM's Overtime tonight to discuss the deal. Lidster will be on the show tomorrow night. We're on from 6pm to 10pm at 104.1 FM in Trail. I'll have more information and analysis later.

ZMURCHYK TO MERRITT


(Zmurchyk)

The Smokies also shipped 1990 born defenceman Jeff Zmurchyk to Merritt as the future considerations in the Scott Jacklin trade. Check out Brian's post on the Making Cents blog. Zmurchyk also didn't contribute much offensively as a rookie defenceman, but the Fernie native showed a lot of improvement especially late in the season. The biggest difference in Jeff from October to February appeared to be confidence. Once he got some of it his game improved tremendously. Zmurchyk is a very smooth skater who has a good first pass and made smart, simple decisions when he was playing well. He's never put up a ton of points whether it's with Trail or with Fernie in the KIJHL. Jeff generally seems to lean towards making the safe play rather than taking a risk.

The 19 year old showed his versatility when the Smokies were battling some injury concerns and Zmurchyk was able to move up and play forward. He showed a lot of battle and grit when playing up front. While Zmurchyk didn't seem to have a lot of finish around the net, he caused some havoc and created a lot of chances.

I think Jeff will be a calming presence on the Merritt blue line and someone who will benefit from some additional responsibility in a new setting. He's got a year under his belt and he'll be a reliable member of the Cents. Good luck Jeff!

Zmurchyk and Reardon were usually two of the quieter players on the bus rides, but they're both class acts. They're not flashy players but I think both Salmon Arm and Merritt should be confident they're getting players who will get the job done.

I've heard word that the Smokies have a lot of very interesting new defencemen coming to camp in August. There won't be any shortage of options available when trying to replace Jeff and Jayson come fall. I've heard a few names but I'll leave any talk about those players specifically to the team.

Malenstyn Interview

(Malenstyn at spring camp - Photo Randy Emery)

I told you last week about the addition of big defenceman turned forward Matt Malenstyn. The 6'7, 255lbs Surrey native was my guest on Mountain FM's Overtime recently. I also had a chance to talk to Smokies Coach and GM Jim Ingram on Malenstyn's addition.

Malenstyn on Mountain FM's Overtime

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Jim Ingram on Malenstyn

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NOTES

...Word from a couple of sources today that former Smokies Coach Tom Renney is not only the associate coach for the Edmonton Oilers, but he is lined up as the heir apparent for Pat Quinn's inevitable retirement. I read a couple of reports that indicate if Quinn steps down before or after the three years in his new contract are up, Renney will be given the head coaching job. Of course that's easy for them to say now. A lot of that will depend on how the team does with Quinn and Renney at the helm. I'm looking forward to watching. That's a lot of experience behind one bench. A lot of class too!

...A couple more coaches have been hired in the BCHL over the last week or two. Victoria hired Victor Gervais to take over for Geoff Courtnall. Gervais had been an assistant with the Grizz. I've read some comments from unhappy fans who wish the search had been extended outside of the organization. That being said, those in the know obviously got a pretty good look at how Gervais handled himself and they liked what they saw. He'll certainly get his chance with a whole new group of players after Victoria tried to load up for the RBC Cup this past season.

...The Williams Lake Timberwolves have hired their first or second head coach depending how you view it. Brad Fox was going to be in charge there before they parted ways at the start of the off season. Fox went back to Revelstoke in KIJHL and appears to be out of the job there too. Troy Mick's group bought the team and Mick is now going to be the Coach and GM there. The KIJHL is sure collected a talented group of coaches. As for the Timberwolves, they hired Okanagan Rockets Major Midget Coach Dave Dupas. It's taken Williams Lake a while to get their man in place, but he certainly sounds qualified and driven.

...As a result of Dupas leaving the Rockets for Williams Lake, Westside assistant coach Misko Antisin will be leaving the Warriors to take over the Major Midget job. Congrats to Misko who was always very easy to deal with and clearly knows the game. I know he'll be missed in Westside.

...It's interesting to note that in both Victoria and Williams Lake these new coaches won't be handling the GM duties. That makes it easier for them to concentrate on coaching, but they won't necessarily have the guys they want in the dressing room. I wonder sometimes which way is the best way to go at this level. It seems like most of the coaches want to control the roster as well.

...I believe all of this movement leaves Quesnel as the only team who has yet to name their Coach. The Mills seem to have new ownership in place and the hope of a new building. They have Trevor Hertz and Jeff Malcom coming back to form a great duo to build around. They also don't have a coach and it's nearly June! Get moving, guys! (Unless I missed the announcement in which case I'm the dolt... it happens)

...It looks like the playoff format is changing for the 2009-10 season. The first round should end up being a best of seven. There is also talk that the league will change how many teams qualify for the playoffs as well. Details should emerge when they ratify those changes at league meetings. I think it's a great move. In the two years I've called Smokies games they've ended up losing money from making the playoffs because they didn't get at least two home games. Of course you don't aim to get swept, but if teams can at least get two home games each they can more reasonably budget for that.

...A quick note about attendance. After the recent AGM, the Smokies have said they could likely guarantee a profit every year if only they could pack a 100 more fans into the Cominco Arena for each home game. It seems like the attendance every year has been within the mid 900s but never really above 1000 recently. Outside of simply winning games does anyone have some thoughts on ways to encourage more people to come check out the best junior hockey in the region? Shoot me an e-mail at shawnsamsmullin@hotmail.com and I'll pass it along to the team. There are no bad ideas, right? OK maybe there are... but it's worth a shot.

Renney to Edmonton

TSN is reporting that former Smoke Eaters coach Tom Renney will be joining the Edmonton Oilers as an associate coach under new head coach Pat Quinn. They have a press conference scheduled in the next couple of hours. Renney continues what has been quite a connection between the Oilers and Trail. Former Smoke Eater and Castlegar native Shawn Horcoff is Edmonton's #1 center. Trail native Steve Tambellini is Edmonton's General Manager. Now add a former Smoke Eaters coach to the mix and they might as well put a couple of smoke stacks on that Oilers jersey!

Congrats to Renney who is a huge class act. I've met him twice at the Smoke Eaters summer banquet and he's easily one of the nicest and sharpest hockey people I've encountered. Quinn also took some time to visit Trail during the World Junior A Challenge. I didn't get the opportunity to meet him, but I heard he made quite a positive impression. You don't get much more qualified than these two! They should make a heck of a tandem for Edmonton.

Smokies AGM Tonight

The Trail Smoke Eaters Annual General Meeting is tonight at 7pm at the Cominco Arena. For more details listen to my interview with Tom Gawryletz that aired Wednesday on Mountain FM's Overtime.

Smokies President Tom Gawryletz

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Look Up - WAAAAY UP (Malenstyn to Trail)

(Malenstyn on PIJHL.com)

The Trail Smoke Eaters just got a lot bigger. 6'7, 255lbs Matthew Malenstyn committed to the Smokies after attending their spring camp. Malenstyn impressed me with his play as an AP for Trail during the coastal trip this past season. For someone who hadn't played at the Junior A level, he stepped into the line-up and didn't look out of place. He made several good plays and I can only think of one specific time when someone was able to use their speed to beat him. One Trail player told me at the time that Malenstyn had outperformed several of the veterans on the club in those games.

Malenstyn moves well for a big man and one of the first things Jim Ingram told me about him when we discussed the commitment was how good of an athlete the Surrey native was. Ingram believes there is a lot of untapped potential in him. Malenstyn believes it as well. He's busting his butt in the gym and on the ice already this summer. He's also working hard with coaches and trainers on the coast to learn a new position as the Smokies plan on using Malenstyn primarily as a forward.

That's certainly a change for Matt after spending the past two seasons as a defenceman in the PIJHL. However, Malenstyn and Ingram are confident he'll be able to learn the new position and provide versatility in case of injuries or penalty trouble. A player is hurt or kicked out of the game? Malenstyn can drop back to the blue line. Injuries build up on defence? Malenstyn can play a few games on the back end to fill in.

As for why Ingram is moving him up front, part of it is the depth that Trail has on the back end (with returning players and strong recruits) and the other part seems to be the physical element that Malenstyn can bring. Ingram expects Malenstyn to win a lot of battles in the corners, toss out some big bruising hits and clog up the front of the net. Who is going to be able to move a man that big when he parks his butt in front of the goal? We saw how well that can work in the Chicago/Vancouver series.

A couple of people I've talked to about Malenstyn instantly said "oh this guy is just going to be a goon." That's not the case. Certainly he'll be willing to stand up for his team. His 177 penalty minutes should show that. However, he's not one dimensional. He put up 13 points and scored 6 times from the blue line last season. Malenstyn tells me he's working on a shot that clocked in the 90s. The raw skills he has were enough to get him some invites to WHL camps that he passed up to come to Trail. This is someone who only really started taking hockey seriously in the past few seasons and that dedication is moving him in the right direction.

I'll have an interview with Jim Ingram on Malenstyn tonight on Overtime. Matthew will join me on the show tomorrow or Thursday.

NOTES

...Congrats to former Smoke Eater Lucas Bloodoff and the Kelowna Rockets for earning a spot in the Memorial Cup finals. The big game is on Sunday and I'm sure everyone out here will be cheering for the Bloodoff Brothers and Kyle St. Denis in that one.

...Seems like the USHL is trying to raid the BCHL talent pool this off season. Their draft included a number of BCHL players. Can you really blame them? The BCHL is proving itself to be the top Junior A league in Canada with loads of talent that will move on to the NCAA and eventually pro hockey. That being said, it's a little frustrating that a team could conceivably come along and just pluck someone away that another team developed. We're not talking about Major Junior vs. Junior A here. If the USHL is a Junior A league and we're partnering with them in ventures like the World Junior A Challenge perhaps we should work out a more reasonable player transfer agreement that isn't just a little bit of cash. Might even be fun to set up a battle between the USHL champs and the RBC Cup winners. I just don't think it should be open season on CJHL players for them. Of course I say that from a slightly biased position.

...Look for the BCHL to go back to a schedule that includes a visit to each team in the league for this coming season. Thank goodness! It didn't seem right that we didn't get to visit Vancouver Island last year.

...Geoff Courtnall stepped down as coach of the Victoria Grizzlies. Now that it seems obvious he wasn't staying for the long term I wonder if it wouldn't have been better for the team to hire a career coach for their important RBC Cup season. Just another team now looking for a new coach. It's been much busier on that front this off season than it was last.

...Pittsburgh in 6 and Detroit in 5.

Busy Day!

We've had lots to talk about today on the Smoke Eaters blog.

• Merritt introduces their new Coach and GM (from Making Cents blog with audio)
• Chad Gehon gets a scholarship to Alaska Fairbanks
• Final Central Scouting rankings with six BCHL players
• Brodie Reid traded from Nanaimo to Alberta
• Interviews with Brett Naka, Jim Ingram, Connor Jones and Lucas Bloodoff
• Check out Ron Gallo's Spruce Kings blog now independent of the BCHL site

Finally I just wanted to mention that Penticton play by play man Ryan Pinder made fun of my cheesy "thank you" graphic in the comments of my post back in March. Guess where that picture is now? Great minds think alike, Ryan! Check out Pinder's Vees Blog for some great coverage of the Royal Bank Cup with Dan Marshall and continuing coverage of the Vees in the off season.

I will get those Limbert and Rollheiser interviews on the blog soon I swear it! Other things just keep coming up. Don't forget to vote tonight in the BC Election (polls close at 8pm with election coverage on Mountain FM) and the Smoke Eaters AGM next Thursday night.

Gehon to Alaska Fairbanks

(#26 Gehon with Trail - Photo Randy Emery)

Congratulations are in order today for former Smoke Eater Chad Gehon. He's earned himself a spot with the NCAA Division 1 squad at Alaska Fairbanks. Click here to read the article at the BCHL website. Gehon finished the season with Westside, but he played his best hockey as a member of the Trail Smoke Eaters. After being moved to Trail from Merritt in the off season, Gehon went from a point a game player to a top 10 scorer in the league. He worked hard on his game throughout the summer and during the season to continue his evolution into a dominant performer at this level. Gehon was a huge part of Trail's early success which included a stint in first place and a few weeks in the national rankings. His early chemistry with Andrew Pickering and Nick Sandor was a pleasure to watch. Later on Gehon would help elevate Travis St. Denis' game when they played together.

The Smokies ended up moving Gehon to Westside (through Merritt) at the trade deadline so they could add Scott Jacklin to their line-up. Jacklin will be eligible to play for two more seasons and Trail's slide in the standings at the time likely made it easier to see the future Jacklin could bring when Gehon would be done. That being said, Trail did miss Gehon's presence as they struggled to find goals down the stretch.

It took Gehon a while to fit in with Westside as they had established units in their top 6. When he eventually found chemistry with Cam Reid they made up 2/3 of the Warriors' most dangerous line in the series against Trail. Westside looked poised to make a serious run at Salmon Arm in the second round until injuries really took the wind out of their sails.

After all the improvements Gehon made over the last season I'm very glad to see he was rewarded with this opportunity to play at the highest level of NCAA hockey. Congrats Chad, you deserve it! He may not be committing to Alaska Fairbanks as a member of the Smoke Eaters, but everyone in Trail is surely very proud of what he's achieved after a great season here. Plus when you're a Smoke Eater, you're a Smoke Eater for life.