With another World Junior Hockey Championship now in the books, some members of Team Canada find themselves on new teams as they return to their respective CHL leagues.
The QMJHL trade deadline passed on Sunday, and it saw the Rouyn-Noranda Huskies add a key player in their bid for a league title.
The Huskies sent three first-round picks and a second-round pick to the Acadia-Bathurst Titan in exchange for world-junior defenceman and New York Islanders prospect Noah Dobson. The Huskies also acquired veteran forward Joel Teasdale over the weekend from the Blainville-Boisbriand Armada in exchange for winger Maximilien Ledoux, a first-round pick in 2021, a third-round pick in 2019 and three fourth-round picks.
At the end of December, the Drummondville Voltigeurs acquired defenceman Pierre-Olivier Joseph from the Charlottetown Islanders. A first-round pick of the Arizona Coyotes, the former Charlottetown captain had seven goals and 25 points in 27 games prior to the deal, and has two assists in six games with the Voltigeurs.
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In the OHL, the Saginaw Spirit made a splash over the weekend, acquiring a pair of high-scoring forwards in two separate deals wth the Mississauga Steelheads.
On Jan. 3, the team brought in Edmonton Oilers prospect Ryan McLeod, sending a package that included defenceman Duncan Penman, a pair of second-round picks (one of which is conditional) and three third-round picks to Mississauga.
Then the Spirit made another big splash on Jan. 5 by acquiring Team Canada forward, and Florida Panthers prospect, Owen Tippett from the Steelheads. In return, the Steelheads picked up centre Aidan Prueter, two second-round picks, two third-round picks, and two seventh-rounders.
When all was said and done, the Steelheads added two young players and 11 draft picks, nine of which are in either the second or third round, in exchange for two veteran stars in their final OHL seasons.
Tippett wasn’t the only member of Canada’s national junior team who was traded in the OHL over the weekend. The Hamilton Bulldogs dealt captain MacKenzie Entwistle to the Guelph Storm for two second-round picks and three third-round picks.
MacKenzie Entwistle, formerly of the Hamilton Bulldogs. (Aaron Bell/OHL Images)
It was the first of three deals for Storm general manager George Burnett on Saturday as the team also acquired a pair of defencemen, including Team Canada member Markus Phillips from the Owen Sound Attack. The Storm sent three second-round picks, two third-round picks and a conditional fourth-round pick to Owen Sound in the deal.
Guelph’s final deal saw them acquire blueliner Fedor Gordeev, a Maple Leafs prospect, from the Flint Firebirds for four picks, two of which are conditional.
The other deal in the OHL over the weekend saw the Oshawa Generals acquire Brett Neumann from the Kingston Frotnenacs for Nick Wong, two second-round picks (one conditional) and a third-rounder.
The OHL trade deadline is Jan. 9 for overage players and Jan. 10 for all others.
In the WHL, it was a quiet weekend on the trade front, though the Prince Albert Raiders, the top team in the league, did add to its offensive arsenal by acquiring Dante Hannoun from the Victoria Royals on Thursday. The Raiders also picked up a pair of draft picks from the Royals in the deal. In exchange, Victoria received Kody McDonald, Carson Miller and a third-round draft pick from Prince Albert.
The WHL trade deadline is Jan. 10.