The term ‘trading frenzy’ might be too strong to describe the last week in the Western Hockey League but Wednesday saw the third significant trade in the past seven days.
On Tuesday, the Prince George Cougars acquired 18-year-old goalie Nick McBride from the Prince Albert Raiders in exchange for a second-round draft pick in the 2017 WHL Bantam Draft. McBride did not get into a game with the Raiders this year and had returned home at the beginning of the season, apparently desiring a trade to a team that would give him a larger role.
The Raiders had a glut of good goalies, including impressive rookie Ian Scott, who is off to a great start this year, and with this move, were able to pick up an asset for a goaltender that wasn’t playing for them.
So it appears that McBride got his wish and moves to a Prince George team that has visions of pushing the Kelowna Rockets in the B.C. Division. They’ve won seven of their past 10 and adding McBride gives the Cougars stronger depth in net – something which may be cause for concern for the rest of the division.
The Cougars were looking to upgrade their goaltending coming into the year after allowing over four goals per game last season. They picked up 20-year-old Mack Shields in the summer to share time with the returning Ty Edmonds. McBride brings with him a career .900 save percentage, a lot of promise and is definitely an upgrade to the Cougars’ crease.
The question does have to be asked however, if McBride wasn’t happy sharing playing time in Prince Albert, will he in Prince George? With a 19-year-old and 20-year-old on the roster, it stands to reason that while McBride may share the net this year, he will most likely be the top guy beyond this season – something that probably wasn’t going to happen with the Raiders.
Prince George now must decide who the odd man out here is. Edmonds would garner the most return since the market for 20-year-old goalies is non-existent, so Shields would most likely have to be released outright.
Edmonds has been off to a terrific start this year and is coming off an impressive 30-save win against Kelowna where he only allowed one goal. In past years, Prince George has leaned heavily on him – he started 60 games last year, 55 the year prior – which would wear him down as the season progressed. Adding McBride to share the load could keep Edmonds playing at the level he is now — .936 save percentage and 2.13 goals-against.
Moving Shields would also free up an over-age spot that general manager Todd Harkins could use to improve his surprisingly struggling offence. Prince George already brought in Jesse Gabrielle this summer – who has been great with 11 markers already – but they are only averaging 2.7 goals per game to date.
Winnipeg Jets prospect Jansen Harkins has yet to catch fire for Prince George and you would assume that he will at some point. Adding a 20-year-old goal scorer could help jumpstart the Cougars and help them make that push up the B.C. Division standings.
Prince George is currently seven points out of the top spot in the division, will Kelowna or Victoria respond to this move?
