Tips add player, get one back
Published 9:09 am Wednesday, September 16, 2009
The Tips announced a trade late last night after I’d closed shop for the evening — odd time to announce a trade — so this news is a tad old. But anyway. in his continuing attempt to corner the market of former first-round bantam picks, Everett general manager Doug Soetaert acquired forward Brett Miller from Red Deer for a conditional draft pick. Miller, who was Regina’s first-round pick (14th overall) in 2006, becomes the seventh first rounder on Everett’s roster, joining Tips selections Kellan Tochkin (2006), Kent Simpson (2007) and Ryan Murray (2008), as well as Travis Dunstall (Kamloops 2004), Dale Hunt (Prince George 2005) and Alex Theriau (Lethbridge 2007).
The 18-year-old Miller hasn’t exactly lit up the WHL yet as he has just one goal and one assist in 37 career games. He hasn’t lit up junior A yet, either, as last season in 49 games for the SJHL’s Battlefords North Stars he had six goals and 13 assists. But what he does bring is size as he stands at 6-foot-4 and 212 pounds, and the Tips did not have the biggest roster in the league.
The other news last night is that Tochkin was returned to the Tips by the NHL’s Vancouver Canucks, with whom he’d been attending training camp. That means Everett will have its leading returning scorer available for the season opener Friday in Kent.
