The Tips pulled the trigger on a big trade at today’s trade deadline, sending 19-year-old playmaker Kellan Tochkin and 18-year-old defenseman Alex Theriau to Medicine Hat in exchange for 18-year-old center Ryan Harrison and a second-round pick.
Well, this certainly shakes things up. More to follow …
— UPDATE, 4 p.m.
OK, more on the trade:
– Harrison is a 5-foot-10, 183-pounder from Kelowna, B.C. who’s in his third season in the WHL. He spent his first two seasons with Prince Albert, which took him in the second round of the 2007 bantam draft, before being acquired by Medicine Hat during the offseason. This season he had 13 goals, 20 assists, 47 penalty minutes and was a plus-10 in 40 games for the Tigers. He’s described as a hard-working, in-your-face type of player who can also provide some offense. Harrison is expected to arrive in town Wednesday.
– The second rounder is in this year’s bantam draft. That fills a gap as the Tips were without second- or third-round picks.
– Everett gives up its second-leading scorer in Tochkin, who has been a point-per-game player for two-and-a-half seasons. He’s a free-agent signing by the NHL’s Vancouver Canucks. Theriau, a fourth-round pick in the past NHL draft by the Dallas Stars, was playing on Everett’s third pairing when the Tips were fully healthy. Both are former first-round bantam draft picks.
– Tips general manager Doug Soetaert has long been an admirer of Harrison, dating back to his bantam days, and he sounded like he would have been in for Harrison during the offseason had he known Harrison was available.
– The crux of the deal was that Everett wanted Harrison and Medicine Hat wanted Theriau. However, the Tigers, who are contenders in the Central Division, needed a forward to replace Harrison, thus the additions of Tochkin and the second-round pick to the deal.
– The Tips get a year younger up front in the switch of Harrison for Tochkin, and Harrison is the type of player who likely will still be in the league as an overager.
– Both Tochkin and Theriau were shocked by the trade and expressed sadness about leaving Everett.
Now my take. That’s a pair of high-profile players Everett gave up. But to me, this trade seems to be about culture. When Craig Hartsburg came in as coach prior to last season, he wanted to turn the Tips into a pressuring team that was gritty and difficult to play against. That wasn’t really the type of roster he inherited. Harrison sounds like the type of player who will fit into Hartsburg’s style. Tochkin and Theriau, while being good players, may not have been the best fits.
This does not, however, help Everett’s offensive situation. The Tips are the lowest-scoring team in the league, and Tochkin was the most creative forward Everett had. If the Tips are going to claw themselves into the playoffs this season they’re still going to have to win those low-scoring games.
The trade is a big endorsement of Everett’s newest defenseman, Kieran Friesen, who in the space of a couple weeks went from playing junior B to being a WHL regular. With Theriau gone he’s now Everett’s lone 1992-born defenseman. Rookies Evan Morden and Nick Walters will also be playing larger roles from here on out.
Finally, I want to wish good luck to both Kellan and Alex. They were both good guys to work with from a media standpoint, and I wish them nothing but the best in the future.
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