Speedy forward Mason Raymond is on his way from Vancouver to Saint Louis, as the Blues continue to aggressively reimagine their roster heading into the season’s second half. In return, the Night Train get veteran centre Michal Handzus – only just acquired by the Blues – and a 3rd round draft pick.
In 40 games this season, Handzus had 8 assists and no goals. Raymond has only played in 18 contests so far this season, managing a goal and a helper in fourth line icetime.
The El Dorado Lynx have sent winger Andrei Kostitsyn to conference rivals, the Denver Spurs. In return, the Lynx pick up journeyman forward Chris Thorburn and a 4th round pick.
Just one point separates the Spurs (24-14-2) from the Lynx (23-14-3) in the Plante. Will Kostitsyn have an impact on a squad that’s thin on the wing? Time will tell.
The Baltimore Crab‘s struggle in the standings has prompted them to ship some veterans to a contender. On their way to the new-look Saint Louis Blues are Alexandre Burrows and Bryce Salvador, while Jakub Kindl and Kyle Okposo join the Crab.
Burrows – one of the Crab’s most dependable wingers who once shocked the league with a 49-goal campaign – brings scoring and experience to the Blues’ top six while Salvador join new acquisition Nicklas Grossmann in settling down the D. Kindl and Okposo aren’t as reliable as point-producers, but both are in their mid-twenties, meaning Baltimore’s just shed 18 years off its roster.
As the trade deadline approaches, the Pittsburgh Hornets have swung a deal for young defenseman Dmitry Kulikov. In return, the Hornets send veteran forward Johan Franzen and a 4th round pick to the Vancouver Night Train.
Kulikov, a Night Train worst -11 in limited action so far this year following a 41-point 2011-12 campaign, joins Slava Voynov and Victor Hedman on an up-and-coming Pittsburgh blueline, long a team weakness. Franzen, who’s played his entire career with the Pittsburgh/San Diego franchise, has 12 goals and 22 points in 30 contests this season and will be expected to boost the Night Train’s second line alongside Tomas Plekanec.
The Ice Harbor Storm, well out of playoff contention as the season approaches the midway point, have made another deal – sending Alex Steen, Michal Hanzus, Nicklas Grossmann, and draft picks to the Saint Louis Blues for Brayden Schenn, Mikkel Boedker, and Erik Johnson.
It’s the first move for Saint Louis’ new management, and a bold one, as they unload a young group to add veteran depth for a post-season push. The Storm, meanwhile, continue their rebuild. Schenn and Boedker join a young core that includes Jordan Eberle, Nazem Kadri, and Kyle Turris, while Johnson may be called upon to help Kris Letang lead a blueline group that also features Adam Larsson and Tyler Myers.
To STL: F Alexander Steen, F Michal Handzus, D Nicklas Grossmann, 3rd round rookie pick in 2013, 2nd round free agent pick in 2013
To IHS: F Brayden Schenn, F Mikkel Boedker, D Erik Johnson
The Vancouver Night Train have finally settled on their starter.
After several seasons duking it out with Pekka Rinne for the go-to role in Vancouver, Ondrej Pavelec is headed to the Ice Harbor Storm.
The Storm acquired the netminder in exchange for two 2013 draft picks – a 2nd and a 4th – and goaltender Mathieu Garon.
The Night Train selected Pavelec five spots behind Rinne in 2008 and Pavelec has found himself playing catch-up ever since. In 27 games with the Night Train last season, he managed a 3.18 GAA and a save percentage of .897.
Note: This move will officially take effect at the conclusion of Q2.
In one move, the Great Lakes Pilots may have solved their woes up the middle. The Pilots have acquired centre Ryan Getzlaf from the Nashville Knights in exchange for defenseman Barret Jackman and a second round pick in next year’s rookie draft.
Getzlaf likely slots right into the Pilots’ first line with Martin St. Louis – his 55 points for the Knights last season would have had him second among team forwards. Jackman, meanwhile, skated to an abysmal -25 last year but is still considered one of the league’s best stay-at-home blueliners. The Knights will hope he can stabilize a defense led by youngsters PK Subban and Justin Faulk.
After a quiet draft, the Charleston Chiefs made a big splash in the trade market today with two moves, dealing away – among others – 3rd overall selection Sean Couturier to reel in centre Anze Kopitar from the Baltimore Crab.
Chiefs management had made it known they wanted to shore up on the left wing, and the team’s first move did just that – sending Wayne Simmonds to the Nashville Knights for Clarke MacArthur and a 3rd rounder.
That deal was quickly overshadowed by news that Charleston had acquired Kopitar from Baltimore in exchange for Couturier and longtime Chief Nathan Horton.
Kopitar endured a somewhat disappointing 2011-2012 season, scoring just 15 goals. He joins a formidable Charleston group at centre, highlighted by Steven Stamkos and David Backes.
There were few big surprises on draft day in terms of players selected, but several GWMHL teams still managed to make ripples with some bold trades.
The Delta Sturgeons kicked things off by selecting dynamic centre Ryan Nugent-Hopkins first overall, but then the Boston Banshees – who had moved up several spots in the draft lottery – decided to make some noise. Boston dealt the second overall pick to the San Francisco Seals for the Seals’ first rounder (7th overall, Ryan Ellis) and power forward Milan Lucic. To no one’s surprise, the Seals took Gabriel Landeskog with the pick.
Other moves included Delta dealing forward Valtteri Filppula to the El Dorado Lynx for El Dorado’s first rounder (15th, Brendan Smith), Boston flipping a third rounder to the Lynx for steady defender Matt Greene, and the Ice Harbor Storm trading some picks to the Great Lakes Pilots for a selection next year.
Round 1
1. Delta – F Ryan Nugent-Hopkins
2. San Francisco (from Boston) – F Gabriel Landeskog
3. Charleston – F Sean Couturier
4. Ice Harbor – D Adam Larsson
5. Pittsburgh – D Slava Voynov
6. Baltimore – F Mark Scheifele
7. Boston (from San Francisco) – D Ryan Ellis
8. Winnipeg – F Sven Baertschi
9. Farmington – F Ryan Johansen
10. Great Lakes – D Jake Gardiner
11. Denver – F Carl Hagelin
12. Saint Louis – F Jaden Schwartz
13. South Carolina – F Matt Read
14. Nashville – D Justin Faulk
15. Delta (from El Dorado) – D Brendan Smith
16. Portland – F Brett Connolly
17. West Virginia – F Andrew Shaw
18. Sterling – F Mika Zibanejad
19. Vancouver – F Zack Kassian
20. Salem – F Gustav Nyquist
Round 2
21. Delta – F Marcus Foligno
22. Ice Harbor – D Erik Gudbranson
23. Pittsburgh – D Stefan Elliott
24. Baltimore – F Cam Atkinson
25. San Francisco – F Cory Emmerton
26. Winnipeg – D Jared Cowen
27. Farmington – F Craig Smith
28. Charleston – F Cody Eakin
29. Great Lakes – F Tommy Wingels
30. Denver – D Tim Erixon
31. South Carolina – F Gabriel Bourque
32. Saint Louis – D Simon Despres
33. Boston – D Alexei Emelin
34. Nashville – D Roman Josi
35. El Dorado – F Brandon Saad
36. Portland – D David Rundblad
37. West Virginia – D David Savard
38. Sterling – D Dmitry Orlov
39. Vancouver – F Devante Smith-Pelly
40. Salem – G Allen York
Round 3
41. Delta – G Matt Hackett
42. Ice Harbor – F Peter Holland
43. Pittsburgh – F Reilly Smith
44. Baltimore – F Scott Glennie
45. San Francisco – D Raphael Diaz
46. Winnipeg – G Thomas Greiss
47. Farmington – F David Ullstrom
48. Charleston – D Brayden McNabb
49. Great Lakes – D Erik Gustafsson
50. Great Lakes – (from Denver via Ice Harbor) – F Marcus Kruger
51. South Carolina – F Louis Leblanc
52. Saint Louis – D Alexander Urbom
53. El Dorado (from Boston) – D Mattias Ekholm
54. Nashville – F Tyson Barrie
55. El Dorado – F Dwight King
56. Portland – D Matt Donovan
57. West Virginia – F Roman Horak
58. Sterling – F Carter Ashton
59. Vancouver – F Corey Tropp
60. Salem – D Dylan Olsen
Round 4
61. Delta – D Paul Postma
62. Great Lakes (from Ice Harbor) – F Anton Lander
63. Pittsburgh – F Akim Aliu
64. Baltimore – F Tomas Vincour
65. San Francisco – G Ben Scrivens
66. Winnipeg – D TJ Brennan
67. Farmington – F Carl Klingberg
68. Charleston – G Anders Nilsson
69. Great Lakes – F Joakim Andersson
70. Denver – D Calvin de Haan
71. South Carolina – F Aaron Palushaj
72. Saint Louis – F Nick Johnson
73. Charleston (from Boston) – D Marc-Andre Bourdon
74. Nashville – G Richard Bachman
75. El Dorado – F Jason Zucker
76. Portland – G Anton Khudobin
77. West Virginia – F Kaspars Daugavins
78. Sterling – D Matt Taormina
79. Vancouver – F Jimmy Hayes
80. Salem – D Cade Fairchild
Even by Mid-Season Free Agent Draft standards it was a quiet one, but 11 teams took a chance on 16 veterans as they head into the second half of the season. Winger Jamie McGinn led the way, claimed by the Delta Sturgeon. Only three of our six most surprising pre-season cuts found new teams — Cody Franson, Jason Blake, and Jamie Langenbrunner — while Martin Brodeur, one of the greatest goaltenders in GWMHL history, is still without a home.
Complete 2012 Mid-Season Free Agent Draft results, plus cuts, after the jump:
Gump Worsley Memorial Hockey League 