The question Western Hockey League teams are asked at trade deadline is whether they will buy, sell or stand pat.
The Victoria Royals have answered that they appear to be buyers and are all in for this season.
Victoria traded 17-year-old Brayden Pachal, thought to be a cornerstone of the Royals’ blue line of the future, to the Prince Albert Raiders for 19-year-old defenceman Loch Morrison, who offers more of an immediate impact.
The deal also involves Victoria swapping its sixth-round 2017 bantam draft pick for Prince Albert’s fourth-round selection.
The WHL trade deadline is today.
The Royals move counters trades made over the past week that have greatly enhanced B.C. Division rivals. Kelowna landed the rights for high-scoring Reid Gardiner from the Raiders, who is coming down from the pro AHL to join the Rockets. The Prince George Cougars traded with the Moose Jaw Warriors for six-foot-six forward Nikita Popugaev, projected for the first round of the 2017 NHL draft. The Kamloops Blazers dealt with the Edmonton Oil Kings for 20-year-old stabilizing forward Lane Bauer.
This is after Prince George acquired defenceman and NHL second-round Buffalo Sabres draft pick Brendan Guhle in November from the Raiders, the latter who have gone all-out on a rebuild for the future.
“This has been a real arms race,” said Royals general manager Cam Hope.
But the cost has been high for the teams who feel their time is now. The clubs restocking for the future are asking for good young prospects or higher-round bantam draft slots.
“The prices are high,” addd Hope.
The six-foot Pachal made the Royals as a promising 16-year-old rookie last season out of Estevan, Sask., and appeared in 40 games with a goal and six points and a plus-11 rating. He had three assists this season in 35 games for Victoria as his rating spiraled to minus-9.
“Pachal is going to be a very good player when he develops and matures,” said Hope.
The six-foot-one Morrison is no stranger to deadline deals, meanwhile, after having been sent from the Calgary Hitmen to his hometown Raiders last year at the trade deadline. He is entering his third WHL season and gives the Royals blue-line experience heading into the stretch drive.
Morrison had two goals and 13 points in 37 goals this season in Prince Albert. His minus-13 rating is mitigated by the fact he was on a woeful Raiders team that has allowed the most goals in the league and is in last place among the 22 WHL teams. He was plus-one last season in 70 games shared between the Hitmen and Raiders with four goals and 17 points. Morrison was plus-15 with four goals and nine points in 52 games as a rookie for the Hitmen in 2014-15.
“Morrison is a good, veteran defenceman who does all the little things that go unnoticed and people don’t appreciate . . . that is especially important at playoff time,” said Hope. “He is a steady defenceman who is smart with his positioning and who has both grit and a good stick.”
Hope was asked if any more moves are in the offing for the Royals by 11 a.m. Pacific time today.
“We’ll see how it goes,” he said.
“We don’t have as many holes to fill as people think.”
The Royals (22-16-4) are 5-1 since the Christmas break. They welcome Gardiner and the Rockets (24-15-3) to Save-on-Foods Memorial Centre Wednesday and Friday, before completing the home stand Saturday against the now Popugaev-less Warriors.
