With the trade deadline approaching for the various Canadian Hockey Leagues, it’s fair to say that this is one of the most exciting times of the season. We get to see a closer look at the contending teams making a push for the illustrious Memorial Cup Championship.
This year’s tournament is being hosted in Red Deer, Alberta, and the host team has made another big move for contending today. The Red Deer Rebels traded for overage center, Luke Philp from the Kootenay Ice in exchange for overage forward Presten Kopeck, prospects Ryan Pouliot (17-year old defenseman with 15 games played in the WHL), Tanner Sidaway (16-year old forward currently playing with the Westshore Wolves of the Vancouver Island Junior Hockey League), and a second and third round selection in the 2016 WHL Bantam Draft.
This is a steep price to pay, but Philp brings an offensive punch as well as significant playoff experience. The Philadelphia Flyers development 2015 camp attendee has a total of 235 points (95 goals, 140 assists) in 247 total WHL games and has 28 points (12 goals, 16 assists) in 28 playoff games.
This addition adds but another threat to a strong Rebels team featuring Conner Bleackley (2014 1st round pick by Colorado), Haydn Fleury (2014 1st round pick by Carolina), Michael Spacek (2015 4th round pick by Winnipeg), Ivan Nikolishin (undrafted), Adam Musil (2015 4th round pick by St. Louis), and new addition from earlier this season, Jake DeBrusk (2015 1st round pick by Boston). The Rebels have paid a lot for their big additions this year.
In the trades for DeBrusk and Philp, which may take a while to bounce back from in the next few years, but they are certainly a dangerous team. The Red Deer Rebels are coming off of a 10-0 win last night against the Brandon Wheat Kings. With the return of Spacek and Haydn Fleury from the World Junior Championships and the new addition of Luke Philp, the Red Deer Rebels are shaping up to make this year’s Memorial Cup quite exciting.
