Tigers trade for goalie
Bradley, two picks sent to Pats as first of overagers moved
Medicine Hat’s overage situation is starting to pay off.
The Tigers finished their season with 10 impending overage players on their roster, but head coach and general manager Shaun Clouston worked that to his advantage on Tuesday morning by sending Matt Bradley and a pair of picks to the Regina Pats in exchange for 18-year-old goaltender Jordan Hollett.
“If not for the situation with our ’97s and their abilities, we wouldn’t have got our foot in the door there with a goaltender of Jordan’s calibre,” said Clouston, who sent Bradley to the Pats with a second round bantam draft pick in 2018 and a fifth round selection in 2019 for Hollett. “The goaltending position is so important, and he’s a first round bantam draft guy. If you look at his numbers from this year, he’s a big-time player.”
Given that the Tigers can only keep three ’97-born players on their roster for the 2017-18 season, Clouston added he was thrilled to get something tangible for one of his outgoing players.
“That was the thing,” said Clouston. These are always challenging to do. Matt Bradley has been a great player for us. He played in the playoffs at 16 and he’s been part of some pretty darn successful teams.”
But as Clouston points out, the Tigers are in need of netminding depth, and he believes Hollett will fill that void for a few years to come.
Hollett, the 13th overall bantam draft pick in 2014, will assume a tandem position with either Nick Schneider or Michael Bullion in the upcoming season after a respectable year as backup to Tyler Brown with the Pats. Hollett closed out his season with a .901 save percentage, a 2.83 goals against average and a 15-2-2-0 record with two shutouts in 19 appearances.
“It’s been a crazy day. There are some mixed emotions but ‘'m really excited,” said Hollett, adding he sees some similarities between the two teams. “This year they were two pretty high-offence teams and it was exciting to see the two teams clash against each other.
“It’s a fun brand of hockey to be part of so I’m really looking forward to the opportunity.” So are the Tigers. “We’re really excited about this. He’s a ’99 which is very important because not only can he help us this year, he has the potential to help us for two years,” said Clouston. “If he’s not a pro, he’s a three-year guy. So it was really a major deal for us.”
The Pats will gain some serious firepower up front in Bradley. The 20-year-old Surrey-born centre posted career highs across the board this year, finishing his 70-game campaign with 34 goals and 43 assists. Over his 209-game tenure, Bradley compiled 74 goals and 94 helpers.
“I’m extremely excited to be joining this team, especially a team that’s hosting the Memorial Cup next year,” said Bradley, adding he’ll never forget his days spent playing in the old arena. “Playing games in a building with that much of a legacy and past in it, it was amazing.”