Blueliner back for second tour of duty with Vees
Miller back in Penticton; Sloboshan joins squad after 3 years in WHL
The Penticton Vees sent a clear message they plan on taking a run at another BCHL championship, acquiring two more veteran players prior to Wednesday’s trade deadline to shore up a roster depleted by injuries.
Penticton re-acquired 1998-born defenceman James Miller and signed 1997-born forward Wyatt Sloboshan, who has spent three-plus seasons in the Western Hockey League.
The Vees have added several new faces in the last month as they navigate around a series of injuries that include season-ending losses of standouts Grant Cruikshank (fractured ankle) and Ryan O’Connell (fractured arm).
“We could have went in the corner and cried, but we just dealt with it,” said Vees president, GM and head coach Fred Harbinson.”
Harbinson said the players the Vees recently acquired—including forwards Marcus Mitchell and Ocean Wiesblatt and defencemen Miller and Michael Campoli—are all eligible to return to the Vees next season. Only Sloboshan will graduate from junior hockey.
“We’ve leveraged nothing … we don’t owe future (considerations) to anyone,” said Harbinson. “We’ve got 20 games to assimilate the new guys and hopefully get some injured bodies back. I like where we’re at.”
The Vees also got future considerations along with the rights to Miller as they dealt Allen back to the Melfort Mustangs of the Saskatchewan league.
Miller, from Spruce Grove, Alta., was a key member of the Vees last season, scoring six goals and 18 points in 37 regular-season games. He appeared in all 21 playoff games chipping in with seven assists, including assisting on Duncan Campbell’s overtime winner in Game 7 of the Fred Page Cup BCHL final in Chilliwack.
Miller was originally acquired by the Vees from the AJHL’s Olds Grizzlys Sept. 28, 2016 for forward Noah Jordan and future considerations.
Miller played in just two games with the University of New Hampshire this season.
Harbinson said Miller got caught up in a logjam at UNH, which had nine defencemen this season. Miller jumped at the chance to return to Penticton and has decided to de-commit from UNH and look to go to another school as he plays for the Vees again in 2018-19.
“He’s a kid who knows our system, skates and moves the puck really well and plays with an edge,” said Harbinson. “He logged 28 minutes in that (seventh game) against Chilliwack last year. It’s great to add that experience and leadership back there.”
Allen managed four goals and seven points in 37 games with the Vees and is bound for University of Alabama-Huntsville this fall.
“It gives Ben a chance to play in a bigger role,” said Harbinson.
He said a move was necessary because the Vees plan to activate 20-year-old forward Chris Klack from injured reserve in time for Wednesday’s home game against Merritt. Including Allen, the Vees would have had seven 20-year-olds, which is one more than the limit of six allowed in the BCHL.
Sloboshan, from Vanscoy, Sask., joins the Vees after three-plus seasons with the Saskatoon Blades, Spokane Chiefs and Regina Pats. Over his 219-game WHL career, Sloboshan recorded 44 goals and 121 points. He scored four goals and 14 points to help the Pats reach the WHL final.
Sloboshan served as the Blades captain for the first 30 games of the 2016-17 season until being traded to the Spokane Chiefs. This season he played in 36 games with the Pats, scoring four goals and 15 points.
The five-foot-10 forward is no stranger to Penticton - he spent the 2013-14 season at the Okanagan Hockey Academy scoring 48 points in 28 games with OHA Prep White. He practised several times as a 15-year-old with the Vees and also played with Vees forward Jackson Keane at the World Under-17 Hockey Championships.
“He’s a gritty, experienced two-way player who kills penalties and chips in with some offence,” said Harbinson, noting Sloboshan played with current Vees defenceman Jordan Henderson in Saskatoon and knows several other players on the team.
Interestingly, the deal for Miller was agreed to before Saturday’s 5-2 Vees win over Wenatchee at the SOEC, but couldn’t be announced officially until Sunday.
During Saturday’s game, the Vees lost another standout defenceman in Nicky Leivermann (upper-body injury), making the trade for Miller even more important in the short term.
Leivermann is having surgery today in Lake Placid, N.Y. and is expected to return to the lineup in about four weeks, Harbinson said.
Harbinson said Vees owners Graham and Sue Fraser know a specialist in Lake Placid and offered to fly Leivermann – a 2-17 draft pick of the Colorado Avalanche – on a moment’s notice.
“I’ve said all along we have the best owners a junior team could have,” said Harbinson. “They take care of our players and our team in general. Whatever we need, they’re there for us.”
The Vees are now out of open cards to make any more moves going into the Canadian junior hockey roster deadline on Wednesday.
Counting Klack and the injured Leivermann and forward Cassidy Bowes, the Vees will have 14 forwards, seven defencemen and two goaltenders. Bowes (upper-body) rejoined the team for practice in a non-contact jersey Monday and could return to the lineup before Jan. 31.
Harbinson said he’ll watch with interest to see what the Vees rivals do before 6 p.m. on Wednesday.
“Vernon is going all-in this year and I’m hearing they’re going after one more forward,” said Harbinson. “Otherwise, there doesn’t seem to be a lot of buzz out there. A lot of teams have made their moves already.”
ICE CHIPS: The Vees will be hosting a night of conversation with Fred Harbinson, defenceman Jonny Tychonick and team broadcaster Craig Beauchemin tonight at 7 p.m. at Match Eatery and Public House. The event is open to the public, though seating will be limited. The trio will field questions from the floor … Vees captain Owen Sillinger returns against Merritt after serving a two-game suspension for a checking-from-behind major in Wenatchee Dec. 30… The Vees dropped one spot to just stay in the Canadian Junior Hockey League weekly rankings at No. 20. The Vernon Vipers are the only other BCHL ranked team at No. 14. The top three teams are the Thief River Falls Norskies (SIJHL), Carleton Place Canadians (CCHL) and Okotoks Oilers (AJHL).