Some players will be swapping sweaters before we kick off Season 3! I'll start with a review of the minor deal before moving into the blockbuster.
Victorias trade Fred "Steamer" Maxwell (LW) to the Comets for Phat Wilson (D).
Hard to believe it, but this is the first trade that the Victorias have ever made! With the arrival of Barney Stanley in the draft, Maxwell became a bit redundant. The Vics will miss his speed (as a whole, the Vics aren't exactly a fleet-footed team), but Stanley is hands-down a better player. In exchange for Maxwell, the Vics acquire second-year blueliner Wilson, who gives the defending champs a bit more depth at a position that gets pretty thin after Cyclone Taylor. The Comets, meanwhile, had no spot for Wilson, but Maxwell brings the aforementioned speed, as well as positional versatility (he can play all three forward positions).
Thistles trade Tommy Dunderdale (C/RW) and Paddy Moran (G) to the Bulldogs for Riley Hern (G) and Harvey Pulford (D).
This is the big one. And with all due respect to Moran and Pulford, this trade is really a swap of an elite forward for a talented but enigmatic goaltender. According to the stat cards, Hern should be the second-best goalie in the league, but the actual game results have not been quite so favorable. No matter what, he'll be an improvement over Paddy Moran. Why, then, did the Bulldogs agree to part with Hern? For one thing, Moran's results (especially in Season 2) suggest that he's suffered from some bad luck -- he's not really that bad. More importantly, giving up Hern allowed the Bulldogs to land a top-line forward in Dunderdale. He had a down year in Season 2, but in Season 1 he was a legitimate MVP candidate. The Bulldogs will switch him from center back to his natural position of right wing and then put him on a line with star pivot Bruce Stuart and former MVP Gord Roberts to form an unholy trinity that will run roughshod over opposing defenses. I absolutely cannot wait to see these three in action together. On paper, at least, it's the best line in the league.
Victorias trade Fred "Steamer" Maxwell (LW) to the Comets for Phat Wilson (D).
Hard to believe it, but this is the first trade that the Victorias have ever made! With the arrival of Barney Stanley in the draft, Maxwell became a bit redundant. The Vics will miss his speed (as a whole, the Vics aren't exactly a fleet-footed team), but Stanley is hands-down a better player. In exchange for Maxwell, the Vics acquire second-year blueliner Wilson, who gives the defending champs a bit more depth at a position that gets pretty thin after Cyclone Taylor. The Comets, meanwhile, had no spot for Wilson, but Maxwell brings the aforementioned speed, as well as positional versatility (he can play all three forward positions).
Thistles trade Tommy Dunderdale (C/RW) and Paddy Moran (G) to the Bulldogs for Riley Hern (G) and Harvey Pulford (D).
This is the big one. And with all due respect to Moran and Pulford, this trade is really a swap of an elite forward for a talented but enigmatic goaltender. According to the stat cards, Hern should be the second-best goalie in the league, but the actual game results have not been quite so favorable. No matter what, he'll be an improvement over Paddy Moran. Why, then, did the Bulldogs agree to part with Hern? For one thing, Moran's results (especially in Season 2) suggest that he's suffered from some bad luck -- he's not really that bad. More importantly, giving up Hern allowed the Bulldogs to land a top-line forward in Dunderdale. He had a down year in Season 2, but in Season 1 he was a legitimate MVP candidate. The Bulldogs will switch him from center back to his natural position of right wing and then put him on a line with star pivot Bruce Stuart and former MVP Gord Roberts to form an unholy trinity that will run roughshod over opposing defenses. I absolutely cannot wait to see these three in action together. On paper, at least, it's the best line in the league.
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