The Reminder is making its archives back to 2003 available on our website. Please note that, due to technical limitations, archive articles are presented without the usual formatting.
The Flin Flon Bombers have added a Northern Manitoba taste with two trades. The goalie battle will begin as the Bombers went fishing in B.C. catching Jonathan Trout from the Quesnel Millionaires of the BCHL. The deal only cost the Bombers cash. They paid a heftier price to land The Pas native, Brett Needham, who was acquired from the OCN Blizzard for Carter Chomyn. "We traded 19-year-old center/left wing Carter Chomyn," says Bombers coach/GM Ryan Hoffman. "Giving up a player of Carter's abilities, upside and growth that is going to continue in his junior hockey career is always tough." In Needham, the Bombers get a 6-2, 220 pound player Hoffman wanted for the wing. "Brett I think is your classic power forward,"explains Hoffman. "He brings a lot of different dimensions to the game, he's big, he's physical, he has an edge." It doesn't hurt that he scored eight goals, 25 assists for 33 points in 61 games. Hoffman pointed out that his numbers show he has a good skill set. The Bombers also benefit from Needham's playoff experience. See 'Local' P.# Con't from P.# "Brett's been in the playoffs the last couple years and comes from a winning program in OCN," Hoffman says. "We get a little bit bigger and meaner up front, we're not a huge team and being able to bring Brett in gives us more size." Hoffman's plan is to place the hulking winger on the top line with Tyler Beachell and Dalton Pajak. Hoffman likes the fact Needham "can work the wall well and will give those two guys a little more room. "We're ecstatic that we were able to bring a kid of Brett's character and abilities into our lineup and locker room," says a happy Hoffman. While the coach is gleaming about his physical forward, he's also more than happy with the trade for Trout. "We have another quality Junior 'A' goalie coming," says Hoffman. Trout, who is from Cross Lake, MB, played 22 games for the Millionaires , winning eight games with a 4.24 GAA on a struggling team that won only 21 games in a 60 game schedule. He also played for the Waywayseecappo Wolverines in the MJHL, winning 17 games in 2003. Hoffman feels it should be a good competition between Dale Pettit and Trout in goal, while the team has another Junior 'A' goalie coming to camp making the goalie carousel interesting. "It was nice to add yet another Northern kid to the roster, and we think Trout addresses a need in goal," says Hoffman.
