Flin Flon Bombers head coach and general manager Mike Reagan is pleased with the squad he has following the Dec. 1 roster cutdown deadline.
“We like our team – lots of positives, and we think we have the potential to be a team that others don’t want to face come playoffs,” said Reagan, whose Bombers are 17-8-2-2 “It’s a long season and a work in progress … we think we are a better team than our record indicates.”
The veteran coach said he is happy with the moves the Bombers made at the deadline.
The team traded 20-year-old defenceman Joseph Leonidas for 19-year-old blueliner Troy Williams on Dec. 1. This move reduced the Bombers’ number of 20-year-olds from 10 to nine – still one more than can dress per game according to SJHL limits, but more manageable, Reagan said.
Earlier last week the Bombers added forward Jordan McCausland.
“We are happy with what we have accomplished at this deadline,” Reagan said. “We addressed a few things, got deeper with McCausland, and took care of having 10 20-year-olds.”
As of Dec. 1, Junior A teams had to reduce their rosters down to a maximum of 25 carded players. Flin Flon went down to 22. This gives the Bombers three players cards that can be used for potential moves by the Jan. 10 trade deadline, when teams must get the roster down to 23.
Williams is a 5-foot-11, 196-pound defenceman. Although he is 18, the Dryden, Ont. product is already in his third Junior A season. He spent two years with his hometown Ice Dogs before being acquired last summer by the Manitoba Junior Hockey League’s Steinbach Pistons.
Williams had three goals and 14 points in 27 games for the MJHL-leading Pistons this season, according to elite prospects.com. Last season he was a finalist for the Superior International Junior Hockey League’s best defenceman award.
“I think it was a deal that brings some youth to our back end while still bringing junior experience, and solves some of our 20-year-old issues,” Reagan said. “He was a guy that I saw at last year’s Canada West camp [for the World Junior A challenge] and is on the radar of a few [NCAA Division I] schools, so we think he has some upside.”
McCausland, a 19-year-old from Brandon, was acquired from the Yorkton Terriers for a 2018 second-round draft pick. The 5’9”, 160-pounder had seven points in 26 games this season with the Terriers.
His presence has been important, as fellow forward Nate Hooper was injured in late November and isn’t expected back until Christmas.
“McCausland has fit in real nice, especially considering the injury to Hooper, and I like adding a right-hand centre,” Reagan said. “He’s going to be a good Bomber.”
