A pair of B.C. goalies swapped WHL teams in a trade Jan. 7, and one of the goalies is coming home.
The Vancouver Giants acquired Cloverdale’s Brady Smith from the Moose Jaw Warriors and sent Nanaimo’s Matthew Hutchison the other way. The goalie-for-goalie deal included a couple of draft picks for Moose Jaw.
Speaking on the phone from Prince George ahead of his first start with the Giants, Smith said he was excited after being dealt to his hometown team.
“It's pretty sweet,” he said. “I'm pretty fired up.”
When Smith found out he was being traded, he was a little shocked. He had only been in Moose Jaw for a little over a month after being traded there from the Lethbridge Hurricanes Dec. 2. The first phone call he made after getting the news was to his dad, Charlie. Smith said his dad was in shock too. Charlie did not expecting his son to be traded twice in the same season, let alone twice in 30 days. But Charlie was happy and excited his son was coming home to play hockey.
Smith, a Cloverdale Minor Hockey Association product, grew up in Clayton Heights, a stone's throw from where he'll be playing his home games now at the Langley Events Centre.
"When I first heard, the adrenaline kicked in and it was hard to get to sleep that night,” Smith added. “I'm pretty much coming home. Hopefully (the Giants organization) will let me stay at home.”
He said he's not sure if he'll be able to live with his folks or if he’ll have to billet out. He said a few of the Giants players are local kids and they billet out in the Ladner/Tsawwassen area, as that's where the Giants practice.
And while Smith gets the start tonight in Prince George, the Giants visit Kamloops on Jan. 10. He’ll dress for his home debut Saturday Jan. 11 versus the Kelowna Rockets. He's not sure if he's starting against the Rockets yet, but he said he'll likely have some friends and family in the crowd either way.
Barclay Parneta, Giants GM, said in a press release the team was happy to be getting the 19-year-old goalie.
“We are thrilled to welcome Brady to the Vancouver Giants organization,” Parneta said. “We look forward to seeing him contribute to our team’s success."
Despite the roller coaster ride on three different teams in the same season, Smith said things have been going well. He's just happy he's able to play the game he loves.
“I can't complain,” he said. “I try to go out and give 100 per cent each and every day. Really just do what I can every night to try to help my team find a way to win.”
I'm super grateful and thankful the Giants wanted me,” he added. “I’m looking forward to getting going here. It's not every day you get to play for a team you grew up watching and looked up too.”
The Giants next home game is Saturday, Jan. 11, at the LEC vs. Kelowna. Puck drop is 7 p.m.
Visit the Vancouver Giants website at chl.ca/whl-giants for more info, or to grab some tickets.
