The Trail Smoke Eaters sent goalie Tanner Marshall to the Brooks Bandits of the Alberta Junior Hockey League (AJHL) on Saturday for future considerations.
The 18-year-old Kelowna product backed up starter Adam Marcoux for most of the past two seasons, and saw limited action in his two years with the Smokies. Marshall played in nine games this season, with a 2-4 record, a 3.22 goals-against average, and a 8.84 save percentage. He played brilliantly at times and showed great potential, particularly in his back-to-back wins over the Cowichan Capitals and Powell River Kings back in October.
“Tanner came to me earlier in the week and requested a trade and was looking for an opportunity to have a bigger role,” Smoke Eaters General Manager and Head Coach Jeff Tambellini said in a release. “It’s always difficult to lose a player like Tanner but we’re always looking for a way to help our players develop and we wish him nothing but success in Brooks.”
The Bandits have been a perennial contender in the AJHL and currently lead the South Division with a 25-3-0 record.
In another transaction on Thursday, Trail acquired defenseman Trevor Isaksson from the Nanaimo Clippers in exchange for future considerations.
Isaksson, 18, is in his first season of Junior ‘A’ hockey, splitting 21 games between Nanaimo and the Penticton Vees. The six-foot-two, 200-pound defenceman will ease some of the burden on the Smokies backend since injuries sidelined Trail defencemen Powell Connor and Kyle Chernenkoff.
“With recent injuries on our blue line, we were looking to add to our overall team size and toughness and Trevor fits that mold,” said Tambellini. “As a captain in Major Midget, he adds a layer of leadership to our group as well.”
The North Delta native is another product of the BC Major Midget League playing with the Valley West Hawks in 82 career games and tallying 19 goals and 35 assists for 54 points to go along with 64 penalty minutes. Isaksson wore the ‘C’ last season for the Hawks and was a point-per-game player, registering 14 goals and 22 assists for 36 points in 36 games.
Isaksson joined the Smoke Eaters for their home-and-home against the Penticton Vees on the weekend.