Curtis Hunt went deep like Vladimir Guerrero Jr. when it came to this year’s WHL trade deadline.
The WHL trade deadline is passed on Thursday at 7 p.m. Saskatchewan time. A total of nine deals were made on the deadline day itself, and pretty much all those transactions equate to a team sending a player to another team in hopes of getting more ice time and a restart.
On Tuesday, the Raiders executed their final deal before the deadline and it was a blockbuster. They landed Seattle Thunderbirds captain in 18-year-old centre Braeden Cootes. Cootes just finished helping Canada win bronze at the world juniors that wrapped up on Monday in Saint Paul and Minneapolis, Minnesota.
Cootes started the campaign playing three regular season games with the NHL’s Vancouver Canucks. The Canucks selected the Sherwood Park, Alta., product in the first round and 15th overall in the NHL Entry Draft held last June. He signed a three-year, entry-level contract with the Canucks on July 9, 2025.
After being returned to the Thunderbirds, Cootes appeared in 17 regular season games posting 10 goals, 13 assists and a plus-three rating in the plus-minus department before departing to join Canada’s squad for world juniors. He had a pair of goals in seven games for Canada at world juniors.
This column of mine appeared in the Prince Albert Daily Herald. To read the full article, feel free to click right here.
