Another player has joined the battle to be the backup goaltender to returning starter Ian Scott on the Prince Albert Raiders roster.
The Western Hockey League club announced Friday afternoon that they had acquired goaltender Donovan Buskey from the Spokane Chiefs in exchange for a sixth round pick in the 2020 Western Hockey League Bantam Draft.
With Scott set to leave for the Toronto Maple Leafs training camp next week, Buskey will join returning overage goaltender Curtis Meger and 2001-born netminder Brett Balas for a spot on the roster.
“There’s so many unknowns at this time of the year,” Raiders general manager Curtis Hunt said. “You never really know what could happen with training camps and injuries, plus we also have our overage situation to play out (with the Raiders holding the rights to San Jose Sharks prospect Noah Gregor) over the next few weeks.
“The timing was such that we were able to get a guy with some experience in this league, and with four games left in the pre-season, there’s still a lot of time for all three goalies to compete for a spot.”
Buskey, an 18-year-old from North Vancouver, B.C., was a third round pick by the Chiefs in the 2015 WHL Bantam Draft.
He made his debut in the league this past season and compiled a 10-10-0-0 record with a 3.56 goals against average and a .871 save percentage.
Buskey also earned his first career shutout on Nov. 18, 2017 against the Raiders in a convincing 7-0 win for the Chiefs.
“He got some big wins for Spokane down the stretch last year against Everett, Portland and Tri-City that helped them stay in the playoff race,” Hunt said.
“He’s a great competitor and he comes from a great organization. We believe he’ll be a good fit for us as we move forward.”
Chiefs general manager Scott Carter cited the need to address his team’s goaltending depth in a press release Friday, as they have a pair of 19-year-old’s in Bailey Brkin and Dawson Weatherill on the roster, along with 16-year-old Campbell Arnold.
Buskey will join the Raiders ahead of their next pre-season game, which will be held at the Art Hauser Centre Thursday at 7 p.m. against the Saskatoon Blades.
