John MacNeil
Daily Herald
On both sides of the equation, it was a homecoming trade for all three of the players involved in the late August junior A deal between the SJHL’s Melfort Mustangs and the AJHL’s Devon Xtreme.
The Mustangs welcome 19-year-old goaltender Luke McKechnie, who is from Lumsden, back home to Saskatchewan.
At the same time, Devon gains a couple of players who now can play next door to their Edmonton-area roots — 20-year-old goaltender Madden Mulawka and 19-year-old forward Connor Ewasuk.
Melfort coach and GM Trevor Blevins had a first-hand scouting report on McKechnie, who split last season between the Xtreme and the Whitecourt Wolverines, the AJHL’s regular-season champions. Last December, with McKechnie as one of his goalies, Blevins was the head coach of Team Canada West at the World Junior A Challenge in Trois-Rivieres, Que.
“We know each other quite well that way,” Blevins said of McKechnie, who played U18 AAA hockey in Moose Jaw.
“We were looking to open up a 20-year-old spot, and it was a great fit. Madden Mulawka is from Edmonton. He’s been a great player for us, a great goaltender, and it was just more of an age (factor) and a fit.
“When we got an opportunity to get a quality goaltender like Luke, and a quality person, we jumped at it, no hesitation.”
Strategically, in trading away Mulawka, the Mustangs wanted to keep their overage math in check.
“We’re only allowed eight 20-year-olds, so we have to manage that throughout the season,” Blevins told the Prince Albert Daily Herald on Friday. “To us, the way we want our team made up this year, it made sense.
“Madden, who split our goaltending with Kason Kobelka, really had a great finish to the (past) year. He was also fantastic for us when we won a championship, when he was 18 years old. He played a backup role that year and stepped in a number of times. We can’t thank him enough for his commitment and service to the Melfort Mustangs. By no means was (the trade) anything wrong that he did.
“Sometimes, hockey decisions have to be made. He’s in a good situation, being a starter in Alberta, and basically he can live at home and be comfortable there.”
Devon’s other acquisition, Ewasuk, returns to the AJHL, in which he began last season with the Lloydminster Bobcats.
“We had to make a top-up in order to get the deal done,” Blevins said of Ewasuk, a Beaumont, Alta., resident. “For him to play more in that league, I think, is a better fit also. He was a player that we acquired at the deadline last year, but Edmonton is home for him and he’s going to be quite comfortable there and able to excel in that environment.”
Melfort’s training camp begins Sept. 4. Blevins expects to see players arrive in town as early as Sept. 1.
“Right now, we’ve got the standard four (camp) teams that we have every year,” he reported. “It’ll be about 70 to 80 players. We mixed in the roster (players), the draft picks and a lot of our prospects, too.
“It’s a great opportunity to see how players have developed over the summer, from spring camp till now. We’re excited to see our roster players … but also some of our future, too.”
