CHARLOTTETOWN, P.E.I. — Drastic changes are not expected this trade period for the Charlottetown Islanders.
The Quebec Major Junior Hockey League trade window opens Sunday and closes at 1 p.m. Atlantic on Jan. 6.
“We’re not going to be one of the major buyers. I don't think we’re at that stage in our process and we’re not going to be as aggressive in the sell market as we were a year ago,” head coach and general manager Jim Hulton said Thursday morning.
“We’re hoping to tweak it and give us a better shot of winning in the playoffs this year but also make us better down the road.”
A year ago, the Islanders traded away captain Pierre-Olivier (P.O.) Joseph, assistant captain Keith Getson, veteran Derek Gentile and back-up goalie Dakota Lund-Cornish. In return they got defencemen Noah Laaouan, Xavier Bernard, Will Trudeau, forwards Cedric Desruisseaux and Justin Gill, plus draft picks to use in the future.
Hulton said the Islanders brass has a specific plan in mind this year and will see if they can turn it into fruition. One area the squad would like to boost is its collection of 2000-born players, guys who are 19 and could be potential overage options in 2020-21.
One guy who won’t be moved is Matthew Welsh.
“Not a chance,” Hulton said. “He will finish his career in our colours.”
The Halifax native, who has been lauded for his work on the ice, in the classroom and in the community, would become the first player to play his full five-year career in Charlottetown since Ben Duffy did so in the final five years of the P.E.I. Rocket.
“This team has a lot of the same characteristics as the Cinderella run of two years ago and the mainstay in net,” Hulton said of Welsh. “You can’t get anywhere in this game without a high-end goalie and Jacob (Goobie) is not ready for that mantle right now, and I’m not ready to bring in a new face for three months.”
Charlottetown had success during the trade period two years ago by adding Gentile, Cam Askew and Daniel Hardie for a collection of players and picks. The team ended up losing in Game 7 of the league semifinal, marking the deepest playoff run in franchise history.
The Islanders (18-12-4-0) are currently fourth in a stacked Eastern Conference. Charlottetown has managed to maintain its place among the league’s elite despite dealing with injuries that sidelined key cogs Lukas Cormier and Nikita Alexandrov for big portions of the first half.
“It’s been very difficult to assess where we’re at primarily because of the injuries,” Hulton said. “We’ve barely had a full lineup together for any extended period of time.”
The conference’s top five looks strong with the possibility each team could get even better during the next few weeks while Sherbrooke has a 19-point lead in the Western Conference standings. Teams remain in the conference for the first two rounds of the playoffs.
The Islanders top picks in the 2020 draft are Halifax’s second-round pick plus two fourth rounders. They own all of their top picks in 2021, plus Drummondville’s first-round pick. Charlottetown has all but its second-round selection in 2022. The first in 2020 and the second in 2022 were used to acquire 16-year-old defenceman Oscar Plandowski from Chicoutimi in August.
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