For hockey players, a trade deadline is more than just a trade deadline – it’s a date that determines their immediate hockey future.
The newest Nanaimo Clippers player, Ryan Coghlan, managed to make it home just in time, before the deadline.
It has been an up-and-down, back-and-forth season for the 19-year-old defenceman. Coghlan was traded from the Prince Albert Raiders to the Saskatoon Blades in the WHL, and then had his BCHL rights dealt from the Cowichan Valley Capitals to the Clippers last week.
“This year, it’s been a little bit of a roller coaster,” Coghlan said.
He realized he wasn’t going to be a go-to guy with his major junior team, so in a season of change, he decided to seek out one more change of scenery. People called him a quitter, but he said hockey players have to have a thick skin.
“They didn’t really know the situation…” he said. “It was just a matter of waiting and kind of figuring out what I wanted to do and I strongly believe that I made the right decision to come here,” Coghlan said.
Coming to play in his hometown is comfortable. He’s reunited with old friends like Clippers captain Brendan Taylor, and he’s skated many times at Frank Crane Arena.
“I knew that he really wanted to come here and help be a part of trying to win a championship in his hometown with his hometown team, and that meant a lot,” said Mike Vandekamp, Clippers coach and general manager.
The Shipmen get a steady, veteran defenceman, the sort of player that’s traditionally tough to find at the trade deadline.
“He’s a big, strong kid so he’s not going to give anything up to anybody, physically,” Vandekamp said. “He has a little bit of a swagger and a confidence to him that I think is a good thing.”
Coghlan will have to catch on to Clippers hockey quickly, with just 18 games left on the schedule.
“I’ve obviously missed quite a bit,” he said. “I just want to bring my game, which I think is a strong defensive game.”
He’s been paired with vet Austin Dick and he’s been asking questions, trying to figure out where to be and where not to be on the ice as he learns the systems and structure.
“I just want to be a part of the puzzle,” Coghlan said. “It’s a really good group and there are really talented players on this team, so I just want to contribute as much as I can and hopefully win a championship.”
Forward adds tenacity
The Nanaimo Clippers are looking both at the present and the future with one of their trade-deadline pickups.
Brendan Shane, an 18-year-old forward from Rochester, N.Y., plays with speed and tenacity, Vandekamp said, and has potential to be a really good player.
Shane began 2014-15 with the U.S. Hockey League’s Waterloo Blackhawks and was another guy who was wanting a change. He called up former teammate Jake Jackson of the Nanaimo Clippers, and Shane’s interest was reciprocated by the BCHL club.
Making his Clippers debut last week was exciting, Shane said, and he wants to build on it.
“You’ve just got to go out there, work hard, pay attention to the coach and the systems that they implement here and try and gain the respect of the players as much as possible,” he said. “And more importantly, just kind of have fun out there.”
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