The Kelowna Chiefs of the Kootenay International Junior Hockey League (KIJHL) have traded forward Braeden Cyra (1995) to the Campbell River Storm of the Vancouver Island Junior Hockey League (VIJHL).
The deal, which sees the Storm send future considerations to the Chiefs in exchange for Cyra, was announced via press release Saturday, May 30.
Cyra, a 1995-born forward, led the Chiefs in scoring during the 2014-15 KIJHL regular season, tallying 15 goals and 45 assists for 60 points in 50 games. Those numbers were good enough to land the Kelowna native tied for fifth on the league scoring charts.
“I have heard nothing but great things about the organization and I cannot wait to get the year underway,” Cyra said in a Storm press release.
The 6-foot, 180-pound pivot only adds to the depth of a Campbell River Storm squad that claimed the 2015 Cyclone Taylor Cup and 2015 Keystone Cup as provincial and western Canadian Junior ‘B’ champions, respectively.
“Adding a player of Braeden’s ability on the ice, and character and leadership off the ice is not something that happens very often at this level,” said Lee Stone, head coach and general manager of the Storm, in a team press release. “More importantly, Braeden wanted to be a part of our program after aeeing the success we have had in the last two years. He comes from a long line of talented Kelowna provincial champions and we are excited to see the success he brings us at both ends of the ice and on the power play.”
The Chiefs finished third in the KIJHL’s Okanagan Division with a record of 23-25-2-2 during the 2014-15 campaign.
In post-season action, the Chiefs battled the Summerland Steam in a seven-game, first-round matchup, falling 4-3.
Chiefs head coach Jason Tansem also announced via his Twitter account (@KChiefsCoach) that forward Jeran Knorr (1997) had signed on with an unspecified Junior ‘A’ team, while forward Anthony Ruggiero (1995) is headed to school in the fall.
