Braiden Epp had no idea when he woke up Wednesday morning it was going to be his last day playing hockey for his hometown Prince George Spruce Kings.
The Kings made that official after practice Wednesday when they told the fourth-year forward he'd been dealt to the West Kelowna Warriors for 20-year-old defenceman Tyler Anderson.
Epp, a born-and-bred P.G. boy who turns 20 on Saturday, expects to be in the Warriors' lineup Friday when the defending RBC Cup national junior A champions host the Penticton Vees.
"Obviously it's a great organization to go to, so you've got to be happy about that, I've heard nothing but good things come out of that and I know a lot of guys who have played in West Kelowna so I'm happy to go there," said Epp.
"I was pretty surprised when I got told the news but it's hockey and it's a business. If that gives me a better chance of winning, then I'm happy to be there."
In Anderson, the Spruce Kings are getting some much-needed help on the blueline, which comes at a good time for the team which now sports the worst defensive stats in the B.C. Hockey League.
"He's a big, strong, veteran defenceman who will play some big minutes for us and provide a ton of stability on the back end," said Kings general manager Mike Hawes, in a team release. "He's coming to us from a championship team last season and it's a great thing any time you can add players to your lineup who know how to win.
"(I)t's a difficult day any time you trade a player who has been with your team as long as Braiden has been with us. Four seasons is a long time for any junior player to be with one team. Braiden and I have been through a lot and he is a great person who I think will thrive with this change of scenery in West Kelowna. I wish him nothing but success with his new team."
Through seven games, the Kings (1-5-0-1) have allowed 34 goals against, an average 4.74 per game. Having a battle-tested defencemen with Anderson's background should help. The native of Niverville, Man., began his junior career in the SJHL with the Kindersley Clippers, where he picked up 11 points in 48 games. He played all 58 regular season games for the Warriors last season, collecting three goals and nine points and 58 penalty minutes. In 24 playoff games leading up to their RBC Cup win, he had a goal and five assists.
"We needed a defenceman and they needed a forward and in order to get quality we had to give up quality," said Kings head coach Chad van Diemen. "(Anderson) has good size, he skates well and plays an aggressive style. He's a big body who uses his body well. We'll see if he's a power-play guy but he's definitely a (penalty-killing) guy who can play top minutes against other teams' top guys. We feel we had some depth up front and it seemed like a good hockey move for both teams."
Epp put up 41 goals and 80 points in his time with Spruce Kings. In six games this season he had a goal and two assists with 17 penalty minutes. The former Cariboo Cougar major midget totaled five goals and an assists in 19 BCHL playoff games. His most productive season was 2014-15, in which he totaled 24 goals and 43 points in 58 games. Injuries limited him to 46 games last year and he was held to nine goals and 20 points.
The son of Rod and Deanna Epp was the only Prince George minor hockey product on the Spruce Kings this season. He says he'll miss the hometown crowds, and he's got a long time to wait. The Warriors don't play in Prince George until Feb. 9.
"Obviously I loved playing here for three years now, having the fans behind you, it was outstanding and it will be tough to leave them for sure," he said. "One thing about West Kelowna is it's nice and central so the roadtrips will be a lot better. It won't be so cold, I'm sick of the cold here."
"The team has a lot of talent, (forward Quin) Foreman just won player-of-the-week and there's a bunch of great players there. I played with Mitchell Barker and Chase Dubois so I'll be going to some friendly faces."
Earlier this week, the Spruce Kings traded 20-year-old defenceman Mike Winn to the Soo Thunderbirds of the Northern Ontario Junior Hockey League for future considerations.
The Kings hope to have Anderson in the lineup tonight when they face the Trail Smoke Eaters (2-4-0-0) at Rolling Mix Concrete Arena (7 p.m. start).
After getting outscored a combined 23-6 in a disastrous three-game homestand against the Wenatchee Wild, the Kings finally posted their first win of the season last week at the BCHL Showcase in Chilliwack - a convincing 7-2 triumph over the Merritt Centennials - followed by a close 3-2 loss to Penticton last Friday.
"I thought we were really good in both games," said van Diemen. "It was nice to kind of do what Wenatchee did to us the week before. We got off to a good start against Merritt and got an early lead and were able to get them chasing and we did a good job of playing our game for close to 60 minutes. It was nice to get some goals in bunches.
"We had a great start against Penticton and did a lot early and we were unfortunate not to get an early lead. We had a couple lapses cost us but overall it was a way better week and I give the guys a lot of credit for bouncing back like that after a pretty terrible week the week before against Wenatchee. Hopefully we'll follow up last week with another good weekend here."
The veteran-stacked Cowichan Valley Capitals (4-1-1), who play tonight in Surrey, take on the Kings in Prince George Friday night.
