Another new face will be in the Prince George Spruce Kings lineup when they face off against the Salmon Arm Silverbacks Thursday at the Coliseum.
That would be forward Nick Guerra, an 18-year-old rookie from the Nanaimo Clippers who was acquired Saturday for future considerations as the B.C. Hockey League's trade deadline came to a close.
With two player cards available, Kings general manager Mike Hawes searched far and wide across the league for a defenceman.
"There weren't any d-men available so I went and picked up Nick," said Hawes. "I like to have 13 forwards in case of injury. He's a rookie and he has the potential to put up some good numbers. He skates well and he has some really good skill. He increases the depth in our lineup."
Guerra is a six-foot-one, 185-pound right-shooting forward who had four goals and two assists in 18 games with the Clippers this season.
He'll be on the ice Thursday (7 p.m.) against Salmon Arm as the Kings try to put a stop to a six-game losing skid.
The teams last saw each other on Jan. 10 when the Silverbacks (17-14-3-5) came away with a last-second 4-3 regulation win in Salmon Arm.
With their six-game slide, the Kings have fallen to 18-18-0-4 and remain in third place in the BCHL's Mainland Division with 40 points.
They're eight points behind second-place Chilliwack and nine back of the division-leading Langley Rivermen.
"We need to try and get back on track," said Hawes. "We need to stop using all the injuries we've experienced as a crutch. That's completely unacceptable. The expectations here are higher than that."
Thursday marks the start of a five-game homestand for Prince George. The Victoria Grizzlies visit Saturday (7 p.m.), followed by the Coquitlam Express on Sunday in a 3 p.m. matinee.
The Surrey Eagles will travel to Prince George Jan. 22-23 for a two-game series.
Prince George will be without forward Ryan Fritz, who suffered an upper body injury in the first half of Friday's game in Vernon against the Vipers.
In his place will be affiliate player Trevor Pereverzoff from the Princeton Posse.
