The Penticton Vees found themselves in a three-way trade on Thursday night, acquiring defenseman Owen Simpson from the Coquitlam Express as part of the transaction.
Simpson, 18, was acquired by the Express from the Cowichan Valley Capitals and was shipped to the Vees immediately without playing a game for Coquitlam.
The 6’2” blueliner has played in 18 games for the Capitals in the early goings of the 2021-2022 campaign.
In exchange for Simpson, the Vees sent Luke Vardy to the Express. The defenseman enjoyed a three-point output in 13 games for Penticton.
The newest member of the Vees, Simpson, has committed to the University of Connecticut. The 18-year-old is slated to play for the Huskies after his junior career comes to a close.
Simpson played for the Boston Jr. Bruins of the National Collegiate Development Conference last season after he was originally supposed to suit up for the Pickering Panthers in Ontario. Amid the cancellation of the Ontario Junior Hockey League because of the pandemic, the Toronto-born blueliner played a year south of the border.
“The Vees would like to welcome Owen and his family to the organization, City of Penticton and South Okanagan,” the team said in a statement released on Friday morning. “The team would like to thank Luke for his contributions to the organization and the city.”
Penticton (12-2-0-0) is slated to play the Merritt Centennials (0-12-1-0) on Friday night at the South Okanagan Events Centre after the teams’ original matchup on Nov. 17 was postponed due to flooding in the Merritt area.
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