It was a bust week for the Totems as they made a couple of moves as they build towards their appearance at the USPHL College Showcase in Las Vegas next month. 

In the first move, Seattle sent disgruntled forwards, Theo Granlund and Edvin Hedberg to the Fresno Falcons in exchange for cash. Later that day, the Totems announced they had signed defenseman, Carl Hjort, who was playing in Sweden to start the season.

According to Totems GM, Michael Murphy, trading Granlund and Hedberg was necessary to keep the team moving forward. “Whenever a player comes to me and says he isn’t happy here, I immediately look to move him. There’s no point dragging things like this out. Both players felt they should be higher up in the lineup and their production said otherwise.” After last season, we vowed that we wanted to not only have a talented team, but a group of positive kids. It’s not that these guys were bad, it’s just they weren’t going to be happy where they were slotted in. Instead of battling to move up the lineup, they simply decided they wanted a change of scenery. Fresno was the one team that stepped up, so a deal was made."

In signing defenseman Carl Hjort, the Totems bolster their blueline with another monster. "Hjort (6’2” 210lbs.) is a steady blueliner who is reminiscent of another Swede, Douglas Murray, who played for, most notably, the San Jose Sharks,” said Coach Butters.” He will provide us with some depth at that position and will see action right away. 

When asked what impact losing the forwards will have on the Totems, Coach Butters said it may have mixed results. “Whenever a trade is made, some players are upset and others may actually see it as an opportunity. I see that the case here. Hedberg was a happy-go-lucky kid. He always had a smile on his face and he will be missed. That said, we move have two slots and ice time waiting for someone to step up and fill.” When asked if playing with the minimum line allotment of forwards would be a long term thing, Coach Butters simply responded, “What do you think?"