Bees Complete Trade With Oilers

Published on July 6, 2005 under Central Hockey League (CHL)
Rio Grande Valley Killer Bees News Release


HIDALGO, TX: July 6, 2005 - The Rio Grande Killer Bees and the Tulsa Oilers of the Central Hockey League completed a trade Wednesday afternoon sending the rights of forward Joe Guenther to the Tulsa Oilers in return for the rights of goaltender Evan Lindsay.

"Evan proved last season he can lead a team to championship," said Killer Bees Head Coach and Director of Hockey Operations Tracy Egeland. "He comes highly recommended from folks within the NHL."

Lindsay is a 26-year old goaltender that was slated to be the starting goaltender for the Tulsa Oilers, but departed to the UK at the start of the season to join the Dundee Stars, where he was a teammate of Ryan Shmyr's brother Jason. The Red Deer, Alberta native helped the Stars claim the championship of the British National League Playoffs with a three-game sweep over the Guildford Flames, including a Game 1 shutout victory. Last season Lindsay appeared in 31 British National League Games, six Challenge Cup and 15 playoff games for the Stars. The Stars are the same program Daymen Bencharski played for last season prior to joining the Bees. Lindsay was a 2nd Round NHL Draft selection in 1997 by the Calgary Flames and then reentered the draft, where he was drafted again by the Montreal Canadiens in the 4th Round of the 1999 NHL Draft. He began his junior career in 95/96 with the Olds Grizzlys of the Alberta Junior Hockey League before advancing to the Western Hockey League as a member of the Tri-City Americans.

The 6'2" 200-pound netminder joined the Prince Albert Raiders from 96/97 - 99/00 and was a WHL East Second Team All-Star Team member in 1998 and 1999. He split his first professional season between the Asheville Smoke of the United Hockey League, Tallahassee Tiger Sharks of the ECHL and the Quebec Citadelles of the American Hockey League in 00/01. Lindsay appeared in 28 games with the ECHL's Mississippi Sea Wolves in 01/02 and also found playing time with the Florida Everblades and Macon Whoopee that season. His best season in North America came in 02/03 as a member of the Roanoke Express, where he posted a 21-12-3 record. He ventured across the Atlantic in 03/04 playing 37 games for the London Racers of Britain's Elite Ice Hockey League (EIHL). His North American career record is 45-36-10 in 98 games.

Guenther leaves the Killer Bees after finishing the season ranked second on the squad in points with 42 off 26 goals and 16 assists in 59 games. The Buffalo, New York native was a two-time Oakley CHL Player of the Week last season and led the Bees in goals (26), power play goals (9), game winning goals (6) and multi-goal games (6). He registered the first hat trick in Bees history on 12/28/04 against Laredo. Guenther was hot around the Holiday Season, registering 11 points in a five game span and 13 points for the month of December, but was then limited to one assist during the entire month of January. His 42 points was his second best season of his career behind his 43-point output in his rookie season of 02/03 as an ECHL All-Star split between the Baton Rouge Kingfish and the Toledo Storm.

The loss of Guenther marks a total of five players lost from last season's squad. Blaz Emersic (Lubbock) and Jason Hawes (Fort Worth) exited to complete open transactions, Jason Tessier was traded to Bossier-Shreveport and Calle Aslund returned to his native Sweden to sign a contract with Huddinge. The Bees have announced three players under contract for the 2005/2006 season with the return of Sean Gillam, Bill Newson and Darcy Smith. Media members seeking an interview with Egeland concerning the trade are encouraged to contact Chris Due 956-843-5656.

The Killer Bees will swarm the Dodge Arena again in October, as the Killer Bees are currently preparing for their third season. Season tickets and corporate opportunities are now available by calling the Killer Bees office at (956) 843-7825. For more information concerning Killer Bees hockey, please visit their website at www.killerbeehockey.com.

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Central Hockey League Stories from July 6, 2005


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