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WHL Moose Jaw Warriors

Warriors Acquire Parker, Schuurman from Royals

October 5, 2023 - Western Hockey League (WHL)
Moose Jaw Warriors News Release


Moose Jaw, SK - Moose Jaw Warriors general manager Jason Ripplinger has announced a trade with the Victoria Royals on Thursday.

The Warriors have acquired 19-year-old defenceman Kalem Parker, 19-year-old forward Brayden Schuurman and an eighth round pick in the 2027 WHL Prospects Draft from the Royals.

Heading to Victoria in the trade is 18-year-old forward Ben Riche, two first round picks (2024 and 2026), second round pick (2025), third round pick (2027) and fifth round pick (2026).

"With Parker, we get a top-two defenceman that will come in, and once [Denton] Mateychuk comes back, our top-four will be pretty good and Schuurman coming in, we get some secondary scoring and some more leadership as well," Ripplinger said.

"We're looking at them as two-year players, they're 19 [years old], they both could be back at 20."

Despite the trade, the Warriors retain picks in every round for all the drafts, except in 2026.

"We were able to use the assets with the [Eric] Alarie deal and also with the [Marek] Howell deal to accumulate all those draft picks," Ripplinger said.

Parker, a product of Clavet, SK, is in his fourth Western Hockey League season and was selected by the Minnesota Wild in the sixth round of the 2023 NHL Draft.

The six-foot, 189-pound defenceman has eight goals and 64 points in 157 games with the Royals. He had a career-high six goals and 38 points in 68 games last season.

"Parker is a drafted NHL defenceman, he moves the puck well, plays with grit and he brings lots of leadership to our group," Ripplinger said.

Schuurman, from Abbotsford, BC, is in his fourth season in the WHL and has played 134 career games, posting 50 goals and 95 points.

In 39 games last season, the five-foot-nine, 197-pound forward posted 16 goals and 29 points. He has one assist in four games this season.

"Schuurman works real hard, he's good on draws, he can score - at 18, he had 29 goals and last year, he missed some of the season with an injury and still scored 16," Ripplinger said.

Riche was originally a second round pick by the Warriors in the 2020 WHL Prospects Draft and played 71 games in Moose Jaw, posting eight goals and 19 points.

"It's always disappointing when you've got to trade somebody that you put a lot of time into, but for Ben, he's going to get an opportunity to play in their top-six and that's what Ben wanted," Ripplinger said.

Parker and Schuurman are expected to join the Warriors on their two-game road trip to Alberta and could make their debuts in Lethbridge on Friday night.

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Western Hockey League Stories from October 5, 2023


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