The Adirondack Thunder were part of a three-team trade that was struck in the early hours of Monday evening. The deal sent forward Alex Tonge and defensemen Gabriel Verpaelst to the Norfolk Admirals in exchange for forward Phillipe Hudon and Alex Jaeckle. Hudon would end up being flipped to the Cinncinati Cyclones in exchange for John Edwardh.
Edwardh Back In Red And White
The Calgary, Alberta returns to the Thunder in Glens Falls, New York after putting up 27 goals and 32 assists for 59 points in 53 games last season. So far this season, Edwardh has scored 11 goals and 12 assists for 22 points. He managed to record these numbers having played 33 total games. Edwardh, 24, will make a huge impact offensively to Adirondack who has had issues scoring at several points through the course of the season. The Thunder are currently averaging 2.92 points per games through 40 games played.
Jaeckle basically is replacing the likes of Gabriel Verpaiest on the Thunder blue line. He’s put up three goals and five assists for a total eight points in 33 games. Jaekle, 25, stands at 6’3, 198lbs and don’t be fooled by this year’s numbers as the St. Clair Shores defensemen had 117 penalties minutes in 82 games during his NAHL career.
What Tonge And Verpaelst Bring To Norfolk
Tonge joins his third team this season after being acquired earlier this year by the Florida Everglades. He was having a very successful season after being acquired by the Thunder and was seeing time on the top line. The Kingston, ON native had a goal and eight assists for nine points in 14 games with Adirondack. So far this season, Tonge has three goals and 11 assists for 14 points in 27 games played. I expect him to continue to be the playmaker he was in Adirondack to continue in Norfolk.
Getting rid of Gabriel Verpaelst is a solid move for Adirondack, especially with the addition of Alex Jaeckle who now joins the Thunder. Verpaelst, 26, hasn’t done much for Adirondack and has been more of their physical defensemen which has been productive in games where they’ve needed someone to drop the gloves. He picked up three goals and six assists for nine points registered in 33 games played. Adirondack had recently put Verpaelst on the team’s injured reserve, so it’s nice to see that Verpaelst may see some more playing time moving forward now that he’s with the Admirals.