Kitchener Rangers acquire rights to prospect in another deal with Brampton Steelheads
Posted Sep 5, 2024 04:26:31 PM.
Last Updated Sep 6, 2024 01:31:25 PM.
The Kitchener Rangers are gearing up for the 2024-25 regular season, and they’ve made another big-time deal.
On Thursday, the Rangers made a trade with the Brampton Steelheads, acquiring the rights to Adam Valentini in exchange for Kitchener’s 15th round pick in 2028, along with conditional second, third, and fourth round picks in the same OHL Priority Selection.
Valentini was picked up by Brampton 13th overall, in the first round of the 2024 OHL Priority Selection, however, he was a no show for their training camp. The 16-year-old from Toronto committed to the University of Michigan in July, and is currently rostered by the Chicago Steel of the USHL after signing a tender agreement for the 2024-2025 season back in April.
Kitcheners latest addition to their pool of prospects stands in at 5-foot-11, and potted 31 goals with 67 points in 57 games played for the Toronto Marlboros as the top-scoring player in the Greater Toronto Hockey League.
Despite the uncertainty surrounding Valentini, and if he’ll ever wear a Rangers jersey, General Manager Mike McKenzie believes the young forward has the potential to be a star, and feels this is a deal that could pay dividends.
“In the last 10 years, we have never picked higher than 9th overall so we typically do not have access to draft elite surefire talents like Adam at the top of the draft, so we need to be creative and find alternate avenues like this,” says McKenzie.
“With the way the picks are conditioned, we feel there is little to no risk in making this decision to get an opportunity to show Adam and his family why Kitchener is such a special spot to play and develop as a player and person without handcuffing ourselves down the road.”
This is the second trade between the Rangers and Steelheads since August 6, when Kitchener sent Carson Rehkopf to Brampton in exchange for a plethora of picks,
The two teams involved in the deal will meet up on Friday night at the Aud in Kitchener for a preseason matchup with puck drop at 7pm.
