Halifax Mooseheads acquire QMJHL Top Draft Pick Nathan MacKinnon from Baie-Comeau Drakkar
Nathan MacKinnon, the 15-year-old, first overall 2011 Quebec Major Junior Hockey League (QMJHL) draft pick, was not the only fan of the Halifax Mooseheads, the minor league team which acquired rights to the well-known centre on Wednesday, were also anticipating
his acquisition for quite a while now.
Mooseheads had to make a tough decision if they wanted to get MacKinnon on their line-up and they went through with the deal with Baie-Comeau Drakkar, and sent them forward players, Carl Gelinas, Francis Turbide and three future first-round picks.
MacKinnon could not have been happier at the trade.
"It feels awesome to be a Moosehead. I’m really excited but it’s kind of surreal to be one", MacKinnon said in an interview from Los Angeles, where he’s attending a top prospects camp.
A reason for MacKinnon’s excitement after being traded might have been because he had been following the team since he was a child. According to him, it will certainly be a whole different experience from watching them and now playing for them.
According to sources, MacKinnon was not happy at being drafted for a team he did not like, which in this situations was, Baie-Comeau Drakkar, it was also learned that since being picked as the number-one overall, he has not reported to the team for joining.
This led to team general manager Steve Ahern to initiate talks with various teams for a trade.
"We've been after him for quite a while", said Mooseheads general manager Cam Russell. "We were talking about trading for him at the draft. It didn't happen, but we stuck with it and got to the point where we had the players and picks to offer."
Russell was all praise for MacKinnon and believed that his abilities would be best used with a team he would actually like to play for.
"He's a local kid, which is always nice, but when it's a kid of his caliber it makes it even more exciting," said Russell.
Since MacKinnon, a five-foot-ten, centre player, has expressed his content with the trade, news of him signing on with Halifax Mooseheads can be expected later on in the upcoming weeks.
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