The Fort Erie Meteors have loaded up for a run at Golden Horseshoe regular season championship.
The Meteors picked up sniper Sam Tonelli from the Port Colborne Sailors in exchange for young forwards Brody Coe and Cam Golovin.
Tonelli had 11 goals and 28 points in 29 games for the Sailors.
“High speed, high energy, some offence that maybe we’re missing sometimes,” Fort Erie general manager/coach Nik Passero said when asked about Tonelli. “We’re a team that defends hard but sometimes we go through stretches where we have trouble scoring and I think Sam will fit right in and help us with that.”
Coe, 17, had two goals and four points in 27 games while Golovin had nine goals and 16 points in 31 games.
Passero admitted it was hard to part with Coe and Golovin.
“It was a feeling I didn’t really enjoy and something I don’t want to go through very often. I want to thank Brody and Cam everything they gave to our program. They are both high-end character kids with bright futures,” he said.
The Meteors also got good news on the goaltending front with the return of Charlie Burns from the Niagara IceDogs.
Burns had a 2.32 goals-against average and .932 save percentage with the Mets before being called up by Niagara where he only saw one period of action. The IceDogs traded his rights to the Erie Otters Tuesday for a 10th-round draft pick.
“It’s a great phone call to get,” Passero said. “He’s beloved by his teammates. He brightens up the locker room when he walks in and it doesn’t hurt that he stops everything that goes to him. We’re happy to have Charlie back. We’re going to help him develop here in the next couple of months so he can be in Erie full time next year.”
To make room for Burns, Passero dealt goaltender Logan Slou to Cambridge of the Mid-West Conference.
“He wanted to be a starter and Cambridge had an opening and we made it work for Logan. He was another kid who helped us in a stop-gap when we needed it. We expected him to be here all year. Really appreciate Logan.”
The Mets also picked up 17-year-old forward Georgy Toroptsev, who had a goal in 18 games with the Otters this year.
“He has some OHL pedigree and hopefully he can fit right in,” Passero said.
The Meteors, 24-8, are five points behind league-leading Caledonia with two games in hand. Fort Erie visits St. Catharines Friday. The Falcons are tied in point with the Meteors but have played one more game.
Passero is pleased with his club as they head into what will surely be a tight battle for top spot.
“I think the two last deadlines we’ve kind of got snakebitten and weren’t able to make the moves we needed but things fell into place this year. We’re starting to be a team players want to come to which is nice. Makes my job a little bit easier.”
