Forward Marcus Pacheco was acquired by the Medicine Hat Tigers on Sunday in a trade with the Kelowna Rockets.--PHOTO COURTESY STEVE DUNSMOOR KELOWNA ROCKETS
jtubb@medicinehatnews.com@ReporterTubb
The Medicine Hat Tigers enter 2024 with a new face and looking to turn the tide.
The Tigers wrapped up the 2023 calendar year with back-to-back home losses, falling 3-1 Friday to the Swift Current Broncos and 4-2 to the Lethbridge Hurricanes on Saturday.
Medicine Hat entered the weekend off a 4-2 win in Red Deer over the Rebels on Wednesday with the same lineup, missing forwards Cayden Lindstrom and Tomas Mrsic. The difference between that win and their two losses came down to resilience and work ethic, according to captain Tyler MacKenzie.
“We went into Red Deer and we wanted to win that game a lot more, we really wanted to win that one,” MacKenzie said. “We played a full effort and we just worked harder. The last few nights our work ethic hasn’t been there. We thought it was maybe going to be easier, we were just riding the high-horse or something. But obviously we aren’t there.”
MacKenzie and Brett Calhoon scored in Saturday’s loss, Zach Zahara made 22 saves.
Sunday morning, in a move unrelated to the weekend’s record according to Willie Desjardins, Medicine Hat traded the 18-year-old Calhoon and two draft picks in exchange for 18-year-old forward Marcus Pacheco from the Kelowna Rockets.
Pacheco has two goals and five points in 14 games this season. He didn’t debut until Nov. 13 due to a lower body injury. He’s played 133 WHL games across three seasons, with 15 goals and 42 points.
The two picks going to Kelowna are a third-round selection in 2024 and a fifth-round pick in 2025. Calhoon had two goals and seven points in 29 games for the Tigers this season. He also had a goal and three points in eight games last season.
Desjardins liked Calhoon’s game and says the young forward improved a lot and will have a bigger role while playing closer to home.
“When you’re young you come in and you don’t know what to expect in the league but he got more and more comfortable as time went on,” Desjardins said. “He found himself in a situation where it was difficult for him to get out of his fourth-line role. So I think for him, it’s probably good to get an opportunity someplace else.”
Looking at his new player, Desjardins says Pacheco is someone they wanted to select in the 2020 draft and missed out on by a couple spots, he went 49th and Medicine Hat selected Shane Smith 51st.
“We always believed he had a high-end offensive side to his game so we’re hoping he can find it here and we’re hoping he can get back to where he was in his draft year,” Desjardins said.
“He has good speed and good skill, we want to be a fast team, that’s important when we play our best, to play with speed. Losing Brayden Boehm hurt us. So we’re kind of looking to maybe replace a little bit of that (speed) and some skill to go with it.”
The Edmonton product is excepted to be in the Medicine Hat lineup tonight when they host the Rebels. Desjardins says his acquisition doesn’t change any plans for the Tigers heading into the Jan. 10 trade deadline.
Desjardins couldn’t provide an update on the status of Lindstrom (upper body) or Mrsic (illness) after missing their third straight games with day-to-day ailments.
Heading into the Red Deer matchup, MacKenzie says there isn’t a new team outlook with the calendar flipping over and says it’s all part of that second-half preparation for playoffs.
“We have to come ready to work, we have to get a reality check and take a hard look in the mirror each and every one of us and make sure we attack Tuesday with a different mindset,” MacKenzie said.
The Tigers finish the 2023 calendar year with a record of 39-22-5, a record and group of players Desjardins is proud of.
“A lot of guys did things above expectations, it’s a really good group,” Desjardins said. “A lot a lot of guys trained really hard in the summer to give themselves a chance to be good this year. Our guys care every night, some nights you don’t win, but it doesn’t mean you don’t care, and I’m proud of that group. They’re really good young men and I think we put a lot into it. I’m pretty happy with what they’ve done.”
