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Minnesota Wild pick Reid Duke no-show at WHL Lethbridge Hurricanes’ camp
Centre Reid Duke stuck with the Lethbridge Hurricanes in lean times during his draft season. With that checkpoint on the path to signing a NHL contract now behind him, now the Minnesota Wild-drafted centre has apparently become the latest prospect wishing to make a clean break from the struggling Southern Alberta community-owned franchise.
It is not unheard of for a player who was drafted later than anticipated to ask for a trade as he works on the next step of getting signed. The Hurricanes, who have been out of the playoffs for five years running, began camp on Thursday but Duke failed to show up.
From Pat Siedlecki (@radiopat258):
Reid Duke has NOT reported to @WHLHurricanes camp after being given 2pm deadline. GM Brad Robson says he's been suspended for not reporting.
— Pat Siedlecki (@radiopat258) August 22, 2014
Mckechnie, Yakubowski, Pilon, Laurencelle, Erkamps and now, presumably, Duke have asked out of @WHLHurricanes in the past year. #whl #yql
— Paul Kingsmith (@paulkingsmith) August 22, 2014
It feels like a hack job from afar to rehash every bit of bad publicity the community-owned 'Canes have had in past six months or so. Macoy Erkamps, the club's leading defenceman scorer last season, has also asked for a trade.
Briefly, there's been a groundswell of support for a group headed by NHL defenceman and 'Canes alumnus Kris Versteeg to buy the team. Last season saw a handful of players ask for trades, including defenceman Ryan Pilon, a promising 2015 NHL trade prospect who was sent to the Brandon Wheat Kings. Former assistant coach Brad Lukowich also filed a wrongful dismissal lawsuit against the franchise, saying his termination came after he raised concerns with team management about non-compliance with Western Hockey League policies. The suit was recently settled out of court, with the team acknowledging Lukowich was not dismissed with cause.
@smallatlarge @paulkingsmith Yep, definitely. Is he right? That's a tougher one. I think the pros find you no matter where you play.
— Dylan Purcell (@dylpurcell) August 22, 2014
In light of all that, it's understandable why a sixth-round NHL pick with a two-season window to earn a contract would want out. Duke told BTN's Kelly Friesen last season that he decided to stay on last season because the 'Canes "needed players to stick by them during this tough time. It was just the right thing to do — it’s important to stand by your team." It is a new season, though, but if the player and his handlers feel like things might not change, it's understandable why they would want a new team.
Neate Sager is a writer for Yahoo! Canada Sports. Follow him on Twitter @neatebuzzthenet.
