For Immediate Release October 1st, 2014
SURREY, BC — The Eagles were busy on the trade market Wednesday morning, acquiring a pair of import defenseman in consecutive deals with Interior Division teams, including the re-acquisition of a name that may be familiar to fans. The Eagles are happy to welcome defenseman Andy Chugg from the Salmon Arm SilverBacks, and welcome back defenseman Zane Schartz from the Trail Smoke Eaters.
To acquire Chugg, the Eagles sent Kelowna-born forward Josh Blanchard to the SilverBacks. Both the coaching staff and Josh’s former teammates wish him nothing but the best with the ‘Backs and beyond, wherever his playing career might take him.
“Josh is a kid who plays the game the right way,” says Head Coach and Director of Hockey Operations Blaine Neufeld on the deal. “He’s a hard-working two-way forward that most teams want, and that we wanted as well, but we did see an opportunity to upgrade our back-end. Our philosphy here is defensive-first and we really wanted to bolster up our back-end to make sure we have seven strong D going every single night, along with good goaltending, because from there you can progress out of your own zone a lot easier.
“By making these moves, we’ve been able to acquire two really strong defensive players who see both sides of the ice very well, and will add a lot to our group.”
Chugg, a big-bodied defenseman from Mesa, Arizona, caught the attention of the coaching staff during a game between the Eagles and the SilverBacks earlier this year. “We were able to see Andy when we played Salmon Arm at the Showcase, and we watched some video as well,” says Neufeld. “He’s a big kid, 6’4, 200 lbs. He really skates well, and we’re excited to bring him out onto our big ice. In the first five games our group has been a little tentative in terms of offensive jump, and I think he’s a player who will bring a little bit of that with the maturity to know when to do it. He skates very well and he brings a heavy shot and a great stick — all traits that you look for in a defenseman.”
They’re traits you can see in the team’s other acquisition of the day, defenseman Zane Schartz, who comes back to the Eagles from the Trail Smoke Eaters. For a new arrival, he’s already got friends in the locker room.
“Zane played here for a bit at the beginning of last season and the report that we had on him from the guys that got to know him here last year is that he’s a high-quality kid on and off the ice,” adds Neufeld. “I think he brings a lot of great qualities to our group and as a 20-year-old, he’s a player we might look for leadership out of. We want to make sure that all of the kids coming into our group understand the philosophy and the culture that we’re trying cultivate here, and from that progress into something much bigger.”
You can catch both new Eagles in action this weekend when Surrey hosts the Nanaimo Clippers at 7PM on Friday night at the South Surrey Arena, and again as the Langley Rivermen make their first trip to the SSA at 4PM on Sunday. For tickets, call 604-531-GOAL.
