Vancouver Giants’ trade for Alex Cotton gives Langley native a chance to end his WHL career close to family and friends

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Jennifer Cotton’s son returns home to finish his junior hockey career, and she admits to having trouble holding back when she first found out.

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“He calls and says he’s been traded to Vancouver and I was like, ‘Shut up, shut up, shut up,'” he recalled when he received the news last week from Alex Cotton, 20, that he had been traded from Lethbridge. Hurricanes to the Vancouver Giants and will play their home games at the Langley Events Center, which is a short drive from the family home.

“It is a wonderful feeling to have him playing here in his senior year. We are all so excited. “

Cotton, a right-hander with strong offensive skills, was a fifth-round pick in the 2020 NHL Draft by the Detroit Red Wings. Put that aside for a second, and your story has a lot of familiar pieces if you’ve been to youth hockey.

He began playing with the minor association of Langley, his hometown. He reached bantamweight and opted for the Yale Academy in Abbotsford, and his efforts at Yale led to him being selected in the fifth round, No. 99 overall, by Lethbridge in the 2016 WHL draft.

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He returned to Yale for two more seasons and then stayed with Lethbridge when he was 17 years old. He had spent much of the past three years there, until last Friday, when Vancouver acquired him by trading four draft picks and the rights to an unsigned prospect from Lethbridge.

During his time with Lethbridge, his family could take trips to Alberta to watch him play. They could wait for the path of the hurricanes to pass through BC, which comes every other season. They could visit other places where Lethbridge played. For the most part, they could watch him play by tuning in to live webcasts, as do many families and groups of friends in the WHL and other youth leagues.

“Looking online is good, but it’s not the same,” Jennifer said.

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Cotton played just one game, a 6-0 Lethbridge win over the Giants on November 17, 2019, of his first 154 in the WHL in the LEC. He has a chance to play 28 of his last 58 in the league in the LEC after the trade. That explains why her mom is so happy. She knows how lucky they are.

“As soon as the exchange was announced, our phones started freaking out with calls and texts,” Jennifer said of listening to excited family and friends.

There is also some brusqueness in all that, he admits. The Giants and Hurricanes announced the deal last Friday. The plan was for Cotton to pack all of his things in his car and drive to Langley from Lethbridge on Saturday.

The family agreed on Saturday morning that it would be better to fly. He did, and that night he watched the Giants play the Portland Winterhawks in the LEC. Defender Evan Toth, who Vancouver also acquired in a trade Friday with the Calgary Hitmen, followed suit. He had driven from Calgary on Saturday.

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“It is a total disorder right away. Alex had been in Lethbridge for four years. He was very connected to the community and very connected to his billet family, ”Jennifer said. “They become an extended family for your family. It is emotional. I know the billet family had a hard time. It’s a big change. “

There had been rumors that the Giants were interested in Cotton for a couple of seasons. General manager Barclay Parneta admits to “kicking tires”, especially last summer. He and Lethbridge GM Peter Anholt had talked about a trade since, and he says they largely bonded last Wednesday, when both he and Anholt were in Kamloops watching the Winterhawks take on the Kamloops Blazers.

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Cotton said last week that he was “surprised but not surprised to be traded,” realizing that hurricanes may be looking to build for the future this season. They were 5-8-0-0 going into action Thursday against the Brandon Wheat Kings.

Last Friday, Cotton explained that his family is “very excited about the business. And I’m also very excited. “

Cotton led all WHL defenders in scoring in 2019-20 with 67 points, including 20 goals, in 63 regular-season games with Lethbridge. He is known for his prowess in the power game. Seven of his 20 goals and 24 of his 47 assists in 2019-20 came with a man advantage

Vancouver traded the rights to defender Hunter McInnes, 16, plus a 2022 third-round pick, a 2023 fourth-round pick, a 2022 fifth-round and a 2022 sixth-round pick to Lethbridge. McInnes was a 2020 ninth-round pick who had yet to sign with Vancouver. He is a native of Nanaimo who plays academy hockey at St. George’s in Vancouver.

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