Pats pluck star d-man Hajek from Blades, send away Davidson

The Pats have bolstered their blue line.

The club announced on Monday they’ve traded defenceman Dawson Davidson, prospect Tristan Robins and a first round pick in 2019 for Blades defenceman Libor Hajek.

Hajek, 19, has just returned from representing the Czech Republic at the World Junior Tournament where he had a goal and seven assists in seven games. The Czechs finished in fourth place and Hajek was named one of the three best players for his country in the tournament.

For the Blades, the six feet, two inches tall, 210-pound defenceman has eight goals and has 17 assists for 25 points and adds some size to the Pats defence.

Hajek was taken in the second round of the Tampa Bay Lightning in the 2016 draft.

“We are really excited to add Libor to our club,” said Pats Head Coach and GM John Paddock. “He is among the best defencemen in our league and will be a big part of our team going forward.”

On the other side of the trade, Davidson has been with the Pats since 2016 after being obtained in a trade with the Kamloops Blazers. Robins was selected in the fourth round of the 2016 WHL Bantam Draft by the Pats. The 16-year-old is currently playing at the Rink Hockey Academy where he has 10 goals and 22 points in 17 games.

Blades GM Colin Priestner said the decision to deal Hajek was difficult, but the return was worth it.

“(Davidson’s) a guy who can play two years for us and has potential to be a 50-60 point guy from the backend,” he said.

Davidson is expected to wear #4 for the Blades when they take on the Medicine Hat Tigers at SaskTel Centre Wednesday night.

Priestner added the first round selection from the Pats could also pay huge dividends for the Blades.

“If history is an indicator, Regina’s first round pick next year has a serious chance of being a lottery pick as Memorial Cup host teams often go through a tough phase,” he said.

“We feel that gives us a good chance at selecting a star player.”

Regina currently has three Europeans on its roster including Hajek, Emil Oksanen and Egor Zamula. Each team is only allowed two, so Paddock will have some roster juggling to do before Wednesday’s game.

Paddock was unavailable for comment Monday afternoon but will address the media Tuesday.

This is the fourth trade for the Pats since returning from the Christmas break as the club looks to load up before hosting the Memorial Cup in May.