Blades trade Molendyk to Medicine Hat for pair of players, five draft picks

The Saskatoon Blades are saying goodbye to one of its franchises best players of all-time.

Late on Monday night, the Saskatoon Blades announced that it’s trading star 19-year-old defenceman Tanner Molendyk and forward Misha Volotovskii to the Medicine Hat Tigers for 2007-born forward Hayden Harsanyi and 17-year-old defenceman Jack Kachkowski and five picks in the WHL Prospects Draft.

The five draft picks the Blades are acquiring are a 2025 first-round pick, 2025 second-round pick (via Portland), 2026 third-round pick, 2026 fourth-round pick and a 2028 fifth-round pick.

“This is one of the hardest deals we’ve ever had to make,” said Blades general manager and president Colin Priestner in a statement. “Not only did Tanner give us some of the best seasons ever played by a Blades defender, but he also almost single-handedly gives us an entire WHL Draft worth of picks back to build our future around, as well as two outstanding 17-year-old players. For these gifts, there are almost no words we can use to thank him. He’s one of the most special players we’ve ever had, and I’m so excited for him to have chance to finish his WHL career on a Tigers team loaded with high-end talent.”

“No player will be wearing the number 24 ever again for this club,” Priestner added. “Tanner set the standard that all future Blades defencemen should aspire to both on and off the ice.”

The Molendyk trade marks the second major deal Priestner has made in the last week.

On Jan. 2, the Blades sent long-time veteran Brandon Lisowsky and a 2028 fifth-round pick to the Victoria Royals for 20-year-old forward Tanner Scott and second-round draft picks in both 2025 and 2026.

The blockbuster trades come as the Blades still sit in second place in the Western Hockey League’s eastern conference.

While the trade might be hard to fathom for some considering the Blades record and their run to the east final last year, the Blades cupboard of draft picks was bare after the team went all-in last year to get big name players like Fraser Minten and Alexander Suzdalev.

Back in November in an interview with 650 CKOM, Priestner admitted it was going to be important to get those draft picks back.

“When you acquire a player like Minten and you give up a couple first-round draft picks – which we hadn’t really done in the past – you’re going to have to recoup those at some point,” Priestner said in November.

“We’ll continue to go along here and see where we stand and not just where we stand in standings, but we also have to make sure the health of our organization long-term is strong,” he added. “We don’t really want to have years where we have no first, no seconds, no thirds. That’s are really tough in the western league to overcome when eventually that draft class is going to make up probably 20 per cent of your league. We have to be really cognizant of that.”

It’s unclear at this time if the Blades are finished trading right now. The WHL’s trade deadline later this week. Priestner is scheduled to speak to the media later in the afternoon on Tuesday.

As for what players the Blades are getting in return, Priestner said he wouldn’t have made this trade without getting the talent of Kachkowski and Harsanyi.

Kachkowski is from St. Albert, Alta and suited up with the Tigers for 37 games where he’s registered eight points.

Harsanyi is from Calgary, Alta and has four points in seven games played this season.

The two are likely to make their debut for the Blades at some point on their current Alberta road trip.

Read more:

• Blades trade Brandon Lisowsky for Tanner Scott, two draft picks
• Tough decisions ahead for Blades despite strong start to season
• Saskatoon Blades: Molendyk, Lisowsky return, goalie Elliott released