Peterborough Petes trade for Akil Thomas just days after world junior heroics

Jan 9, 2020 | 10:35 AM

PETERBOROUGH, Ont. — The Canadian junior team’s golden goal scorer is the centre piece of a major deal just prior to the Ontario Hockey League trade deadline.

The Peterborough Petes have acquired centre Akil Thomas, who broke a 3-3 tie with Russia with the winning goal late in Sunday’s world junior championship final in the Czech Republic, from the Niagara IceDogs.

Niagara sends four draft picks and 17-year-old winger Cam Butler to the Petes for Thomas, a 20-year-old Los Angeles Kings prospect from Toronto.

The Petes (25-11-2-1) have the second-best record in the OHL’s Eastern Conference, trailing only the red-hot Ottawa 67’s (29-6-0-0), who have six games in hand.