Forbes & Carmola traded to the Nanaimo Clippers

For Immediate Release:

Powell River– January 11, 2012:The Kings have acquired the rights, and signed, former Western Hockey League forward Teal Burns after a trade with the Nanaimo Clippers. Going the other way are 19 year old forward, and Nanaimo native Brenden Forbes, and defenceman Taylor Carmola.

Forbes is a 3rd year Kings veteran, who including playoffs, has played 184 career games with the Kings. He has tallied 23 goals and 70 points during his BCHL career, and has become known as an excellent defensive forward. In 35 games with the Kings this year, Forbes has scored 4 times and added 10 helpers.

“For Brenden it’s an opportunity for a kick-start. His play needs to go the next level and so I believe that this move to his hometown Clippers will give him a fresh start and an incredible opportunity to reach that next level”, notes Kings’ head coach and GM Kent Lewis. “He is an absolutely amazing person. I am hopeful and expect Brenden to do well. He’s been a warrior for us and we wish him nothing but the best.”

Taylor Carmola is in his first season with the Kings, after the Spencerport, New York native was recruited in the off-season. The 6'3, 220lb defenceman has registered 5 assists for the Kings this season in 37 games, adding 19 penalty minutes. The 19 year old defenceman plays a physical game, and was an asset on the Kings blueline.

“Taylor was brought in and immediately fit in with the group. He’s a great kid”, Coach Lewis says of Carmola. “At the end of the day, we had to give up good players to get a good player. There is no way around that. Ideally, you want to add everything without giving anything up. Unfortunately, sometimes you have to move pieces of the team in order to add the pieces you need. Taylor will have the opportunity to play a prominent role on Nanaimo’s defence. We wish Taylor nothing but the best.”

Coming back the other way, the Kings have signed forward Teal Burns. A former Grizzly and Clipper, Burns has been in the WHL for the past two seasons, skating with the Winterhawks, Giants, Raiders and Silvertips, scoring 31 points in 96 games. However, in his final season in the BCHL with the Clippers, prior to joining the Portland Winterhawks, Burns posted 56 points, including 23 goals, in 55 games for the Nanaimo side. He added 10 more points in 12 playoff games that year too.

Originally from Victoria, the 5'11, 190lb forward will be in the lineup for the Kings this weekend, as they play 3-games in 3-nights.

“Teal is going to come in and be an impact player that is going to give us a lot of depth up front. He’s going to bring us some sand paper and some skill at the same time. He excelled in this league as a youngster. He got caught up in bouncing around the WHL for a bit and is ready to get into a good routine of playing. He’s going to be the guy that the fans are going to love and he’s absolutely going to help us in our quest to be the best team in the league.”

The Kings would like to thank Brenden Forbes for his three outstanding years, and Taylor Carmola for his time with the Kings organization, and wish them the best of luck with Nanaimo.