Following in the skate blades of fellow Top 10 mainstays Ryan Spooner and Craig Cunningham, defenseman Ryan Button was traded on Monday in a move that could give him a better shot at gaining some postseason experience in juniors.
Button was the centerpiece of a deal between the Prince Albert Raiders and the Seattle Thunderbirds in the Western Hockey League, with Button heading to Seattle for center Charles Wells and a first-round pick in this year's import draft.
"We are excited to add Ryan Button to our team right now as we are in a race for the playoffs," Seattle general manager Russ Farwell said in a statement on the team's web site. "Our blue line was a key area we had hoped to improve. Ryan is an experienced defenseman that will also help us offensively."
The Raiders never made the playoffs in Button's first three seasons in Prince Albert, and they are just 18-23-2-2 again this year. Seattle isn't that much better at 17-17-4-4, but the Thunderbirds are seventh in the Western Conference and are in a better position to finally give Button a taste of postseason action.
Button, a third-round pick by the Bruins in 2009, should help them in that quest as he is a solid two-way defender who should get more offensive opportunities in Seattle. And, an exposure to playoff intensity would only help his development, so the Bruins should be happy with Button's move as well.
Button could also be on the move in our Top 10 Prospects list, which has a new opening with Matt Bartkowski called back up to the big club on Friday. To find out where Button is ranked this week, and how the rest of the Top 10 shakes out, read on.
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Last week: 1 1. Jordan Caron, LW/RWAfter scoring his first AHL goal last week, Caron added two more in one game this week. He also added an assist to factor in all three Providence goals in a 5-3 loss to Binghamton on Sunday, and also had an assist in a 2-1 overtime loss at Wilkes-Barre/Scranton on Saturday. After managing just 0-3-3 totals in nine games in December, Caron has 3-3-6 totals in his first five games in January.
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Last week: No. 2 2. Jared Knight, C/RWKnight keeps piling up the points, collecting three assists in a 6-4 win at Sault Ste. Marie. He didn't score in London's three other games, but did have the only goal in the shootout in the final round to lift the Knights to a 5-4 win at Sarnia on Thursday. Knight has 16-27-43 totals and is a plus-5 with 25 penalty minutes in 39 games this year.
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Last week: No. 3 3. Ryan Spooner, CSpooner came back to haunt his old club, collecting a goal and two assists to lead Kingston to a 7-4 win at Peterborough on Thursday. Spooner also had a power-play goal in a 4-2 win over Owen Sound and now has 22-17-41 totals and is a minus-5 in 36 games.
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Last week: No. 4 4. Joe Colborne, CColborne got his week off to a good start, scoring the opening goal and eventual game-winner in a 3-0 win over Manchester last Friday, but he didn't have any other points in the final two games of the weekend. Colborne has just one point in five January games, falling to third on the team in scoring with 9-11-20 totals in 37 games.
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Last week: No. 7 5. Ryan Button, DButton had an assist in his first game with Seattle, but it must have felt like he never left Prince Albert as the Thunderbirds fell 7-1 at Tri-City. In 45 games this season, Button now has 3-21-24 totals and is a minus-7 with 31 penalty minutes.
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Last week: No. 5 6. Max Sauve, C/LWSauve continues to struggle in January, as he had no points in all three games to extend his point-less streak to six games. He's also a minus-3 in that span, leaving him even with 7-3-10 totals in 18 games this season.
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Last week: No. 6 7. Jamie Arniel, CArniel has also struggled of late. He did manage an assist against Manchester last Friday, but that is his only point in the last six games, and he is a minus-4 over that stretch. Arniel still leads Providence with 14-11-25 totals and 124 shots in 36 games.
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Last week: No. 9 8. Yury Alexandrov, DAlexandrov chipped in an assist in Friday's win at Manchester, but had no points and no shots in the final two games of the weekend. Overall, he now has 5-8-13 totals and is a minus-4 in 35 games in his first season in North America.
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Last week: Unranked 9. Zach Hamill, CAfter a long absence, Hamill finally returns to the Top 10. He had a slow start to his third season in Providence, but the 2007 first-round pick (8th overall) has put it together of late. He's riding a six-game point streak, going 1-8-9 and a plus-4 in that span. Overall, he's second on the P-Bruins in scoring with 2-21-23 totals and is one of the few Providence players who's a plus this year at plus-2 in 34 games.
- 10
Last week: No. 10 10. Craig Cunningham, CCunningham has taken well to his new home, posting 4-2-6 totals in his first six games with Portland since being traded from Vancouver. He remains in the top 10 in scoring in the WHL, as he's now tied for ninth in the league with 14-38-52 totals in 42 games. Cunningham had points in all three games he played this week, with a goal in a 2-1 win over Seattle, an assist in a 5-4 win against Everett and another assist in a 4-3 loss to Spokane.
