Along with death and taxes, one firm constant we've come to rely on is how rivalries and suspicion kept trade talks in the Western Lacrosse League to a low murmur.
And when it came to dealing draft picks, teams surrendered a pick as often as Donald Trump turns down a microphone.
While death and taxes remain unfortunately assured, swapping draft picks appears to be the new orange of the WLA.
New Westminster Salmonbellies’ general manager and president Dan Richardson completed his third deal of the offseason, picking up junior Bellies product Brandon Goodwin from Coquitlam for the rights to Reid Reinholdt and a fourth round draft pick at this year’s junior draft.
Goodwin, who sat out last season after registering 16 goals in 15 games in 2014 as a sophomore, adds another stick on the leftside.
New West had earlier netted the No. 2 pick overall in the 2016 draft and players Brett Dobay and Quinn Mackay in two separate moves, with an eye on accelerating their push to challenge for a WLA title.
“This is the fun time of the season where everyone is tied for first place, everyone is aiming to be the champion,” said Richardson. “To be honest we see this as a two-tier draft, where the top-four players are real impact players and we definitely feel at No. 2, we will get a player who can help us take that next step.”
Although New West grad Josh Byrne would fit the bill for the club, Burnaby jumped the queue last week and acquired the No. 1 pick overall from Nanaimo -- meaning another scenario could emerge.
Byrne is considered to be an elite sniper, while Coquitlam grad Michael Messenger can play at both ends of the floor and was dominant in the faceoff circle, winning 145 of 213 draws last year.
Also among the top talents available are 6-foot-4 sniper James Rahe and transition-type Challen Rogers. All but Byrne are righthanders.
Richardson isn’t tipping his hand, but feels the club will do well with whoever is on the table at No. 2.
“(Byrne) played well for us in the playoffs, he’s a New West guy and there’s no doubt he’s someone we’d love to have. But Messenger, Rahe and Rogers are all impact players and our scouts and I think each of them would be great additions.”
The Bellies’ 2015 season was one of ebbs and flows, with a rocket, 6-0 start followed by a mid-season stall. Just before the playoffs, the team regained its footing and pushed all the way to the WLA final, where they were swept 4-0 by the eventual Mann Cup champions from Victoria.
That they were outscored 46-26 in that final series proved to be a sticking point, and one that Richardson aims to address primarily with the second overall pick.
“We feel our club is on the upswing after a couple of years of cycling down. Our roster has gotten younger and faster, we’ve got two young, good goaltenders. Offensively, we needed some more goals down the stretch and I think that’s an area we want to shore up.”
To acquire Dobray and Mackay, both New West junior products, the Bellies sent Colton Clark and a pair of fourth round draft picks to Nanaimo. Dobray was selected with the eighth pick of the 2015 WLA draft and Mackay the 21st overall, but both chose to sit out.
Clark, a Nanaimo native, produced a goal-a-game in his one year in New West.
As part of the deal that saw them snare the first overall pick, Burnaby also acquired from Nanaimo the playing rights of Eli McLaughlin, who was taken second overall last year. It cost the Lakers the third, 10th and 17th selections in 2015, the rights to Casey Jackson and a third in 2017.
