The Merritt Centennials announced Wednesday that 20-year-old defenseman Malik Kaila has been traded to the Coquitlam Express for future considerations.
“This trade was a hard one for me. Malik was our captain last year and has been a great Centennials player during his career,” said Cents GM and Head Coach Joe Martin. “However, we had too many 1996-born players and now Malik gets a fresh start and can strictly focus on his final year of junior hockey to help him attain a scholarship. Malik is a true gentleman. On behalf of our entire organization, thank you to Malik and his parents who never missed a game, they will always be Centennials in our eyes.”
Kaila played 54 regular season games with Merritt last year, posting eight assists and 51 penalty minutes. The Squamish native was recruited by the Centennials from the Vancouver NW Giants of the BC Major Midget League in 2013. Kaila has appeared in 131 career BCHL games in Merritt, scoring 20 points (one goal, 19 assists) along with 161 penalty minutes. He also appeared in four Fred Page Cup playoff games with the Centennials in 2014.
Kaila served as Cents captain in 2015-16 and was also named the team’s Most Dedicated Player at the 2016 post-season awards.
