The North Bay Battalion has traded the rights to overage centre Pasquale Zito to the Windsor Spitfires, the Ontario Hockey League club announced just prior to Tuesday's overage trade deadline of 12 p.m. today.
North Bay sent Zito and its 15th-round pick in the 2025 OHL Priority Selection to Windsor for the Spitfires’ 15th-rounder in 2025, a conditional fifth-rounder in 2025 and a conditional third-rounder in 2027.
The conditional picks - both of which originally belonged to the Ottawa 67’s - will be delivered if Zito plays in the OHL this season.
North Bay acquired the Ottawa native from the Niagara IceDogs in a trade Dec. 12, 2022, for centre Michael Podolioukh and five picks, two of them conditional. They are third- and fifth-rounders, both in 2025 and belonging to the Battalion and, originally, the Kitchener Rangers respectively, due to Niagara if Zito plays this season.
Niagara acquired Zito from Windsor, which took him in the second round of the 2019 Priority Selection from the Mississauga Rebels minor midgets, in a June 30, 2022, trade. The IceDogs owe Windsor two conditional picks, fourth- and fifth-rounders, if Zito plays in an overage campaign.
The Battalion has carried the roster limit of four overagers since Nov. 10, with only centre Liam Arnsby, left winger Justin Ertel and defenceman Paul Christopoulos seeing action. With the overage trade deadline at noon Tuesday, clubs had to cut to a maximum of three overage players.
Zito played 31 games with the Troops last season, scoring seven goals and earning 20 assists for 27 points.
He became a fan favourite in his 18 playoff games where he had seven goals and nine assists for 16 points before suffering a concussion and missing the last two games of the seven-game Eastern Conference final, which was won by the Peterborough Petes.
The trade deadline for non-overagers is noon Wednesday.
