It has been a roller coaster start to 2025 for newly acquired Battalion forward Zach Wigle.
The Oakville, Ont., product, who turns 21 on January 12, is making the adjustment to his new home to start the new year.
On Sunday, North Bay acquired the overage forward along with Parker Vaughan and four conditional OHL Priority Selection picks from the Barrie Colts for right winger Anthony Romani and overage left winger Owen Van Steensel.
"It was an emotional couple of days, but luckily I did kind of see this coming as I had seen the rumours and talked to our general manager in Barrie a couple of weeks ago so it was not right out of the blue," said Wigle during Wednesday's media conference.
"When the actual trade did happen it all moved really quickly. There were some tears, some sadness, leaving the billets that I had been there for three and a half years, leaving the team that I got drafted by but the transition has been pretty easy."
See related: Battalion make blockbuster trade with Colts
Aside from the trade winds, Wigle was also working on an NCAA hockey commitment over the holidays. Just prior to the trade, Wigle committed to join the NCAA Division I Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT) for the upcoming season.
"Life has definitely been stressful for the last month, month-and-a-half trying to figure out the best path forward for me talking to schools," he said.
"It is amazing now that we get this opportunity and I feel so lucky this year as the change could not have come at a better time for me.
"The rest of the year kind of feels like a bonus because I get to play hockey at RIT after this," Wigle said recognizing the groundbreaking November change that now allows major junior players in Canada to move south to play NCAA hockey in the fall.
Wigle, along with Parker Vaughan, will make their Battalion debuts on Thursday night at Memorial Gardens as the Troops host the Kingston Frontenacs
Adam Dennis, Battalion president and director of hockey operations, sees Wigle as a player who is tough to play against and he is excited to see Wigle bring those qualities to the Troops.
“He very much has a lot of the attributes that we look for in our Battalion," said Dennis.
"The one thing that’s really going to be helpful is we’ve been looking for someone to take on the centre position higher up in the lineup, and he’s a natural at that.”
Wigle, who has six goals and 16 assists totalling 22 points in 36 games, suggested he’s a defensively responsible pivot who can be an offensive threat.
“I think I’m a 200-foot centreman, pretty much through and through," he said.
"I broke into the league as a defensive forward. As a ninth-round pick, I was never really given too much opportunity in Barrie and really had to fight for any spot in the lineup that I could. Thankfully, my offensive game has grown a little bit over the last few years, but I still pride myself on being that 200-foot guy.”
Not done yet
While the North Bay Battalion sits outside of a playoff spot as the OHL trade deadline of January 10 looms, the Battalion brass believe the recent trade has not closed the door on another playoff run.
Ryan Oulahen, Battalion head coach, does not think fans should think the Troops are simply playing for a top-four pick in the OHL draft and an early start to spring.
"You just look at some of the pieces and players that come back in the return, not only just in this trade but we are starting to get healthy. We feel like our team has gotten better in the last couple of days and I think that's reason to believe in that.
"We have a lot of work to do, there is no doubt, I think we are five points out right now, we have a really tough schedule ahead but we do feel in our last five games we have been right there with some of the best teams in this league. We feel that if we can provide our best hockey we have a chance to win every single night."
Pazii return
As part of the hope for a push in 2025, Oulahen noted that Ihnat Pazii will return to the lineup Thursday for the first time since he sustained an upper-body injury on October 11, 2024, in Erie.
The 18-year-old Pazii has only two assists in six games so far this season after the Kharkov, Ukraine product netted nine goals and 15 assists for 24 points in his rookie season last year with the Battalion.
Fronts test
As part of that tough schedule, the Troops will entertain the Kingston Frontenacs on Thursday night at Memorial Gardens (7 p.m.).
"We kind of dread watching some of our games against them this year," admitted Oulahen.
"They have been a team among any other team that has had our number."
The Fronts have won all three games this season against the Troops after the North Bay squad knocked them out in five games in the opening round of the 2024 OHL Eastern Conference quarter-finals.
First round frenzy
With the acquisition of Parker Vaughan, the Battalion now have three first-round picks from the 2024 OHL Priority Selection.
Vaughan joins the Battalion's 16th overall selection, Ryder Carey, and Ryder Cali, selected 18th overall by the Soo Greyhounds. Cali was acquired in a trade in the fall of 2024 with the Greyhounds as Cali did not report to Soo Greyhounds main camp and joined the OJHL's Milton Menace after he committed to play NCAA hockey at Harvard.
"I think it's pretty exciting to have a player of his stature and to now be able to give him and some of the other young players in our team just give them each other, I guess. It's exciting to watch them grow together," said Dennis about the first-round trio.
