It took 18 days, five teams, four different players and several exchanges of cash, but the Estevan Bruins got the man they'd had their sights on all along on October 20. 

The Bruins have acquired former Steinbach Pistons forward Will Koop in exchange for defenseman Evan Kaufman and cash. Koop, a 20-year-old out of Winnipeg, has scored 20 or more goals in back to back seasons with the Pistons and been just about everywhere a Junior-A player can be, winning an MJHL title and Anavet Cup last year.

"When Will Koop became available he was our primary focus," said Bruins head coach and GM Chris Lewgood."He's played wing but he plays best at center in my opinion and he's exactly the type of center we needed. We needed to add a good skating, dynamic offensive minded guy who is a very sound defensive player as well."

Last year, on a powerhouse Pistons squad, Koop buried 27 goals and added 32 assists for 59 points. He scored a goal playing for Team Canada West at the World Junior-A challenge in 2016-17, and helped Steinbach to an RBC Cup appearance last year.

"We like his experience," Lewgood said. "He played for Canada West at 18 years old and although he was injured he was a big part of a team that played in the RBC Cup last year. The guy has seen it all as far as junior-A goes, and has been a good teammate. I've had nothing but positive reviews for Will Koop as a person."  

But even getting to the point of acquiring Koop was a convoluted process involving the Bruins and four other teams from three different leagues in one of the most meandering player shuffles you'll ever see, starting with former Bruin Curtis Meger requesting a trade to Lloydminster of the AJHL.

"It was a pain in the butt to be honest," said Lewgood of the hoops he jumped through to land Koop. "It's not something you want to have to go through. In September when we got the call from Curtis Meger requesting a trade specifically to Lloydminster we knew that it was going to be a challenge to get good value for him."

Although the Bruins faced a tough task, they were determined to grant Meger's request due to his record with the team. 

"Curtis being who he was, we wanted to accomodate him," Lewgood said. "It took time and a few trades, a few willing dance partners. It's not always easy to find those but in the end we got a guy who we believe is going to be one of the keys to putting our team where we need to be."

Meger went to Lloydminster in exchange for goaltender Nick Sanders, another 20-year-old with WHL experience. The Bruins then flipped Sanders to Okotoks, sending part of the package they got for him to Chilliwack in the BCHL and the other half, Kaufman, to Steinbach for the veteran Koop.

Koop could be part of the Estevan Bruins lineup as soon as Saturday night when the Bruins host the Nipawin Hawks. Puck drop is 7:30