Peterborough picks up a 19-year-old D to bolster their blue line.
The Peterborough Petes have acquired blueliner Camron Hankai from the Brantford Bulldogs, the teams announced on Monday.
In return, Brantford will receive a 2028 4th and 2029 6th, both picks originally belonging to Peterborough.
Hankai, 19, has gone pointless in two games this season with the Bulldogs, his second OHL season. Last year, he recorded eight (2+6) points in 36 regular season games, and also got six postseason appearances.
The Simcoe, Ont., native was a fourth-round pick in the 2023 OHL draft by the Bulldogs (then based in Hamilton), and has worked his way up through the OJHL into becoming an OHL regular.
According to Peterborough GM and vice president Michael Oke, Hankai is a player the organization has been tracking for a while, as they now get the chance to add him to their blue line.
"Camron is a big, physical defenceman who is very tough to play against,” Oke said in a press release. “He’s someone who we’ve been tracking since his time with the Hamilton Jr. Bulldogs in his U16 season.”
Camron Hankai with the Brantford Bulldogs. (Photo: Logan Taylor/OHL Images)The 6-foot-2 defender will join a Petes team that had relatively high expectations entering the year, but have struggled across the first two weekends, sitting with a 1-4-0 record through their first five games.
In particular, the team has struggled to keep the puck out of their net, with their 23 goals against the second-worst tally in the OHL this season. This addition should help solidify the blue line a bit, and while he's not the flashiest addition, he may be what Peterborough needs.
Hankai is committed to join Bowling Green State University of the NCAA following the conclusion of his OHL career.
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