Hamilton Bulldogs

MONTREAL, QC - Montreal Canadiens General Manager Bob Gainey announced the acquisition of forward Scott Gomez along with forward Tom Pyatt and defenceman Michael Busto from the New York Rangers, in return for forward Chris Higgins and defencemen Ryan McDonagh, Pavel Valentenko and Doug Janik.

Gomez, 29, will be entering his 10^th NHL season in 2009-2010. Last season, the 5-foot-11, 200-pound centre had 58 points (16 goals, 42 assists) in 77 games with the Rangers. As a member of the New Jersey Devils for seven seasons and the New York Rangers for the last two seasons, Gomez recorded 578 points (148 goals, 430 assists) in 706 games. The native of Anchorage, Alaska was drafted in the 1^st round, 27^th overall by the New Jersey Devils in the 1998 NHL Entry Draft.

Busto, 23, played for the ECHL's Charlotte Checkers for the past two seasons. In 2008-2009, the 6-foot-1, 210-pound defenceman registered 11 points (three goals, eight assists) along with 41 penalty minutes in 54 games. The native of Burnaby, British Columbia earned 16 points (four goals, 12 assists) and 10 penalty minutes in 48 games with the Checkers in 2007-2008.

Pyatt, 22, played last season with the Hartford Wolf Pack of the AHL earning 37 points (15 goals, 22 assists). The 6-foot, 185-pound forward won a gold medal with Team Canada at the 2006 and 2007 World Junior Championships. The Thunder Bay, Ontario native was a 4^th round, 107^th overall selection of the Rangers in the 2005 NHL Entry Draft.

Higgins, 26, earned 23 points (12 goals, 11 assists) along with 22 penalty minutes in 57 games with the Canadiens in 2008-2009. The native of Smithtown, New York played two seasons with the Bulldogs from 2003-2005 earning a total of 99 points (49 goals, 50 assists) along with 51 penalty minutes. The 6-foot, 199-pound left wing was drafted in the 1^st round, 14^th overall by Montreal in the 2002 NHL Entry Draft.

McDonagh, 20, played last season with the University of Wisconsin recording 16 points (five goals, 11 assists) and 59 penalty minutes in 36 games. The 6-foot-1, 203-pound defenceman was drafted in the 1^st round, 12^th overall by Montreal in the 2007 NHL Entry Draft.

Valentenko, 21, competed in four games with the Bulldogs this season earning two assists before resuming his career in Russia with the Moscow Dynamo of the KHL, where he played in eight games posting an assist. The 6-foot-2, 202-pound defenceman played in 57 games for Hamilton in 2007-2008 registering 16 points (one goal, 15 assists) along with 58 penalty minutes. The native of Moscow, Russia was drafted by the Canadiens in the 5^th round, 139^th overall at the 2006 NHL Entry Draft.

Janik, 29, played in two games for Montreal earning two penalty minutes and in 13 games for the Dallas Stars recording one assist and two penalty minutes in 2008-2009. The 6-foot-2, 210-pound defenceman competed in 18 games for the 'Dogs earning five assists and 10 penalty minutes as well as four games for the Rockford IceHogs posting two assists and four penalty minutes. The native of Agawam, Massachusetts also played in six playoff contests with Hamilton registering seven penalty minutes. 

2009-2010 Hamilton Bulldogs season tickets are now available!  For more information, call 905-529-8500 or visit www.hamiltonbulldogs.com.