Three-Team Blockbuster Trade Brings Leavens to Atlanta

DULUTH, G.a. – The Atlanta Gladiators announced on Monday that they have traded defenseman Ben Danford to the Toledo Walleye in exchange for forward Daniel Leavens and defenseman Samuel Thibault. The Gladiators then traded Thibault to the Indy Fuel to complete the future considerations portion of the January 16th trade that brought Avery Peterson to Atlanta.

Leavens, 25, has posted 19 points (4g, 15a) in 30 games for the Toledo Walleye this season. The Thornhill, ON native amassed 51 points (15g, 36a) in 66 games last year for Wheeling, Allen and Rapid City. The second-year pro earned eight points (5g, 3a) in seven games at the conclusion of the 2016-17 season for the Wheeling Nailers after his senior season in the NCAA.  The 6-foot-1, 201-pound forward registered a career high 49 points (14g, 35a) in 38 games his final year at Robert Morris University. In 136 career games over four seasons for the Colonials, Leavens notched 108 points (40g, 68a) in 136 contests.

Danford, 29, has scored 10 points (1g, 9a) and a minus-11 rating in 24 games during an injury-plagued 2018-19 season. The Stillwater, MN native was recently called-up to the AHL’s Milwaukee Admirals but failed to appear in a game. The fifth-year pro has secured 64 points (17g, 47a) in 127 career ECHL games for Orlando and Atlanta.

Thibault, 22, is in his second pro season and boasts eight assists and a minus-four rating in 38 games with Toledo.  The Ste-Martine, PQ native was credited for nine assists in 43 games during the 2017-18 campaign for the Wichita Thunder. Thibault played three-full seasons in the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League (QMJHL) before turning pro.

The 16th season of Atlanta Gladiators hockey continues at the Infinite Energy Arena Wednesday, January 30th, against the Greenville Swamp Rabbits at 7:35pm. For ticket information, visit the official team website at www.atlantagladiators.com or call the main office line at 770-497-5100.

The Gladiators are members of the ECHL, the nation’s premier "AA" hockey league. All home games are played at the 9,119-seat Infinite Energy Arena, located just off I-85 on Sugarloaf Parkway in Duluth – where parking is always free. The Gladiators have established an unrivaled commitment to excellence, maintaining a distinctive reputation for affordable and family-friendly sports entertainment and are consistently ranked as one of the top “Things To Do” in the Atlanta area and across the North Georgia region.

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