GELINAS TRADE OFFICIAL

It took close to 24 hours to become official, but Saint John Sea Dogs director of hockey operations Mike Kelly has officially traded goaltender Marc-Antoine Gelinas to the Shawinigan Cataractes. In return, the Sea Dogs receive a sixth round draft pick in the 2011 QMJHL entry draft.

The deal was first reported by blogger Steve Turcotte and then confirmed hours later by RDS in Quebec.

Gelinas became the odd man out when Saint John acquired goaltender Marco Cousineau from the PEI Rocket last week. Gelinas is ineligible to play for the Sea Dogs because they have three 20-year old players.

The Sea Dogs acquired Gelinas from Gatineau on August 24, 2009 in a deal that will go done as one of the best in franchise history. Not only does the net minder sit second in the league in wins with a record of 21-5-0, he also captured 15 of the Sea Dogs' 22 consecutive victories.

Gelinas has some of the best stats in the league among starters this season. He has a 2.56 goals against average and 0.913 save percentage. In 27 games played in, he has two shutouts.

The Quebec native is a definition of a journey man, not spending more than one full season with any of the four clubs he has been with since 2006. His stops include Val-d’Or, PEI, Gatineau, and the Port City.

Shawinigan sits third in the Telus Central division with a record of 18-17-2-3.

The QMJHL trade deadline is Thursday at 1:00 pm AST.