Photo courtesy of WHL

By Scott Roblin

AJHL Hockey

Bandits shore up defence by signing WHL veteran Kustra

Feb 8, 2020 | 1:49 PM

BROOKS, AB – A sizable add on the back end for the Brooks Bandits on Saturday, picking up a defenceman with plenty of experience at the WHL level.

The Bandits have announced they’ve signed blueliner Jake Kustra for the remainder of the season.

Kustra comes to Brooks with 195 regular season WHL games under his belt split between the Saskatoon Blades, Victoria Royals, and Swift Current Broncos.

The 20-year-old defenceman’s last taste of action came with the Broncos, dressing for six games with Swift Current this season and posting one assist and 25 penalty minutes.

In a statement, Bandits head coach and general manager Ryan Papaioannou said Kustra will bring a number of intangibles to his group.

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“We are excited to have Jake joining our team for the last month of the regular season and heading into the playoffs,” said Papaioannou. “At this point we are in need of experience, leadership and defensive strength and Jake fills all those needs. He’s a veteran of more than 200 games of junior hockey and will bring a physical presence to our group.”

A second round pick by Saskatoon in the 2014 WHL Bantam Draft, Kustra finished his WHL career with six goals and 33 points and 285 penalty minutes.

There’s no word yet whether Kustra will be in Brooks’ lineup on Saturday night as they welcome the Whitecourt Wolverines to town, coming off an 8-4 victory over Fort McMurray on Friday.

The Bandits and Wolverines will square off at Centennial Regional Arena at 7:00 pm.