Until last week, Brandon Kennedy had never been traded during his young hockey career, but that's what happened to the 18-year-old defenceman last Thursday.

Kennedy was dealt to the Moose Jaw Warriors from the Lethbridge Hurricanes on Thursday and the team actually picked him up on their way to Cranbrook, BC to start their U.S. Division road trip.

“There was some mixed emotions, obviously, I was sad to leave the team that I've been with for a while, but excited for the new opportunity,” said Kennedy, who has now played two games with the Warriors.

The native of Delta, BC was a bit shocked by the trade after spending the past two seasons with the Hurricanes. In 22 games last season, Kennedy had one goal and two points and he's picked up two assists in 20 games so far this season.

Kennedy didn't know anyone on the Warriors' roster when he hopped on the bus last Thursday, but he said the team has been very welcoming.

“The guys settled me in pretty quick and made me feel like part of the team right away, so that was good,” he said.

“It might have been better to join the team on a long road trip like this, make friends better, have roommates, meet all the guys and sit down with them more often instead of just seeing them at the rink, I'm with them all the time now, so it's good.”

Warriors' general manager Alan Millar described Kennedy as a prototypical stay-at-home defenceman after the trade. Kennedy says he's going to try to bring a simple game to the Warriors' back end.

“I like to move the puck up and join the rush,” he said. “I think I can bring lots to this team and I want to show them that I can.”

With a couple of games under his belt, Kennedy feels like he fits in well with the team.

“We got a pre-game skate in before the first game and they showed me everything, taught me what their systems are and I got use to it pretty easy,” said Kennedy.

The Warriors are continuing their U.S. Division road trip with four games in five nights, starting on Tuesday against the Tri-City Americans.