Former Texas Brahma Blair Manning to play in South Dakota

Veteran forward traded to the expansion Rapid City Rush

It had been rumoured that Blair Manning was to play in Rapid City this season but there was no confirmation until today when his name appeared on the roster on Pointstreak.com and also on the Internet Hockey Database website. In a press release today, the Brahmas announced that they had traded Manning to the Rush for future considerations.

Manning, 33, will be entering his 13th season as a professional this year.

Manning tallied 63 points (11 G, 52 A) and 60 penalty minutes, playing in all 64 regular season matches as team captain for the Brahmas last year. Manning also played in all 14 post-season matches, adding another 14 points (3 G, 11 A) to his numbers on the year.

Throughout the off-season, all indications were that Manning would not be returning to the Brahmas for the 2008-09 season and may be hanging up his skates for good.

There have been no press releases, news stories or mention of Manning's role with the Rapid City Rush on the teams' website to date. Additional information will be reported once it has been obtained.

Photo Credit: Robert Keith