Ryan Conrad trade boosts Whipsnakes’ championship hopes

Another year, another Whipsnakes trade before the deadline.

Maryland acquired midfielder Ryan Conrad from the Philadelphia Waterdogs on Tuesday in exchange for a 2025 second-round draft pick.

The trade came a week before the August 13th trade deadline, and on the same day Tucker Dordevic was placed on injured reserve with a jaw injury following a hit in Sunday’s win over the Boston Cannons.

While Conrad will slide into Dordevic’s spot for the time being, he’s a really good addition for the Whipsnakes in general.

He’s primarily an offensive midfielder, but expect him to be deployed on faceoff wings like the Whipsnakes have been doing with Colin Heacock and rookies Adam Poitras and Jack Koras.

That’s what made Conrad special in college at Virginia, and I expect to see more of his middle-of-the-field ability with the Whipsnakes.

Offensively, Conrad is not having his best season, shooting 14% with six points (5G, 1A) in seven games, but he’s due for positive regression as 57% of his shots are on goal.

Playing in an upgraded offense should up his production, as well. Take Heacock, for example, who shot 10% with two goals for Chrome in 2023. He’s now shooting 38% with eight goals with the Whipsnakes in 2024.

The Whipsnakes gave up a second-round pick in the 2025 College Draft, which should be a good prospect, but Conrad is a proven player who will surely contribute beyond the Whipsnakes’ playoff march this year.