One day after trading for offensive-minded midfielder Harry Shipp, the Seattle Sounders have added more attacking pedigree.
The Sounders acquired forward Will Bruin, 27, from the Houston Dynamo on Friday in exchange for targeted and general allocation money.
A bruising and powerful striker, the 6-foot-2, 195-pound Bruin had spent his entire six-year career in Houston, amassing 50 goals and 20 assists in 178 regular-season games and another six goals in 13 postseason matches. He tallied four times and added three assists in 18 starts in 2016.
The St. Louis, Mo., native scored 46 goals in his first five seasons, the sixth-most in Major League Soccer in that span. The Sounders will look for production up front in head coach Brian Schmetzer’s 4-2-3-1 formation, especially with the club not exercising its 2017 option on Nelson Valdez. The move for Bruin also gives Schmetzer the option to employ Jordan Morris on the wing like Schmetzer did in the late stages of 2016.
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“Will is a known commodity as a consistent goalscorer that we believe can immediately bolster our attack,” said Sounders General Manager and President of Soccer Garth Lagerwey. “Coupled with yesterday’s acquisition of Harry Shipp, we’re excited about the impact that these two young and proven players can bring next season.”
Bruin led the Dynamo to back-to-back MLS Cup appearances in 2011-12. He also received an invitation to the United States national team camp in 2013 and has two career caps.
The Dynamo selected the Indiana University product with the No. 11 pick in the 2011 MLS SuperDraft. Bruin played three seasons in Bloomington and scored 18 goals in his final campaign en route to being named a semifinalist for the MAC Hermann trophy.
