Mohegan — The New England Black Wolves traded forward Pat Saunders to the Buffalo Bandits on Tuesday in exchange for a second-round pick in the 2017 National Lacrosse League Entry Draft.

Saunders had 10 goals and 15 assists in eight games for the Black Wolves. Originally selected in the sixth round of the 2008 entry draft by the Rochester Knighthawks, Saunders joined the franchise in Philadelphia in 2012 and followed the team to Connecticut in 2015.

He was coming off the best year of his career in 2016 when he had 44 goals and 32 assists for 76 points.

"We would like to thank Pat Saunders for all he did for this organization, not just in New England but in Philadelphia," Black Wolves general manager Rich Lisk said in a statement released by the team. "Pat is a huge success story and a story in perseverance. ... He went on to become a big part of our success here in New England. We wish Pat nothing but continued success in the NLL."

Lisk added, "This deal is more complex than just the second round pick we received from Buffalo. We needed to take into consideration the make-up of our team, a push for the playoffs, and building for the future. Adding Daryl Veltman, a veteran presence with an extremely high lacrosse IQ, helps us down the stretch and having a couple of picks in the 2017 draft will help set the foundation for future years."