The Nanaimo Clippers have shored up their top six forwards with the acquisition of Keighan Gerrie from the USHL for future considerations. Gerrie is a 2001 born forward who is committed to the NCAA Division 1 program at University of Miami Ohio for the 2021-2022 season. He spent last year in the USHL playing for the Waterloo Black Hawks but decided to return to Canada to play Junior A hockey due to COVID-19 restrictions. In his last year of Junior A hockey in Canada (2018-2019), he played for the Thunder Bay North Stars of the SIJHL where he was the leading scorer in the entire league with 102 points in 54 games, including 41 goals and 61 assists. In the same year, he was the playoff MVP for the SIJHL (19 points in 13 games) along with making the First All-Star Team, all while leading his team to a League Championship. In the previous year, he was the SIJHL rookie of the year and made the Second All-Star Team.
In 2019, he was the 13th overall draft pick in the USHL entry draft. He also was ranked 129th overall by the NHL Central Scouting for the 2019 NHL entry draft. In 2020, he was a first round draft pick in the NAHL Supplement Draft. Previous to that, he was drafted by the London Knights of the OHL in 2017 but decided to go the college route instead of Major Junior.
Gerrie hails for Thunder Bay, Ontario, a hockey town, which may account for his high-level skill that will add a much-needed boost to the Clippers’ offense. Colin Birkas, Associate Coach, noted; “In my days in Ontario I became familiar with Keighan. There’s no question he can score goals at all levels. He has great offensive instincts. We are a little thin in the 2001 age group and thought we needed to bring in some older support to help with our struggling offence and power-play. Keighan will be the perfect addition to round out our highly talented team.”
Head Coach/GM, Darren Naylor, said; “Keighan is a player we targeted to come in and fill a needed offensive void. He has produced at every level and will be a scorer in the BCHL. Keighan is a hard working player who is always hungry for the puck and is a power play specialist, something we definitely need. I see this acquisition in the same light as last season’s addition of Steven Agriogianis, who came in and our team’s offense instantly ignited.”
