THREE PATS ATTENDING NHL DEVELOPMENT CAMPS
Regina, Sask. — Regina Pats 18-year-old goaltender Matthew Kieper has been invited to Calgary Flames development camp, while graduating Pats Ryker Evans and Logan Nijhoff will also attend NHL development camps, with the Seattle Kraken and Anaheim Ducks, respectively.
Kieper, 18, is one of four goaltenders that will be participating in Flames camp beginning on Tuesday, July 12 at 7 Chiefs Sportsplex. The Winnipeg, Man. product completed his rookie season in 2021-22, making 35 appearances, going 16-14-1-0, while posting a 3.68 goals-against average and a .876 save percentage with one shutout.
The 6-foot-1, 181 lb. netminder took home the Hub Bishop Most Sportsmanlike Player Award at the Pats 2021-22 end of the season awards ceremony. Kieper was drafted in the third round by the Pats in the 2019 WHL Prospects Draft out of the Winnipeg Sharks U15 program, where he won both WAAA U15 Goalie of the Year and the WAAA U15 Most Valuable Player.
Evans, a second-round pick of the Kraken in 2021 (35th overall), is one of 31 players invited to Kraken development camp, which begins on Tuesday, July 12 as well. The 20-year-old registered a career high 14 goals, 47 assists and 61 points in 63 games for the Pats this season, ranking fifth among WHL defencemen in power play assists (24), seventh in points and eighth in assists.
The 6-foot, 191 lb. defenceman took home his third straight Charles Johnston Memorial Trophy for the Pats Top Defenceman this season, and was also named the WHL Player of the Week and to the CHL Team of the Week on November 1, 2021. Born in Calgary, Alta., Evans leaves the organization as one of the top Pats’ defencemen this century, and now ranks 13th in franchise history in assists amongst defencemen (106) and 19th in points (131).
Nijhoff, 21, signed a contract with the AHL’s San Diego Gulls in April and will now attend the Anaheim Ducks development camp this week.
The left-shot centre from Comox Valley, B.C. finished his fifth and final season with the Pats with career highs in goals (25), assists (24) and points (49) in 57 games, while scoring eight goals over the final six games of his WHL career. Nijhoff was named the Pats unsung hero for the second straight season. He also won 58.3% of his face-offs this season, which was the third-highest in the WHL, while his 818 face-off wins were the fifth most in the league.
Over the course of his career, Nijhoff played in 231 regular season games with the Pats, scoring 123 points (61G-62A), while winning 2,165 face-offs, finishing with a 53.4% face-off win percentage.
(Regina Pats Communications/Photo: Keith Hershmiller Photography)
