Gordon takes shot at MHL glory
Former Truro Bearcats forward lands with Fredericton Red Wings in trade
For his final few months of junior A hockey, Matt Gordon imagined a return to his original Maritime Hockey League team, the Truro Bearcats.
As the recent trade deadline approached, he even contacted Truro assistant coach Shayne Campbell to see if the Bearcats might be interested in the 20-year-old forward, who was stuck on a losing team in the Miramichi Timberwolves.
A trade back to Truro didn’t transpire, but Gordon was still dealt at the deadline as the Fredericton Red Wings acquired him from Miramichi in exchange for the rights to major junior forward Nick Blagden and a third-round pick in the 2023 MHL draft.
“It’s a great place and a great team,” Gordon said of Fredericton.
“I couldn’t be happier with the way things turned out for me, really. I was definitely looking to get a fresh start somewhere and hopefully play some playoff hockey.”
Gordon envisioned that destination might have been Truro, where he spent the first half of the 2019-20 season with the Bearcats before being called up to the QMJHL’s Cape Breton Eagles. His father Stephen, a Sydney Mines native, was a member of the senior Truro Bearcats when they won the Allan Cup national championship in 1998.
“I loved it in Truro,” said Matt Gordon, who grew up in Prince Edward Island and Ontario. “With my dad playing in Truro before me, it made it extra special. And having some family around there too, it was really nice.
“But once I went to Cape Breton, I had the exact same thing, with family there too. So, it was definitely an easy transition to leave Truro, such a great spot, and go to Cape Breton, which is another great spot.”
On his mother’s side, Gordon has family connections in Shubenacadie. And his oldest sister, now living in Halifax, resided in Truro when he was a Bearcat.
Now, as Gordon embarks on a new journey in Fredericton, his other sister is in the same city as a student at St. Thomas University.
Ex-pro Kyle McAllister, a former St. Thomas captain and coach, is Fredericton’s coach and GM.
Gordon was home in Kitchener, Ont., during the extended MHL break when his father told him about the trade.
“I couldn’t really believe it at first,” he said.
One of Gordon’s new teammates is former Bearcats teammate Dell Welton, a 19-year-old defenceman from Baddeck whom the Red Wings acquired at this year’s deadline.
Other familiar faces greeting Gordon in Fredericton were P.E.I. childhood friend Declan MacEachern, former Cape Breton major junior teammate Cole Fraser and Ontario goaltender Christian Sbaraglia, who played against Gordon in minor midget and in the OHL. Gordon was a third-round draft pick of the Kitchener Rangers in 2017 and played with the OHL team for parts of two seasons.
He also played with a couple of Ontario junior A teams before testing the Maritime hockey waters, initially trying out with the QMJHL’s Halifax Mooseheads in the summer of 2019. He soon landed in Truro and has played in Atlantic Canada ever since.
The skilled Gordon, sixfoot-two and 170 pounds, believes he’s much more of a complete player than he was a few years ago, even though it’s been a bumpy ride along the way.
“I haven’t really had a full season in junior hockey, just because of all the disruptions and injuries or suspensions,” he said. “But I think my game has really improved since Halifax. Back then, I was just mainly focused on offence and scoring goals. I wasn’t really grown up into the junior hockey aspect.
“The experience has helped me mentally and I think I’m a lot stronger out there on my feet. It’s really matured me as a hockey player all-around.”
This season, Gordon scored five goals and 18 points in 23 games during his second year with Miramichi.
He hopes he can chase a championship in Fredericton and showcase his talents for university and pro scouts.
“My main goal is to go pro somewhere within the next few years or however long it takes,” he said. “But I’d love to get a chance to go play some university hockey.”
Gordon has had early interest from Ontario universities like Western and Guelph, which is close to his hometown.
Those options are appealing, “but I think I’d like to stay out East to be honest,” said Gordon, who mentioned Dalhousie would be an attractive prospect for him in Atlantic Canada.
His father was a junior A scoring star in Halifax and played Atlantic university hockey with the Cape Breton Capers.
Gordon’s start with Fredericton was delayed because he still had three games remaining in a four-game MHL suspension that carried over from Miramichi before Christmas.