Kent, Wash.- The Gard-ian of the faceoff dot is heading south of the border.
Seattle has added Philadelphia Flyers prospect Matthew Gard in a Friday swap with the Red Deer Rebels.
The deal sees the Rebels acquire forward Cameron Kuzma, a third-round pick in the 2028 WHL Prospects Draft and conditional fourth-round selections in 2028 and 2029.
Gard, 18, has netted six goals (including one game-winner) and five assists for 11 points in 23 games with the Rebels in 2025-26.
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He also stands among the league’s most consistent faceoff leaders with 233 wins (54.8%).
The 6-foot-5, 197-pound pivot led the Rebels with 36 points (19G-17A) in 66 regular-season games in 2024-25 and earned his first call to Team Canada for the 2025 IIHF U18 World Championship in May.
Gard bagged a goal and three assists in seven games en route to a gold medal for the Canadian squad.
The breakout season led the Flyers to select him with the 57th overall pick in the second round of the 2025 NHL Draft.
Gard, A Winnipeg, Man. product, owns 65 points (32G-33A) in 144 career regular-season games.
Kuzma, from St. Albert, Alta., has four goals (including one game-winner) and six assists for 10 points in 32 contests with the T-Birds this season.
The 6-foot-2, 195-pound 17-year-old was originally selected by the Regina Pats in the third round of the 2023 WHL Prospects Draft and played parts of two seasons in the Queen City before making tracks for Washington State.
He’s totalled 29 points (8G-21A) in 87 regular-season WHL games, in addition to five points (4G-1A) in nine playoff appearances.
Kuzma is eligible for the 2026 NHL Draft.
Seattle (14-15-2-2) sits 11th in the Western Conference and will look to make a push for a playoff berth after star players return from the 2026 IIHF World Junior Championship.
The Thunderbirds are back in action against the Rebels in Central Alberta on January 3, 2025, at 6:00 p.m. MST.
