Greyhounds take aim, pick up 'big target' player

His game has been called a throwback and the Soo Greyhounds are excited to add it to the lineup in the fall.

Defenceman Ryan O’Rourke, selected in the opening round of the Ontario Hockey League Priority Selection earlier this month by the Greyhounds, has been called tough to play against.

Greyhounds general manager called him “a player that was a big target for us.”

In the end, O’Rourke will look to bring an all-around game to the Greyhounds when the 2018-19 OHL season rolls around.

“I’m a big, two-way defenceman,” O’Rourke said. “I’m mean to play against in my own end and definitely lethal up front.”

The young blueliner called his size and skating the strongest part of his game.

“Ryan is a defenceman that has great mobility, high IQ, and a competitor who is very difficult to play against,” Raftis said. “He’s someone that plays with an edge and he’s got a real confidence when he’s moving pucks.

“He’s very skilled with pucks and he’s got a big shot,” Raftis also said. “And he’s got an edge on the defensive side of the puck. That’s always something where you want to be tough to play against, but you don’t want to give up the skill side of it. He combines both of those so it’s a perfect fit for us.”

OHL Central Scouting credits O’Rourke’s mobility, calling the 15-year-old “a powerful skater.”

“He has a good skill set that allows him to move the puck out of his zone. He can rush the puck when the opportunity is there, and he is good on the offensive blue line at getting pucks on net or distributing it. Ryan is hard to beat defensively. He takes the body well and he has a good understanding of his position and what he has to do.”

Given the Greyhounds recent on-ice success, O’Rourke said it makes it exciting to be drafted by an organization that has become a model franchise.

A member of the Vaughan Kings minor midgets, O’Rourke was an integral part of a Kings team that advanced to the OHL Cup final to end the season.

“The experience of just playing in it was amazing,” O’Rourke said. “Making it to the finals just made it that much better.”

“There was a little bit of nervousness being on national tv (in the final), but you just have to take it like any other game,” O’Rourke also said.

Calling the draft process a “fun experience,” O’Rourke said going through his draft season with the added attention of OHL scouts in the stands on a regular basis was something he treated no differently than any other season.

“I’m really good playing under pressure so to me they’re just another game or just another tournament,” O’Rourke said.