June 22, 2019

Keppen Selected by Vancouver Canucks Fourth Round, 122nd Overall

Keppen Becomes 7th Flint Firebird To Be Selected in Four Years in NHL Draft

Vancouver, B.C. – The Vancouver Canucks selected Flint Firebirds forward Ethan Keppen in the fourth-round, 122nd overall, of the 2019 NHL Entry Draft Saturday, making him the seventh Flint Firebird to drafted in the of the National Hockey League in just four years.

Keppen, a 6-foot-2, 212-pound forward, played in all 68 games with the Firebirds this season, finishing tied for second on the team in points (59). He tripled his goal production (30) and more than tripled both his assists (29) and points in one season. Keppen earned the ‘Blue Collar Worker,’ ‘Combined Academic & Athletics Excellence Award,’ and ‘Most Improved Player’ awards at the end-of-year Firebirds’ player awards banquet. The Whitby, Ont., native was Flint’s first-round draft pick, 10th overall, in the 2017 OHL Draft.

Since the Flint Firebirds’ inception four season ago in 2015, the club has now had 17 drafted or NHL signed players on its roster consisting of Will Bitten (Montreal), Dennis Busby (Arizona), Nick Caamano (Dallas), Connor Chatham (New Jersey), Ty Dellandrea (Dallas) Fedor Gordeev (Toronto), Ethan Keppen (Vancouver), Kyle Keyser (Boston Bruins), Vladislav Kolyachonok (Florida), Nick Mattinen (Toronto), Brent Moran (Dallas), Alex Nedeljkovic (Carolina), Alex Peters (Dallas), Vili Saarijarvi (Detroit), Kole Sherwood (Columbus), Jalen Smereck (Arizona) and Josh Wesley (Carolina).

For the past five seasons, the OHL has sent more players to the NHL than any other league in the world. The OHL is first in the world in total players selected in the NHL Draft (197), first and second round selections combined (76), defenseman (80) and forwards (122). On NHL opening day rosters in October, one-in-four players (26.4%) competing in the NHL were alums of the OHL, which is also the highest percentage in the world.

Season ticket packages are the best value for Flint Firebirds fans and are on sale now for the upcoming 2019-20 season. Benefits for full season ticket holders include free parking, a ticket savings for all 34 home games, complimentary tickets to all (4) road regular-season games in Saginaw, (4) buddy vouchers to bring a friend to any home Firebirds’ game, exclusive invitation to team and player events and much, much, more.

Season Tickets can be purchased at the Dort Federal Event Center Box Office, Monday thru Friday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. (ET). For more information, contact the Dort Federal Event Center Box Office at (810) 744-0580 or email mary@dorteventcenter.com.

About The Flint Firebirds:
The Flint Firebirds are a proud member of the prestigious 20-team Ontario Hockey League. The OHL is part of the Canadian Hockey League (CHL), which is known as the world’s premiere player development league for the NHL. On NHL opening day rosters in October, 70% of NHL players were CHL alums. Since the Firebirds’ inception in Flint, Michigan four seasons ago, the team has produced 15 NHL signed or drafted players. More than 250 scouts representing all 31 NHL clubs attended a Firebirds game in Flint throughout the 2018-19 season. The Firebirds average nearly 3,000 fans per game at the newly renovated Dort Federal Credit Union Event Center, reaching over 100,000 fans each OHL season.

For more information:

Dominic Hennig
Director of Broadcasting & Communications
Flint Firebirds Hockey Club
dominic@flintfirebirds.com
(810) 519-9347