McGurn & McGinley Joining REDS
(FREDERICTON, NB) The defending University Cup champion UNB REDS are naming centre Sean McGurn and defenceman Sam McGinley as the first members of their recruiting class of 2023.
The 21-year-old McGurn joins the REDS after three seasons with the London Knights of the Ontario Hockey League, while the 20-year-old McGinley recently completed a five-year career in the Western Hockey League that saw him skate with the Regina Pats and Swift Current Broncos.
Both have signed U SPORTS Letters of Intent and will join the REDS ahead of the 2023-24 Atlantic University Sport season.
“We’re extremely excited to add players the calibre of Sean and Sam to our program,” said REDS’ head coach Gardiner MacDougall. “Sean comes from an excellent program in London where he was the captain and led them to a berth in the OHL championship series. Sam has offensive capabilities from the back end but can play a shut-down role. These are two tremendous players.”
In 171 regular season games with the Knights, McGurn scored 48 goals and 111 assists.
He put up career-best numbers during the 2022-23 season, scoring 27 goals and assisting on 56 others.
McGinley, described as a player who contributes at both ends of the ice, played 195 regular season games, scoring 20 goals and adding 57 assists.
“I had other schools reach out and am grateful to have had the opportunity to choose where I was headed,” said McGinley. “UNB stood out because of their drive to be better every day. There are great coaches here and the guys are fantastic.”
“I chose UNB because it’s a winning program,” said McGurn, who had other U SPORTS schools interested in him as well. “There’s also a great track record here of sending guys to pro after school.”
McGurn got help in making his decision from former London Knights teammates and current REDS Jason Willms, Cody Morgan and Camaryn Baber, and he’s got family in St. Andrews.
“Sean had a tremendous career in London and showed continued improvement in each of his seasons there,” said Coach MacDougall. “He had a breakout year as a 20-year-old. He has great vision and is a natural centre who plays at both ends of the rink. He’ll play a key role in all situations this season for our team.”
After leading the Knights in scoring during the 2022-23 regular season, he finished second in OHL playoff scoring. He’s previously attended development and rookie camps with the Toronto Maple Leafs and recently attended development camp with the Columbus Blue Jackets.
“Sam was used in all situations last season in Swift Current and we’ll look to do the same here,” said MacDougall, of McGinley. “We are excited about getting him into our system and watching him become a top end D in this league with his skating and size."
McGinley attended rookie camp with the St. Louis Blues in 2021 and the Carolina Hurricanes 2022.
“I’m a two-way defender and I think I’m pretty good with my stick,” said McGinley. “I think the coaches want me here because I work hard on and off the ice. I feel I’ll fit into the program here really well. I’ll be a guy the team can rely on in tough situations.”
Both McGinley and McGurn say they want to help UNB win more national championships.
Both plan on studying Business while attending UNB.
The REDS begin defence of their AUS and U SPORTS titles when they host Moncton on Friday, October 6th. Game time is 7:00pm.
STORY BY: Andy Campbell/UNB Athletics
PHOTOS:
McGurn – Matt Hiscox
McGinley – Ed Fonger