| HT | WT | DOB | POS | SHOOTS | OHL DRAFT | NHLCS | COUNTRY |
| 6’3 | 198 | 2-13-05 | D | R | 67th 2021 | 32nd N A | CANADA |
| SEASON | LEAGUE | TEAM | GP | G | A | PTS |
| 2020-2021 | U-16 | DID NOT PLAY | ||||
| 2021-2022 | NOJHL | Soo Thunderbirds | 40 | 21 | 30 | 51 |
| 2021-2022 | OHL | Soo Greyhounds | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2022-2023 | OHL | Soo Greyhounds | 45 | 7 | 14 | 21 |
| 2022-2023 | WJC U-18 | Canada | 7 | 0 | 3 | 3 |
If you’re only watching a handful of Soo Greyhounds game and defenceman Andrew Gibson, you’ll probably question why so many public rankings have him listed so high. On the opposite end, if you’ve watched a lot of games, you’ll be questioning those that just don’t see it.
At 6’3” and 198 pounds, the first thing you notice is that Gibson has great size. His mobility isn’t the greatest, but it’s good enough. And being a right-shot defenceman that NHL teams are always looking for, that’s a plus.
Gibson is still a green blueliner with enough raw potential who plays a solid two-way game. He’s not going to bring fans out of their seats with a flair for the dramatic. Instead, he plays a consistent, safe game almost always making the right plays at both ends of the ice.
Defensively, Gibson plays with physicality. He moves well enough backwards and laterally to keep his gaps tight. The long reach he possesses is a bonus, able to break up plays with his stick. At times he can be pressured into making an error under the forecheck. But I also believe that with more experience and confidence those errors will be minimized.
As the season moved along, Gibson became more confident in his abilities offensively and it showed up on the stat sheet. After recording just a single point in November, he came to life in December and early January. But a lower body injury on January 12, 2023 would cause Gibson to miss the next two months of the season.
Prior to the injury, a more confident Gibson was jumping into the attack more. He began to take more risk, was better at keeping the puck in the offensive zone and even taking more chances at going in deep from the blueline, all with success.
Again, Gibson is a raw talent. If he can continue to improve in the defensive zone and continue to improve his skating by adding more speed, there is definitely some upside here.
OHL Writers 