By: John Humphrey, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Lakeshore News Reporter
LaSalle’s Andrew Gibson has started the New Year with a new team in the Ontario Hockey League.
The 19-year-old defenceman was traded acquired by the Oshawa Generals from the Soo Greyhounds in a blockbuster trade on January 7.
The Generals, one of the top teams in the OHL’s Eastern Conference, paid a heavy price for the hulking 6’4”, 210-lb. Gibson, perhaps the top defenceman available leading up to the OHL’s trade deadline on January 10.
The Generals, who play in the OHL’s Eastern Conference and are considered to be a bonafide OHL championship-contending team in 2024-2025, sent right-winger Brady Smith and eight future draft choices to the Greyhounds to complete the trade. The 16-year-old Smith was Oshawa’s first round pick in the 2024 OHL Priority selection and is viewed as a budding star player and the draft choices included a 2027 second-round pick, a 2027 third-round pick, a 2026 fourth-round pick, two 2027 fourth-round picks, a 2027 sixth-round pick, a 2028 sixth-round pick, and a 2028 seventh-round pick.
The deal for Gibson between the Greyhounds and Generals was finalized soon after he had returned to the northern Ontario City after having played with Team Canada at the 2025 World Junior Hockey Championships. The tournament was hosted in Ottawa and the end-result for Team Canada, which lost to Czechia in a quarter-final play-off game, was a bitter disappointment for the Canadians.
Gibson had made the Soo his home away from home after being selected in the fourth round, 67th overall, of the 2021 OHL Priority Selection by the Greyhounds. In 150 career regular season games up north, Gibson notched 24 goals and added 51 assists before his transfer to Oshawa.
The trade from the ‘Hounds to the Generals actually marked the second time that the highly-skilled rearguard has been traded during his young career. After being selected in the second round, 42nd overall, of the 2023 National Hockey League Entry Draft by the Detroit Red Wings, Gibson was traded by the Red Wings to the Nashville Predators for Jesse Kiiskinen (note – correct spelling) and a second-round pick in the 2024 NHL Entry Draft. Gibson subsequently signed a three-year Entry Level contract with the Predators on April 24, 2024
Leaving the Soo during what is likely to be his last season in the OHL, though, was a difficult pill for Gibson to swallow.
“I’ve loved everything about my time in the Sault,” he said in a story posted on the Greyhounds website. “Over the last couple of years, I’ve been with the same few guys and I’ve grown a lot of relationships. I love these guys. They’re a great group. The last couple of years have been the best teams I’ve ever been a part of.
“I love the city, I love everything about it. I love the organization,” he continued. “And the fans have been great. I can’t thank this organization and this community enough for all they’ve done for me.”
On the flip side, Gibson, who turns 20 years-old on February 13, was also aware that a new and exciting opportunity awaited him in Oshawa with the OHL championship-contending Generals. He has joined an impressive defence corps in Oshawa that includes Ben Danford, the first round draft choice of the Toronto Maple Leafs in 2024 and overager rearguard Luca Marelli, who leads all OHL defencemen in scoring in the 2024-2025 season.
“I am very excited to get things going in Oshawa,” said the talented rearguard in a statement posted on the Generals’ team website. “I have heard nothing but positive remarks from people connected to the organization
“I am looking to come in and do whatever I can do to help the team,” he added. “And win a championship.”
In 5 games with Oshawa, including a 4-1 win over the Windsor Spitfires at the Tribute Communities Centre on January 19, Gibson had one goal and two assists
While he is eligible to return to the Generals for an overage season this fall, Andrew Gibson is likely to start his pro hockey career with the Predators in 2025-2026 or their top farm team – the American Hockey League’s Milwaukee Admirals.
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