2025 NHL Draft profile: Matthew Gard, Red Deer Rebels

Winnipeg, Man.- For Red Deer Rebels fans, Mathew Gard is often head and shoulders above the competition at the Marchant Crane Centrium- literally.

Clocking in at a hair under 6-foot-5 and 193 pounds, the rangy centreman quietly strung together an impressive sophomore season in his NHL Draft year.

“He had a great year, but he flew under the radar,” Rebels President and General Manager Brent Sutter said. “Talking to scouts throughout the year, they just kept watching him, seeing him progress more and more, and they liked him more and more throughout the year.”

Gard led the Rebels with 19 goals (including four game-winners) and 17 assists for 36 points in 66 regular-season games.

The 18-year-old was also thrust into an important role on the team with Captain and Seattle Kraken prospect Ollie Josephson sidelined by injury.

“He moves well for a big, tall kid,” Sutter added. “He skates well. He’s got the long stride, and he could play either center or wing. He’s played both with us.

Now he’s putting some muscle on and stuff, you know, he just took it and ran with it. I thought he also matured a lot, just as a person.”

Gard finished 24th in the league in faceoff wins (529) and became a netfront menace- even bagging his first WHL hat trick with a trio of powerplay strikes against the Brandon Wheat Kings on March 4, 2025.

“I see myself as a big, skilled, physical, two-way centerman that excels in the defensive zone and face-offs and then can score some rebound goals and get to the net offensively,” Gard, who played defence up until his early teen years, explained. “I was thrown into a bigger role somewhat early on with the injuries and things we had going on in Red Deer. I think it helped me as a player, and I learned a lot this year.”

NHL Central Scouting has ranked Gard 37th among all North American skaters in the agency’s final rankings ahead of the 2025 NHL Draft.

The Winnipeg, Man. product models his game after former WHL Player of the Year and Swift Current Broncos ‘C’ Adam Lowry, who now captains the Winnipeg Jets.

But the Draft- and the season-long preparation and interviews that go with it- wasn’t the only uncharted territory Gard breached in 2024-25.

By the time his regular season had ended, Gard was notified that he might be invited to compete for Canada at the 2025 IIHF U18 World Championship in Texas and to stay game-ready while team brass assembled their final roster.

While the wait made for some nervous days in the gym, Gard did get the call- and the opportunity to represent Canada on the IIHF level for the first time in his career.

Gard picked up a goal and three assists at the tournament to help Canada clinch a second-straight gold medal.

“It meant the world to me,” Gard added. “It was really cool to be there, and then just even better that we came home with a gold medal, too.”

He also got a final opportunity to impress NHL brass at the 2025 NHL Combine in Buffalo, N.Y., in early June.

Of the 90 draft-eligible players to take part in the event, Gard is among only six centremen to stand 6’4 or taller- the daunting list also includes WHL stars Roger McQueen (Brandon Wheat Kings), Lynden Lakovic (Moose Jaw Warriors) and Hayden Paupanekis (Kelowna Rockets).

Gard met with 25 NHL teams over the course of the combine and finished fifth among all prospects in the VO2 Max drill.

TSN Director of Scouting Craig Button has pegged Gard as a potential late second-round selection in his latest draft prospect rankings with plenty of room for growth- and even compared him to Boston Bruins forward and former Kamloops Blazers Captain Fraser Minten.

“Matthew, right now, is really what I would call, like, a pony,” Button said. “He’s got to get his legs underneath him, build up his strength. But one of the things that he showed over the course of the year is that there’s real good potential there… For the most part, these players are going to be 22 before they really find a level of physical maturity where they can come in and and be really confident about playing in the National Hockey League.”

While he waits for the big day, Gard is hard at work training and skating with a group of professionals and major junior skaters- including his close friend and fellow NHL-Draft eligible skater Peyton Kettles (NHL CSS: 39) of the Swift Current Broncos.

He’ll be surrounded by friends and family in Winnipeg as they wait to see who calls his name at the 2025 NHL Entry Draft.

The first round is set for Friday, June 27, with Rounds 2-7 set for Saturday, June 28.