Thunder Bay, ON | The Kam River Fighting Walleye are pleased to announce the commitment of
2002-born Kayden Sutherland of Hamiota, Manitoba. The 5’11” 165 pound Sutherland played for the
Yellowhead Chiefs U18 AAA club in 2019-20, where he posted 35 points in 46 games.
“I am very excited to be welcoming Kayden to the squad. He’s a very versatile player in that he plays forward and defense and should prove to be an every situation kind of player for us,” said Walleye head coach Matt Valley. “I’m very proud of the collective effort that went into making this happen.
He’s obviously a guy who can contribute on the scoresheet which is always nice to have. Couldn’t be happier to bring him to Thunder Bay to show him what we’re all about in The Pond,” Valley said.
The Yellowhead Chiefs, known as one of the top U18 AAA programs in Manitoba, regularly sees its former players graduate to Major Junior, Semi-Pro and even NHL clubs.
Fighting Walleye General Manager Kevin McCallum is pleased to be adding a player that had plenty of junior options across the country. “Landing a recruit like Kayden Sutherland is a testament to our
Hockey Ops staff on how hard they are working on bringing in the best team possible in the inaugural season,” said McCallum. “We were competing for this player against some big teams in some bigger leagues. It’s exciting to bring Kayden in and we believe that he will be an impact player right away.”
“All of the scouting reports we have gotten indicate that Kayden is ready to step into the SIJHL and be a huge contributor right away,” said Kam River Assistant GM and Director of Scouting Bryan Smeltzer. “Adding a player of this caliber is big for our program.”
Welcome to the club, Kayden!