IceHogs Sign Ryan Gagnier, One of OHL's Top Defensive Forwards, for 2023-24

The Rockford IceHogs today announced that the team has signed rookie forward Ryan Gagnier (GAHN-yay) to a one-year AHL contract. Gagnier played the last three seasons with the Ontario Hockey League's (OHL) Oshawa Generals and was named the Eastern Conference's Hardest Worker in the 2022-23 OHL Coaches Poll.

Gagnier, 20, led the Generals in scoring in both the regular season and the postseason with 69 points (31G, 38A) in 66 games during the regular campaign and six points (3G, 3A) in five OHL Playoff games. Along with being named as one of the league's Hardest Workers in the 2022-23 OHL Coaches Poll, the 6-foot, 186-pound center also placed second in voting for the Eastern Conference's Best Defensive Forward and Best Penalty Killer.

Gagnier's Oshawa club fell in five games in the first round of the OHL Playoffs, but the Tecumseh, Ontario native scored the overtime winner in Game 3 to provide the lone win of the series.

The pivot published 113 points (53G, 60A) in 189 OHL games over the course of his junior career, and his production improved drastically during his three full seasons in the OHL. Gagnier reached a point-per-game pace in 2022-23 after posting 36 points (17G, 19A) in 65 games during the 2021-22 campaign and eight points (5G, 3A) in 57 games during the 2019-20 circuit.