BCHL, CSSHL, Interior Conference

Bucks at a Glance: Noah Quinn

Written by Chris Keck on

 

As the calendar turned to April, the Cranbrook Bucks had committed seven players for their inaugural season. One thing they were missing though, was a local Kootenay product, as the closest players to that point were from Calgary, Alberta.

On April 2, the Bucks announced a commitment from Noah Quinn, a 2003-born forward. Quinn is from Nelson, BC, about 230 kilometres, or a two-and-a-half-hour drive from Cranbrook.

He spent the last two seasons playing for the Kootenay Ice in the BC U18 AAA league. Quinn showed some leadership capabilities at a young age, as he was an assistant captain for the Ice. The talented young forward also led by example on the ice, leading the team in goals, assists, and points. In fact, he leaves the Kootenay Ice U18 AAA program as the all-time leading goal scorer with 31. His 40 assists and 72 points are good enough for second in the team’s history. He also set the team record for points in a game with seven, in a 7-5 victory last season.

Quinn does have junior hockey experience, as he played some games as an affiliate player for his hometown Nelson Leafs in the Kootenay International Junior Hockey League. The Trail Smoke Eaters also added Quinn as an affiliate player last season, but he hasn’t played a BCHL game yet. Follow along as I examine his path from Nelson Minor Hockey to the Cranbrook Bucks.

A strong prospect out of Nelson

After graduating from Nelson’s minor hockey program, Quinn spent the 2016-17 season at the Okanagan Hockey Academy. He played in the Bantam Varsity division of the Canadian Sport School Hockey League that season. In 18 regular season games, he contributed 14 goals and 14 assists for 28 points. He would another three assists in five playoff games that season.

In May of that year, Quinn attended the U15 BC Cup tournament in Penticton. As noted in an article from The Nelson Daily, Quinn was one of five Nelson products chosen for the annual BC Hockey event.

For 2018-19, Quinn joined the Kootenay Ice U18 AAA, where he spent the last two seasons. In his first campaign with the Ice, he contributed 10 goals and 16 assists for 26 points in 40 games.

He also saw some KIJHL game action with the Nelson Leafs that season as he suited up for a pair of games with the Leafs in the regular season and another five games in the playoffs. He was held pointless in those combined seven games, but he gained valuable experience as he makes the jump to junior A.

Last season, again with the Kootenay Ice U18 AAA, Quinn’s production saw a big jump from his first year. In 40 games, he scored 21 goals and 24 assists for 45 points. Those numbers all led the Ice, as he proved to be an offensive catalyst in his second BC U18 AAA League season.

Quinn was named the league’s player of the month in January, after a dominant stretch where he notched seven goals in six games, as well as his record-setting seven-point game. 

Quinn commits to the Cranbrook Bucks

When the Bucks announced Quinn’s commitment, head coach and general manager Ryan Donald shared his thoughts on the talented forward in the team’s media release.

”Noah is a tremendous addition for our program at this time and is a young man with an enormous amount of potential,” said Donald. “He led his team in goals, assists, and points last season as a 16-year-old, and is a player that we believe will be able to produce offense at the BCHL level. He will be expected to contribute in all areas of the game for us at a young age, and we look forward to helping him achieve his goals as a hockey player. Being a product of the Kootenay Midget program is an added bonus, as we know he will find Cranbrook a great place to call home.”

At the time of Quinn’s commitment, he became the fourth forward on the team’s inaugural season roster. He joined Noah Leibl, Brendan Rogers, and AJ Vasko, who were all coming off impressive offensive seasons themselves.

On your way out, enjoy this highlight pack of Quinn’s contributions to his team’s effort last season.