Cents sign American forward

The Merritt Centennials have announced that they’ve committed to forward Ryan Mulrenin (02) of Des Moines Bucaneers U18 AAA for the upcoming 2021-22 season.

Mulrenin, a native of Wayzata, Minnesota, has been with the Buccaneers for the past two seasons and is actively playing this year in the States. In games split between the 18U AAA league and NAPHL 18U league, Mulrenin has produced at nearly a point-per-game pace and leans towards the finishing side with 36 goals and 28 assists in a combined 70 games played.

General Manager Derek Sweet Coulter says that he’s aware of Mulrenin’s high skill, but also likes his complete game.

“Ryan is a 200 foot player who excels in the faceoff circle and in his own end. He plays with an edge and has a high compete level that we really like. He also has high end skill and a great shot. Ryan is considered one of the hardest players to play against at his level and we expect the same from him here. We are very excited to add a quality person like Ryan to our organization.”

Mulrenin says that he’s excited to join a league that’s known for its offense and a team that feels like a family.

“What originally attracted me to the BCHL was the amount of players that secceed and move on to higher levels of hockey. I also was attracted to the flashy offense that’s seen around the league and I think it’s a league that I can demonstrate my offensive play making. What attracted me to Merritt was how much of a family it felt like right away especially when Talon Zakall reached out within an hour of me agreeing to play there.”

Mulrenin adds that he like to generate chances and tries to keep the play on his stick.

“The biggest strengths to my game is the way I see the ice and the way I’m able to generate offense and control the speed of the game with the puck on my stick. I’m a sturdy forward that is difficult to knock off the puck.”

Unlike his Canadian contemporaries, Mulrenin has been able to play hockey during the pandemic and says despite the changes it’s been a blessing.

“Being able to play during this pandemic has been awesome. Although there are guidelines and rules about it. It’s hard going into rinks only 15 minutes before game time and sometimes having to wear masks while playing games, but I’m grateful I’ve been able to play all this time.”