CHARLOTTETOWN, P.E.I. – Jordan Maher has hit the ground running.
The 20-year-old forward from Gander, N.L., has a goal and three assists in three games since joining the Charlottetown Islanders in a December trade from the Memorial Cup-hosting Halifax Mooseheads. He has found instant chemistry with fellow overage forward Daniel Hardie and 19-year-old Kevin Gursoy.
“It’s pretty crazy actually,” Maher acknowledged before his first practice with the Islanders on Wednesday. “We’re moving the puck really well, we’re all moving our feet and I think we just look to get (the puck) to guys who are open and it’s working.”
Hardie said he and Gursoy were excited by the prospect of playing with the five-year veteran of the league, who was a point-per-game player last season with the Memorial Cup-winning Acadie-Bathurst Titan.
And the potential for growth is there as the players get used to what their linemates do on the ice.
“What we say is it can only get better from here,” Hardie said. “He’s a really experienced player, who won last year, so that adds a lot to our dressing room and he’s a good leader.”
Maher was drafted sixth overall by the Titan at the 2014 draft after playing for the Central IcePak major midget squad.
He played a key part in helping turn the Titan around during his fourth years in Bathurst, N.B.
“It was a pretty crazy experience,” he said. “My first year there, we were in last place. Every year we kept improving. To finally to get to last year and have the best team in the country is something special and definitely (something I) won’t forget.”
He described himself as a two-way player who likes to contribute offensively. He was a centre in minor hockey who moved to the wing with the Titan. He started his Islanders career back in the middle and he isn’t complaining.
“I feel pretty comfortable in both spots, so wherever the team need me to play, I’ll play,” he said.
Maher knows his junior career is winding down but hasn’t decided what the future holds.
“(I am) just trying to focus on the rest of this year and trying to win with the Islanders,” he said.
“I think we have a good team here,” he added. “I think we separate ourselves with our work ethic .. . that’s what I like about this team.”
Need to know
Jordan Maher
Who – A newly acquired member of the Charlottetown Islanders.
Familiar face – Maher played the first four seasons of his junior career with Acadie-Bathurst and began 2018-19 with Halifax.
Trade – Maher was acquired with a third-round pick in this year’s draft and a second-round pick in 2020 in the deal that sent Keith Getson to the Mooseheads.
Statistics
Season GP G A Pts.
2014-15 60 13 16 29
2015-16 68 15 23 38
2016-17 64 19 26 45
2017-18 63 19 42 61
2018-19 36 7 16 23
This weekend – The Islanders host the Cape Breton Screaming Eagles tonight at 7 p.m. in what will be Derek Gentile’s return to the Eastlink Centre. He was traded for defenceman Noah Laaouan on Dec. 17. The Islanders host the Moncton Wildcats Sunday at 3 p.m.
