RUSH ALUMNI SPOTLIGHT: RORY KERINS

As we continue to highlight Rush alums who have made their marks in their careers since their time in Rapid City, both on and off the ice, our third edition features a success story in both the Rapid City and Calgary organizations.

Rory Kerins began his full-time professional career with the Rush during the 2022-23 season, the first season of the Calgary Flames affiliation. A sixth-round draft pick of Calgary in 2020, Kerins’ first assignment was a stint in the ECHL. A standout with the Rush, Kerins scored 17 goals and 37 points in just 38 games, which earned him a call-up to the AHL.

Kerins has latched on in his two seasons with the Calgary Wranglers, leading them in scoring this past year. The now 23-year-old earned a taste of National Hockey League action with a five-game call-up, during which he put up four assists. He recorded his first NHL point on his first NHL shift against Chicago on January 13, 2025.

He is the first player to work his way up through all three levels of the Rapid City and Calgary organizations and the eighth Rush alumnus to reach the NHL. Now, Kerins is staying under the Flames umbrella, having re-signed with Calgary on a one-year, two-way contract on July 17^th.

Overall, what was your experience like as a rookie starting out in Rapid City?

“It was definitely a positive experience for my first year pro. Obviously, I wanted to be at the highest level I could, which at that time would have been the AHL. But in saying that, I went down to Rapid with a very open mind and I went there with the goal of becoming a better player and learning the pro game. I believe I did that in my time there. I have nothing but good things to say about the Rush fans, the community, obviously the coaches, Scott Burt was great for me. Just everything about it, they accepted me and let me develop and I learned the pro schedule. I'm very happy that I played in the ECHL with Rapid City. The Monument was an awesome place to play. I loved playing there in front of the home crowd. They got very loud for goals, fights, and big hits. It was a very cool experience to be able to play there for a year.”

Who are some of the teammates you got to know while in Rapid City?

“All the guys that were a part of the Calgary organization that I played with for the years after, the guys like Ilya Nikolaev, Matt Marcinew, Daniil Chechelev. A couple guys around my age, Rhett Reinhart and Simon Lavigne. All the guys were really good to me. I appreciate all of them for helping a young kid out.”

How did you learn, get better, and reach the AHL in only 38 games here?

“I think I would've probably played a little bit more in that season, but I got injured twice. Like I said, just learning the pro schedule, having bigger, stronger (opposing) players, getting leaned on. It was different than junior where you’re playing against teenagers, but just the whole pro schedule and just learning how to use my body as a smaller forward. It was great for me. I think being in Rapid that first year made me a lot better player and like I said, I went into it with an open mind, just trying to be better. I had a pretty solid year there and that propelled me to the years after for sure.”

You are the first player to go through all three levels of the Calgary system. How cool has it been to do it all with one organization, and just how crazy is it that within two years of being in the ECHL, you’re in the National Hockey League?

“I think part of that is that you have to keep confidence in yourself. It wasn't my best case scenario to be sent down the ECHL my first year, but I went down there and with an open mind, like I said, and kept my confidence up, played a lot, which was huge. I played a lot of minutes, played in a lot of situations. Credit to the coaching staff for doing that for me. So to do all that with one organization is pretty cool. I don't think you see it very often, but it's something that I take pride in.”

What made you want to re-sign with Calgary this year?

“They’re the team that drafted me and gave me an opportunity. I was a Calgary fan growing up. My favorite player and close family friend is Sean Monahan. I always watched the Flames, even being a Toronto kid. I love the city, I love living there. My girlfriend loves living there, too, and it's a great town to play hockey in. I just love all the staff and all my teammates that I've met through the years there. It's been a very, very positive experience for me.”

You said you were a Flames fan growing up?

“Yeah, I was. So I grew up near Toronto and was a Toronto fan. Then Sean Monahan got drafted by the Flames when I was 11. He and my brother played with each other growing up in minor hockey, and my dad coached him, so I became a Flames fan. That was always my team because of Sean. So it was pretty cool to be drafted by them and then obviously start playing there.”

I’m sure you get this one a lot, but how wild was it that you had the first shift—and the first game—that you did in the NHL?

“It was very cool. I mean, it's not something you really expect going in. I didn't know what to expect or what standard I should hold myself to going into that game. It was very special. I did it while playing with one of my close buddies, Jakob Pelletier. He got those two goals and I got the assists on them. It was just a picture-perfect start to your career, I guess. I had all my family there watch me and it was very surreal. It's a memory that will live with me forever and it was so awesome.”

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