Reece Gault selected in first round of USHL draft

Oakbank’s Reece Gault has done something nearly no other Manitoba Junior Hockey League player has done.

The former Steinbach Piston went to the B.C. Hockey League and actually raised his level of play. After a strong rookie campaign with Steinbach in the 2024/2025 season, where the 2007-born defenseman nabbed 37 points in 52 games, he made the trip out west, signing with Victoria.

Unlike most of the players who make the move to the BCHL, Gault thrived with the Grizzlies, leading the team in points by a defenseman with 44. He was tied for third in the league-wide scoring race among all blue-liners, leading all rookies by 18 points across the season.

He was named to the league’s all-rookie team.

That outstanding season drew attention from down south, as the United States Hockey League’s Green Bay Gamblers selected Gault in the first round of their draft, 12th overall.

“Reece is a mobile, skilled two-way defenseman with an outstanding puck game who impacts the play at both ends of the ice,” Gamblers assistant general manager and director of scouting Kirk Luedeke said in a news story on the team’s website.

The USHL splits their draft into two sections, with only younger players eligible in the first phase. Gault was selected in the phase 2 draft for older players.

“We are pleased with our 2026 USHL draft class for both phases,” Luedeke said.

“In Phase II, we addressed our immediate needs with some higher-end talent at the top and then continued on in the later rounds by rounding out our depth with quality players at every position. We are proud to welcome them all to Green Bay and our organization.”

Gault committed to join Northern Michigan University two years ago. Reece’s brother, Caiden, finished his final year of NCAA hockey this season with Northern Michigan, signing with the Greenville Swamp Rabbits in the ECHL.