Jun 23, 2014

The Okanagan Hockey Academy is pleased to congratulate defenceman Sahvan Khaira on signing with the Seattle Thunderbirds of the Western Hockey League.

Khaira spent the past two seasons with OHA, most recently with the Prep team, where he registered 22 points (2-20-22) in 28 Canadian Sport School Hockey League games.

“I am very excited and this is the biggest thing in my hockey career,” Khaira told seattlethunderbirds.com. “I was at Game 1 of the playoffs against Everett and I loved the atmosphere and the crowd was really into it. It felt like I belonged. I am looking forward to doing whatever I can to help the team this coming season.”

The 6-foot-2, 211-pounder spent the 2012-13 season with the OHA Bantam squad, netting 30 points (5-25-30) in 56 games. Following that season he was selected in the ninth round, 181st overall, by the Thunderbirds in the 2013 WHL Bantam Draft.

“We are excited to add Sahvan to our team for next year,” stated Thunderbirds general manager Russ Farwell. “He has huge potential because of his combination of skill and great size and he is excited to get started on the next step in his career. We are looking forward to watching him develop with our team.”

Khaira joins a Thunderbirds team that already features OHA alum, Ryan Gropp, who is expected to be a top prospect for the 2015 NHL Entry Draft.