One of them is leading the AHL in goals. Of course he’s an all-star.
The other has more wins than any goalie in the league. Of course he’s an all-star, too.
That doesn’t make it any less cool for Rory Kerins and Devin Cooley to get officially invited to the AHL All-Star Classic, which goes down Feb. 2-3 in Palm Springs, though.
“You look at their body of work to start the season in the American League and they’ve both had all-star starts,” said Wranglers general manager and Flames assistant GM Brad Pascall. “Rory leads the league in goals scored in addition to his points total and Devin is arguably the MVP of the league right now with his play.
“I think the two of them, with all due respect, I think it was an obvious choice but also very, very well deserved.”
In his first year with the Wranglers, Cooley has posted a 17-6-0 record, a 1.99 goals-against-average and a .937 save percentage. He was called up to be a backup for the Calgary Flames in December when Dan Vladar needed a night off because of a minor injury and his play in the AHL suggests the NHL team has cover if either Vladar or Dustin Wolf is sidelined for any stretch of time.
“It’s really awesome, especially with where I was at this point last year, it’s a big turnaround,” Cooley said. “I was playing once every two weeks, I was really struggling and couldn’t find any consistency, I didn’t really have a gameplan and was a bit lost, I would say, here, it’s been a huge help, the goaltending department has done an amazing job. (Wranglers goaltending guru) Mackenzie Skapski’s done an amazing job, and playing for a really good team, that helps a ton, too. I just feel a lot more confident and like I actually know what I’m doing now.”
Kerins, meanwhile, has been a revelation in his second full-time season with the Wranglers.
He’s leading the AHL in goals, with 21, and is second in the league in points, with 34 in 34 games.
Suddenly, a player who didn’t feature in a single pre-season game for the Flames in September is in the conversation for an NHL call-up.
And even if that doesn’t happen, he’s earned himself an all-star nod for the first time — at any level — in his hockey career.
“We didn’t really have that in junior much, so I’ve never made an all-star team for anything, really,” Kerins said. “I think my girlfriend is going to be there with me, she’ll come with me, and my parents will make a trip out of it and come to Palm Springs.”
In addition to Kerins and Cooley, the Wranglers will also be sending a coach to the all-star game. If Trent Cull is still an interim assistant coach with the Flames, Joe Cirella will represent the team.