By: Casey Kenny July 9th, 2025
The Chicago Blackhawks lineup could one day be bolstered by a South Mountain native who was once a Kemptville 73.
Chicago drafted 18-year-old forward Parker Holmes with their 107th pick in the fourth round of the 2025 National Hockey League Entry Draft.
Holmes played 41-games for the Kemptville 73’s U18 AAA team in 2022-2023 before graduating to the Central Canada Hockey League team in 2023-2024 where he had 51GP-3G-7A-10PTS-47PIM.
He then played for the Brantford Bulldogs in the Ontario Hockey League in 2024-2025 and put up one goal in an injury shortened 21 game season.
When it comes to the NHL draft, Holmes said he was at home with his family and was doing stuff with his Dad in the garage when his Mom let him know that Chicago had picked him.
He said that led to him flying to Chicago the next day for the team’s development camp.
Holmes said putting on the Blackhawks jersey for the first time is not something he soon forget.
“It was a pretty surreal moment, it almost still didn’t even feel real. It’s a dream come true and step one of a long process but I’m excited for the grind.”
Looking back at his time in Kemptville, Holmes said it helped him mature as a player.
“It was a great year in Kemptville as a 16-year-old. The older guys took me under their wing and were great to me. The coaches always tried to help me with my development.”
Next up for Holmes is Bulldog’s training camp at the end of August followed by the Blackhawks rookie tournament in early September.
