Forge’s Dan Nimick wins 2025 Defender of the Year Award

Dan Nimick has capped a successful first campaign with Forge FC with some individual hardware, as he was named the Canadian Premier League’s Defender of the Year at the CPL Awards on Friday.

In just his first season with Forge after spending the prior two years with the Halifax Wanderers, Nimick appeared in all 28 of Forge’s regular-season matches in 2025, playing all but 16 minutes for the Hammers in his debut campaign in Hamilton.

As a result, the 25-year-old born in Happy Valley-Goose Bay, Newfoundland, played a pivotal role in his team’s defensive excellence, as they conceded just 22 goals in 28 games, keeping 13 clean sheets.

Along the way, Nimick put up standout individual numbers defensively, as he racked up 115 clearances and 136 recoveries, while also chipping in with 19 tackles, 24 interceptions, and winning 119 out of 166 duels (71.7 per cent win rate). Otherwise, he was also quite strong on the ball, as he completed 1624 out of 1789 passes (91 per cent), including 204 out of 291 long balls (70 per cent), while going the whole season without making an error that led to a shot.

Nimick faced stiff competition from teammate, full-back Rezart Rama, and Atlético Ottawa centre-back Noah Abatneh, who were the other two nominees for this award.

While he’s a first-time winner, Nimick has previously been nominated for this award, as he was a finalist for the 2023 Defender of the Year, which was eventually won by Cavalry’s Daan Klomp.

Just the fourth year this award has been handed out, Nimick is the second Forge player to earn the honour, as Alexander Achinoti-Jönsson was the first-ever winner in 2022 - Klomp is the only other winner, having claimed the honour in both 2023 and 2024.

The Defender of the Year is awarded the Walrus, an Inuit soapstone sculpture carved by artist Roman Komangapik.