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Akito Hirose

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Akito Hirose
Born (1999-04-09) April 9, 1999 (age 25)
Calgary, Alberta, Canada
Height 6 ft 0 in (183 cm)
Weight 170 lb (77 kg; 12 st 2 lb)
Position Defence
Shoots Left
NHL team (P)
Cur. team		 Vancouver Canucks
Abbotsford Canucks (AHL)
NHL draft Undrafted
Playing career 2023–present

Akito Hirose (born April 9, 1999) is a Canadian professional ice hockey player for the Abbotsford Canucks in the American Hockey League (AHL) while under contract to the Vancouver Canucks of the National Hockey League (NHL). He played college ice hockey at Minnesota State.

Playing career

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Junior

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On September 7, 2019, Hirose was named captain of the Salmon Arm Silverbacks for the 2019–20 season.[1] During his senior season with the Arm Silverbacks, he recorded nine goals and 42 assists in 57 games. He led the league in defenceman scoring and ranked third among all BCHL players with 42 assists. Following the season he was awarded the BCHL Defensive Player of the Year award.[2]

He finished his career with 20 goals and 103 assists in 208 regular season games.[3] On September 11, 2018, Hirose committed to play for Minnesota State.[4]

College

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Hirose began his collegiate career for Minnesota State during the 2020–21 season. During his freshman year, he recorded one goal and 14 assists in 28 games, ranking tied for second in the country among all freshmen defenceman. Following the season he was named to the All-WCHA Rookie Team and All-WCHA Third Team and was named the WCHA Rookie of the Year.[5]

During the 2021–22 season, in his sophomore year, he recorded two goals and 24 assists in 38 games.[3] During March and April, he recorded five points in eight games to average .625 points per game. He was subsequently named the CCHA Defenseman of the Month. He helped the Mavericks win the 2022 CCHA men's ice hockey tournament, their first CCHA tournament championship in program history, and received an automatic bid to the 2022 NCAA Division I men's ice hockey tournament.[6] During the NCAA tournament, the Mavericks advanced to their first championship game in program history, where they lost to Denver 1–5.[7]

During the 2022–23 season, in his junior year, he recorded four goals and 23 assists in 38 games. Following the season he was named to the All-CCHA Second Team.[8] He finished his career at Minnesota State with seven goals, 61 assists, and a plus-53 rating in 104 games. During his time with the Mavericks, the team went 85–24–2, won three MacNaughton Cups, two Mason Cups, qualified for three NCAA tournaments, two Frozen Fours, and advanced to the national championship game once.[9]

Professional

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On March 29, 2023, Hirose signed a one-year, entry-level contract with the Vancouver Canucks.[10] He made his NHL debut on April 2, in a game against the Los Angeles Kings.[11] During the 2023 prospect development camp, the Canucks signed Hirose to an additional two-year contract.[12]

Personal life

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Hirose's brother, Taro, is also a professional ice hockey player for EHC Red Bull München of the DEL.[13]

Career statistics

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Regular season Playoffs
Season Team League GP G A Pts PIM GP G A Pts PIM
2016–17 Salmon Arm Silverbacks BCHL 44 2 8 10 18 — — — — —
2017–18 Salmon Arm Silverbacks BCHL 55 5 27 32 24 4 0 0 0 4
2018–19 Salmon Arm Silverbacks BCHL 52 4 26 30 17 5 0 4 4 0
2019–20 Salmon Arm Silverbacks BCHL 57 9 42 51 18 4 0 3 3 0
2020–21 Minnesota State WCHA 28 1 14 15 14 — — — — —
2021–22 Minnesota State CCHA 38 2 24 26 8 — — — — —
2022–23 Minnesota State CCHA 38 4 23 27 18 — — — — —
2022–23 Vancouver Canucks NHL 7 0 3 3 4 — — — — —
2023–24 Vancouver Canucks NHL 3 0 0 0 0
2023–24 Abbotsford Canucks AHL 33 0 2 2 6 6 1 1 2 12
NHL totals 10 0 3 3 4 — — — — —

Awards and honours

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Honors Year
College
All-WCHA Rookie Team 2021 [14]
All-WCHA Third Team 2021
WCHA Rookie of the Year 2021 [15]
All-CCHA Second Team 2023 [16]

References

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  1. ^ "Silverbacks Name Hirose Captain for 2019-20". sasilverbacks.com. September 7, 2019. Retrieved April 4, 2023.
  2. ^ "2019-20 BCHL Award winners". bchl.ca. February 26, 2020. Retrieved April 4, 2023.
  3. ^ a b "Akiro Hirose Bio". msumavericks.com. Retrieved April 4, 2023.
  4. ^ "Akito Hirose Commits to Minnesota State – Mankato". sasilverbacks.com. September 11, 2018. Retrieved April 4, 2023.
  5. ^ "Hirose Named 2020-21 WCHA Rookie of the Year". msumavericks.com. March 11, 2021. Retrieved April 4, 2023.
  6. ^ "CCHA Players of the Month: March/April 2022". ccha.com. April 13, 2022. Retrieved April 4, 2023.
  7. ^ Golen, Jimmy (April 10, 2022). "Denver beats Minnesota State 5-1 for 9th NCAA hockey title". Associated Press. Retrieved April 4, 2023.
  8. ^ "Hirose Named Second-Team All-CCHA". msumavericks.com. March 13, 2023. Retrieved April 4, 2023.
  9. ^ "Hirose leaves Minnesota State back end after three seasons, inks NHL contract with Canucks". uscho.com. March 30, 2023. Retrieved April 4, 2023.
  10. ^ "Canucks Agree to Terms with Akito Hirose on One-Year Entry-Level Contract". NHL.com. March 29, 2023. Retrieved April 4, 2023.
  11. ^ Kuzma, Ben (April 2, 2023). "Canucks: Akito Hirose makes NHL debut with injury to Guillaume Brisebois". The Province. Retrieved April 4, 2023.
  12. ^ "Canucks sign defenceman Akito Hirose". The Vancouver Sun. Retrieved 3 July 2023.
  13. ^ "Former NHL player Taro Hirose joins the Red Bulls". redbullmuenchen.de. September 13, 2024. Retrieved November 11, 2024.
  14. ^ "WCHA Announces 2020-21 All-League Teams". WCHA.com. March 10, 2021. Retrieved April 4, 2023.
  15. ^ "WCHA announces individual award winners". The Evening News. March 11, 2021. Retrieved April 4, 2023.
  16. ^ "Six Are All-CCHA Second Team Selections". ccha.com. March 14, 2023. Retrieved April 4, 2023.
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