Aaron Ekblad
| Aaron Ekblad | |||
|---|---|---|---|
 | |||
| Born |
February 7, 1996 Windsor, Ontario, Canada | ||
| Height | 6 ft 4 in (193 cm) | ||
| Weight | 216 lb (98 kg; 15 st 6 lb) | ||
| Position | Defence | ||
| Shoots | Right | ||
| NHL team | Florida Panthers | ||
| National team |
 Canada | ||
| NHL Draft |
1st overall, 2014 Florida Panthers | ||
| Playing career | 2014–present | ||
Aaron Ekblad (born February 7, 1996) is a Canadian professional ice hockey defenceman, and an alternate captain for the Florida Panthers in the National Hockey League (NHL). Ekblad was selected first overall in the 2011 OHL Entry Draft,[1] and he was selected first overall by the Florida Panthers in the 2014 NHL Entry Draft.[2]
Playing career
Amateur
In 2010–11, Ekblad competed for the Sun County Panthers minor midget AAA team in Belle River, Ontario. He had 34 points in 30 regular season games and added 21 points in 18 playoff games.[3] He captained the team and lead them to an alliance championship.[4]
Ekblad’s application to be the only player born in 1996 in the draft was approved unanimously, after a six-week review by Hockey Canada. With the approval, Ekblad became the first defenceman ever granted "exceptional player" status.[5] The status allowed him to compete in the Canadian Hockey League a year earlier than his eligible age. The only other players to have been given such eligibility are centre John Tavares in 2005, Connor McDavid in 2012, Sean Day in 2013, and Joseph Veleno in 2015.[6]
In the 2014 OHL Coaches Poll, the results of which were released in Toronto, he won top honours in four different categories in the Eastern Conference of the Ontario Hockey League, earning first-place finishes for best shot, hardest shot, best offensive defenceman, and best defensive defenceman. He was also voted second in the category of best penalty killer, behind Oshawa Generals forward Scott Laughton.[7]
Professional
Ekblad was selected first overall in the 2014 NHL Entry Draft by the Florida Panthers on June 27, 2014.[2] He subsequently signed his first NHL contract on September 3, a three-year, entry-level deal with the Panthers.[8] After making the Panthers' opening night roster out of training camp for the 2014–15 season, Ekblad made his NHL debut on October 9 against the Tampa Bay Lightning. In the game, he scored his first career NHL point, an assist on a Jonathan Huberdeau goal, in Florida's eventual 3–2 loss in overtime.[9] Ekblad later scored his first career NHL goal on November 1 against Steve Mason of the Philadelphia Flyers in a 2–1 Panthers win.[10]
On December 6, in a game against the Buffalo Sabres, Ekblad scored a career-high three points in a 3–2 Panthers victory, the first Panthers rookie to record a three-point game since Dan Boyle during the 1998–99 season. Ekblad was also named the game's first star for his performance.[11] On January 23, 2015, Ekblad was named as an injury replacement for Colorado Avalanche defenceman Erik Johnson at the 2015 NHL All-Star Game in Columbus, Ohio.[12] In the Game, Ekblad recorded four assists in Team Toews' 17–12 victory over Team Foligno.[13]
Ekblad finished his rookie season with 12 goals and 27 assists (39 points) in 81 games played for Florida. Following the conclusion of his rookie season, Ekblad led all rookie defencemen in goals, power play goals (6), power play points (13), shots (170) and fewest shot attempts against per 60 minutes (38.04). He also finished second in assists, plus-minus (+12), hits (109) and blocked shots (80), while also averaging 21:48 of ice time per game.[14] On April 23, Ekblad was named one of three finalists for the Calder Memorial Trophy — awarded annually to the NHL's rookie of the year — along with the Ottawa Senators' Mark Stone and Calgary Flames' Johnny Gaudreau.[15] On June 24, 2015, Ekblad was announced as the Calder winner.
On July 2, 2016, Ekblad and the Panthers have agreed to an eight-year, $60 million extension.
International play
| Medal record | ||
|---|---|---|
| Representing Canada
| ||
| Ice hockey | ||
| World Championships | ||
.svg.png){kind=icon} | 2015 Czech Republic | |
| Ivan Hlinka Memorial Tournament | ||
| | 2013 Czech Republic | |
During Team Canada junior team's training camp in August 2014 in preparation for the upcoming 2015 World Junior Ice Hockey Championships in December 2014, Ekblad suffered a concussion in an exhibition game against the Czech Republic.[16]
Ekblad played for Canada at the 2015 World Championships, where they won the gold medal for the first time since 2007 with a perfect 10-0 record.[17]
Personal
Ekblad's brother Darien, a goaltender, was drafted into the OHL by the London Knights. Aaron Ekblad attended St. Anne's Catholic High School and was an honour roll student in the WECDSB. Ekblad was born in Windsor, but grew up in Belle River, Ontario. His great-grandfather was Swedish, hence the lastname "Ekblad".
Career statistics
Regular season and playoffs
| Regular season | Playoffs | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Team | League | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | ||
| 2011–12 | Barrie Colts | OHL | 63 | 10 | 19 | 29 | 34 | 13 | 2 | 3 | 5 | 8 | ||
| 2012–13 | Barrie Colts | OHL | 54 | 7 | 27 | 34 | 64 | 22 | 7 | 10 | 17 | 28 | ||
| 2013–14 | Barrie Colts | OHL | 58 | 23 | 30 | 53 | 91 | 9 | 2 | 4 | 6 | 14 | ||
| 2014–15 | Florida Panthers | NHL | 81 | 12 | 27 | 39 | 32 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2015–16 | Florida Panthers | NHL | 78 | 15 | 21 | 36 | 41 | 6 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | ||
| NHL totals | 159 | 27 | 48 | 75 | 73 | 6 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | ||||
International
| Year | Team | Event | Result | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2012 | Canada Ontario | U17 |  |
5 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | |
| 2013 | Canada Ontario | U17 | 6th | 5 | 2 | 4 | 6 | 4 | |
| 2013 | Canada | IH18 |  |
5 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 4 | |
| 2014 | Canada | WJC | 4th | 7 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 2 | |
| 2015 | Canada | WC | |
10 | 4 | 3 | 7 | 6 | |
| 2016 | Team North America | WCH | 5th | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| Junior totals | 22 | 6 | 9 | 15 | 14 | ||||
| Senior totals | 11 | 4 | 3 | 7 | 6 | ||||
Awards and honours
| Honours | Year | Ref |
|---|---|---|
| Jack Ferguson Award – OHL Priority Selection Draft Top Pick | 2011 | |
| Emms Family Award – OHL Rookie of the Year | 2011–12 | |
| Ivan Hlinka Memorial Tournament – Gold with Team Canada | 2013 | |
| Max Kaminsky Trophy – OHL Top Defenceman | 2013–14 | |
| OHL First All-Star Team | 2013–14 | [18] |
| NHL All-Star | 2015, 2016 | [19] |
| Calder Memorial Trophy | 2014-15 | |
| NHL All-Rookie Team | 2014-15 |
References
- ↑ "Colts Select Aaron Ekblad First Overall". OurSports Central. May 6, 2011. Retrieved June 30, 2014.
- 1 2 "Ekblad 'overwhelmed' after going No. 1 in Draft". National Hockey League. June 28, 2014. Retrieved June 30, 2014.
- ↑ "Aaron Ekblad". Elite Prospects. Retrieved June 30, 2014.
- ↑ "Ekblad Receives Ferguson Award". Barrie Colts. June 12, 2011. Retrieved June 30, 2014.
- ↑ "Aaron Ekblad first defenceman named 'exceptional player'". The Star. September 21, 2011. Retrieved June 30, 2014.
- ↑ "Exceptional Player Status for Sean Day". Ontario Hockey League. Retrieved June 30, 2014.
- ↑ "Ekblad earns four top honors in OHL coaches poll". National Hockey League. March 19, 2014. Retrieved June 30, 2014.
- ↑ Florida Panthers Sign No. 1 Overall Draft Pick D Aaron Ekblad
- ↑ Associated Press (October 9, 2014). "Victor Hedman scores in OT to lift Lightning past Panthers in opener". FOX Sports. Retrieved May 30, 2015.
- ↑ Ekblad's first NHL goal helps Panthers edge Flyers
- ↑ Olive, Jameson (May 16, 2015). "Panthers top pick Aaron Ekblad lived up to expectations". FOX Sports. Retrieved May 30, 2015.
- ↑ Gretz, Adam (January 23, 2015). "Aaron Ekblad added to All-Star Game; Johnny Gaudreau not added". CBS Sports. Retrieved May 30, 2015.
- ↑ Masisak, Corey (January 25, 2015). "Ekblad, Gaudreau, Forsberg make an impact at ASG". NHL. Retrieved May 30, 2015.
- ↑ Olive, Jameson (May 16, 2015). "Panthers top pick Aaron Ekblad lived up to expectations". FOX Sports. Retrieved May 30, 2015.
- ↑ "Calgary Flames' Johnny Gaudreau, Ottawa Senators' Mark Stone, Florida Panthers' Aaron Ekblad named NHL Calder finalists". National Post. April 23, 2015. Retrieved May 30, 2015.
- ↑ "Don cherry upset with Team Canada after Aaron Ekblad hit". CBC. August 9, 2014. Retrieved August 13, 2014.
- ↑ "Canada's National Men's Team wins gold medal at 2015 IIHF Ice Hockey World Championship". Hockey Canada. May 17, 2015. Retrieved September 10, 2016.
- ↑ "OHL Announces 2013-14 All-Star Teams". Ontario Hockey League. May 14, 2013. Retrieved June 30, 2014.
- ↑ "Ekblad, Gaudreau replace Crosby, Johnson in ASG". Sportsnet.ca. 2015-01-15. Retrieved 2015-01-15.
External links
- Career statistics and player information from NHL.com, or Eliteprospects.com, or Hockey-Reference.com, or The Internet Hockey Database
| Awards and achievements | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Nail Yakupov |
Winner of the Emms Family Award 2011–12 |
Succeeded by Connor McDavid |
| Preceded by Alex Galchenyuk |
Jack Ferguson Award 2011 |
Succeeded by Connor McDavid |
| Preceded by Nathan MacKinnon |
NHL first overall draft pick 2014 |
Succeeded by Connor McDavid |
| Preceded by Aleksander Barkov |
Florida Panthers' first round draft pick 2014 |
Succeeded by Lawson Crouse |
| Preceded by Nathan MacKinnon |
Winner of the Calder Trophy 2015 |
Succeeded by Artemi Panarin |