Skip to content

Former Salmon Arm Silverbacks captain Akito Hirose signs with Vancouver Canucks

Hirose played 208 regular-season games with the Salmon Arm team
32284234_web1_230405-SAA-Akito-Hirose-signs-canucks_1
Vancouver Canucks general manager Patrick Allvin signs former Salmon Arm Silverbacks d-man Akito Hirose to the team on March 29, 2023. (Vancouver Canucks/Twitter photo)

Former Salmon Arm Silverbacks team captain Akito Hirose has signed on with the Vancouver Canucks.

The Canucks announced Wednesday, March 29, that Hirose had agreed to a one-year, entry-level contract.

“As we continue to look at ways to improve the depth of our organization, signing a defenceman with this type of skill set is an important move for our hockey club,” said Canucks general manager Patrick Allvin in a media release. “Akito is a strong skater and he has put up impressive numbers on both sides of the ice in the NCAA and BCHL. We feel that our coaches and development team will provide him with the help and support he needs to start his pro career off in the right way.”

The 6-foot, 170-lb defenceman just wrapped up his third season with the Minnesota State Mavericks where he registered 7 points (4-23-27) and 18 penalty minutes in 38 games played. He established personal bests at the college level in goals and points, and ranked second among MSU defenceman in both assists and points, reads the release. He ranked second on the team in blocked shots this season and shared the team lead in plus-minus (+10) with two other skaters.

Hirose was twice named the Central Collegiate Hockey Association’s (CCHA) Defenceman of the Week this season and was named the CCHA’s Defenceman of the Month in January.

Over the course of his college career, spent entirely with Minnesota State University, Hirose tallied 68 points (7-61-68), 40 penalty minutes and a +56 rating in 104 games.

From Calgary, Alta., Hirose played 208 regular season games with the Silverbacks between 2016 and 2020. During that time he scored 20 goals and added 103 assists for 123 points. He served as team captain in the 2019/20 season, leading the league in scoring by a defenceman, and earning the BCHL’s Top Defenceman award as a First Team All-Star.

Read more: Silverbacks defenceman Akito Hirose signs to Minnesota State NCAA team

Read more: Silverbacks’ Hirose named to All-Star squad



newsroom@saobserver.net
Like us on Facebook and follow us on Twitter

Sign up for our newsletter to get Salmon Arm stories in your inbox every morning.