Slater Koekkoek

Slater Koekkoek (born February 18, 1994) is a Canadian professional ice hockey defenceman. He currently plays for the Syracuse Crunch of the American Hockey League, under contract with the Tampa Bay Lightning of the National Hockey League (NHL).

Junior
Koekkoek was a 1st round selection of the Peterborough Petes in the 2010 OHL Priority Selection. Koekkoek played 4 seasons and 195 games in the Ontario Hockey League having played 131 games with the Peterborough Petes and 64 with the Windsor Spitfires. During his 2nd season with the Peterborough Petes he only played in 26 games before suffering a season-ending shoulder injury in November. He was traded mid-season to Windsor on January 10, 2013, and in his last season, he set a career high and recorded 15 goals and 53 points, and finished with a +44 rating and 51 penalty minutes.

Professional
Koekkoek was selected 10th overall in the 2012 NHL Entry Draft by the Tampa Bay Lightning. He was signed by the Lightning to a three-year entry level contract on March 20, 2013 and was assigned to the Canadian Hockey League the first 2 years. Koekkoek made his professional hockey debut on October 12, 2014 against the Hartford Wolf Pack. In 66 games with the Crunch, Koekkoek has five goals and 24 points to go along with 40 penalty minutes. Koekkoek leads all Crunch defensemen in assists (19) and points (24). He also is tied for fifth among American Hockey League rookie defensemen in points.

Koekkoek made his NHL Debut with the Tampa Bay Lightning on March 31, 2015 in his home province of Ontario losing 3-1 against the Toronto Maple Leafs recording 2 shots and a -1 rating. Koekkoek skated 15:31 in the game. Lightning head coach Jon Cooper stated that "he can be proud of how he played," and that "he was up in the play, and he did some good things. He defended well, and I was happy with him." On April 8, 2015, the Tampa Bay Lightning announced that Koekkoek had been reassigned to the Syracuse Crunch of the American Hockey League. Koekkoek skated in three games with the Lightning, recording two penalty minutes and six shots.

On March 7, 2016, Koekkoek recorded his first career NHL assist and first NHL point in a 2-4 loss to the Philadelphia Flyers. On April 30, 2016, Koekkoek appeared in his first NHL playoff game, which was a 4-1 Lightning win over the New York Islanders. On May 24, 2016, Koekkoek recorded his first career playoff assist and point, which came in a 2-5 Lightning loss to the Pittsburgh Penguins.

International
Koekkoek represented Team Canada at the 2011 IIHF World U18 Championships, where he had two points in seven games and helped Canada win a bronze medal. In the 2011 Ivan Hlinka Memorial Tournament, Koekkoek served as an alternate captain, and he led Canada in defensive scoring with five points in five games.