Brandon Kozun

Brandon Kozun (born March 8, 1990) is an American-born Canadian professional ice hockey player for the Manchester Monarchs of the American Hockey League (AHL). He is a draft pick of the Los Angeles Kings of the National Hockey League (NHL), selected in the sixth round, 179th overall at the 2009 NHL Entry Draft. He played junior hockey for the Calgary Hitmen, and won both the Western Hockey League (WHL) and Canadian Hockey League (CHL) scoring titles in 2009–10 as the Hitmen won the WHL championship. Although he was born in the United States, Kozun represents Canada internationally, and was a member of the Canadian junior team that won a silver medal at the 2010 World Junior Ice Hockey Championships.

Personal
Kozun was born March 8, 1990 in Los Angeles, California. His father, Michael, is American, while his mother, Donna, was born in Canada. He has two elder brothers, Johnathan and Christopher. Following the lead of his brothers, Kozun began playing hockey in 1993 at the age of three; the same time the Los Angeles Kings reached the Stanley Cup Finals for the first time, leading to an increase in popularity in the sport. His first coach was Mike Barnett, the agent of Kings' star Wayne Gretzky. His family moved to Calgary, Alberta when he was around ten years old. He continued playing, first with the Blackfoot then Midnapore minor hockey associations in Calgary before attending Shattuck-Saint Mary's in Faribault, Minnesota in 2005–06.

Junior
Kozun began his junior career with the Calgary Royals of the Alberta Junior Hockey League (AJHL) in 2006–07. He also appeared in 11 games with the Calgary Hitmen, scoring one goal. Kozun moved up to the Western Hockey League (WHL) full time in 2007–08 as he recorded 19 goals and 53 points in 67 games for the Hitmen. He improved to 108 points in 2008–09, second in the league behind Casey Pierro-Zabotel's 115, and was named a First-Team All-Star by the WHL. His season also earned the attention of scouts.

The diminutive forward relies on his speed and skating ability and was praised by Hitmen coach Mike Williamson for his competitive nature and willing to play any role the team asks of him. Williamson added that his sense of anticipation allows Kozun to see plays on the ice develop before they happen, stating it to be a trait found in elite athletes. His small size, standing 5"9', initially led WHL teams to overlook him, as well as NHL scouts who argued he was too small for the NHL. He was left unranked by NHL Central Scouting in his first year of draft eligibility in 2008, and went undrafted that year. Following his 108 point season with the Hitmen, the Los Angeles Kings selected Kozun with their 6th round pick, 179th overall at the 2009 NHL Entry Draft. Kozun led the league in scoring in 2009–10, scoring 13 points in his final five games to finish with 107 points to win the Bob Clarke Trophy.

Professional
The Kings assigned Kozun to their American Hockey League (AHL) affiliate, the Manchester Monarchs, to begin the 2010–11 season.

In his home debut for the Manchester Monarchs, Kozun scored two goals, the first of which was a penalty shot goal at 19:26 of the first period against the Providence Bruins on October 16, 2010. The goal was the first of two penalty shot attempts by the Monarchs, a franchise record for penalty shots awarded in a game.

International play
He earned the attention of both the Canadian and American national junior teams as he led the WHL in scoring early in the 2009–10 season. Kozun was reportedly guaranteed a spot on the American team at the 2010 World Junior Ice Hockey Championships, but declined as he wanted to show loyalty to the nation that developed him as a hockey player. Kozun earned a spot on the Canadian team, his first time representing Canada internationally. During round robin play, he scored the shootout winner to cap a dramatic 5–4 come from behind victory over the Americans, leading Canada to first place in their pool, and a bye into the semi-final round of the tournament. Canada lost a rematch against the Americans in the gold medal game, also in overtime, to settle for the silver medal.