Jordan Kawaguchi (born May 4, 1997) is a Canadian professional ice hockey centre for the

Belfast Giants The Belfast Giants (known officially as the Stena Line Belfast Giants due to sponsorship) are a professional ice hockey team based in Belfast, Northern Ireland. They compete in the UK's Elite Ice Hockey League, Elite Ice Hockey League (EIHL). T ...

of the

Elite Ice Hockey League The Elite Ice Hockey League (EIHL), sometimes referred to internationally as the British Elite League, is an ice hockey league in the United Kingdom. Formed in 2003 following the demise of the Ice Hockey Superleague, it is the highest level ...

(EIHL).

Early life

Kawaguchi was born on May 4, 1997, in

Abbotsford, British Columbia Abbotsford is a city in British Columbia next to the Canada–United States border, Greater Vancouver, and the Fraser River. With a census population of 153,569 people (2021), it is the most populous municipality in the province outside metropol ...

to parents Todd and Brandy Kawaguchi. His father Todd was the only son of Japanese immigrant parents and he played college ice hockey at the

University of British Columbia The University of British Columbia (UBC) is a Public university, public research university with campuses near University of British Columbia Vancouver, Vancouver and University of British Columbia Okanagan, Kelowna, in British Columbia, Canada ...

. He is the cousin of

Devin Setoguchi Devin Setoguchi (born January 1, 1987) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey right winger. Setoguchi is half- Yonsei (fourth-generation) Japanese Canadian and a Sports California/Sharks Playoff live TV analyst. He is known by the nickname ...

, who played nine seasons in the

National Hockey League The National Hockey League (NHL; , ''LNH'') is a professional ice hockey league in North America composed of 32 teams25 in the United States and 7 in Canada. The NHL is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United States and Cana ...

Playing career

Growing up in British Columbia, Kawaguchi played for the Abbotsford Minor Hockey Association before joining the U15 Pursuit of Excellence prep program in Kelowna. While playing with the U15 prep team, he recorded 57 goals and 74 assists for 131 points in 43 games and was named Tournament MVP at the Kamloops International Ice Hockey Tournament. As a result, Kawaguchi was drafted in the fourth round, 80th overall, by the

Spokane Chiefs The Spokane Chiefs are an American major junior ice hockey team based in Spokane, Washington. The Chiefs play in the U.S. Division of the Western Hockey League's Western Conference, playing home games at Spokane Arena. The Chiefs are two-time M ...

in the

Western Hockey League The Western Hockey League (WHL) is a junior ice hockey league based in Western Canada and the Northwestern United States. The WHL is one of three leagues that constitutes the Canadian Hockey League (CHL) as the highest level of junior hocke ...

(WHL) Bantam Draft. However, he committed to play for the

Chilliwack Chiefs The Chilliwack Chiefs are a junior hockey team based in Chilliwack, British Columbia, Canada. They are members of the Coastal Conference of the British Columbia Hockey League (BCHL). They play their home games at the Chilliwack Coliseum which w ...

in the

British Columbia Hockey League The British Columbia Hockey League (BCHL) is an independent Canadian Junior ice hockey league with 21 teams in British Columbia and Alberta. It was classified as a Junior "A" league within the Hockey Canada framework, until it became independe ...

(BCHL) for the 2012–13 season, where he recorded nine goals and nine assists as the team finished last in the Mainland Division. Kawaguchi spent four complete seasons with the Chiefs, where he increased his offensive output from his rookie season. He finished his BCHL career with 120 goals and 242 points in 213 career games while also earning BCHL All-Star honors. Kawaguchi originally committed to play collegiate ice hockey with

Providence College Providence College is a Private university, private Roman Catholic university in Providence, Rhode Island, United States. Founded in 1917 by the Dominican Order and the Roman Catholic Diocese of Providence, it offers 47 undergraduate Academic ...

but changed to the

University of North Dakota The University of North Dakota (UND) is a Public university, public research university in Grand Forks, North Dakota, United States. It was established by the Dakota Territory, Dakota Territorial Assembly in 1883, six years before the establishm ...

of the

National Collegiate Hockey Conference The National Collegiate Hockey Conference (NCHC) is an NCAA men's Division I hockey conference. The league was formed on July 9, 2011 and began playing for the 2013–14 season, the same season that the Big Ten Conference began competition, as a ...

. After his junior season with the North Dakota Fighting Hawks, Kawaguchi was named to the AHCA First All-American Team. Kawaguchi was named captain in his senior season with the Fighting Hawks, leading the team in scoring and placing fourth in the NCAA with 36 points through 28 games in the shortened

2020–21 The dash is a punctuation mark consisting of a long horizontal line. It is similar in appearance to the hyphen but is longer and sometimes higher from the baseline. The most common versions are the endash , generally longer than the hyphen ...

season. As an undrafted free agent, Kawaguchi turned professional in agreeing to a one-year, entry-level contract with the

Dallas Stars The Dallas Stars are a professional ice hockey team based in Dallas. The Stars compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Central Division (NHL), Central Division in the Western Conference (NHL), Western Conference. The Stars ...

on March 31, 2021. He was assigned by the Stars to join AHL affiliate, the Texas Stars. On August 1, 2022, Kawaguchi as a free agent opted to remain within the Stars organization by signing a one-year AHL contract to continue with the Texas Stars for the

2022–23 The dash is a punctuation mark consisting of a long horizontal line. It is similar in appearance to the hyphen but is longer and sometimes higher from the baseline. The most common versions are the endash , generally longer than the hyphen ...

season, spending it with the Stars' ECHL affiliate, the

Idaho Steelheads The Idaho Steelheads are an American professional minor league ice hockey team based in Boise, Idaho, and a member of the ECHL. The Steelheads play in the Mountain Division of the ECHL's Western Conference since the 2016–17 season. In 1996, t ...

. Kawaguchi announced his retirement in November 2023 after an injury-laden 2022–23 ECHL season in which he sustained three

concussion A concussion, also known as a mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI), is a head injury that temporarily affects brain functioning. Symptoms may include headache, dizziness, difficulty with thinking and concentration, sleep disturbances, a brief ...

s, a broken thumb, and a torn MCL. This retirement was ultimately short-lived, as Kawaguchi re-signed with the Steelheads and returned to ice hockey on January 17, 2024. Following his first three full professional seasons in North America, Kawaguchi moved abroad a free agent in signing a one-year contract with Irish based club, Belfast Giants of the EIHL, on July 29, 2024.

Career statistics

Awards and honors

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Kawaguchi, Jordan 1997 births Living people AHCA Division I men's ice hockey All-Americans Belfast Giants players Canadian ice hockey centres Chilliwack Chiefs players Idaho Steelheads (ECHL) players North Dakota Fighting Hawks men's ice hockey players Canadian expatriate ice hockey players in the United States Ice hockey people from Abbotsford, British Columbia Texas Stars players West Kelowna Warriors players 21st-century Canadian sportsmen Canadian sportspeople of Japanese descent