Matvei Gridin (born 1 March 2006) is a Russian ice hockey

left winger In the sport of association football, a midfielder takes an outfield position primarily in the middle of the pitch. Midfielders may play an exclusively defensive role, breaking up attacks, and are in that case known as defensive midfielders. ...

for the Shawinigan Cataractes of the

Quebec Maritimes Junior Hockey League The Quebec Maritimes Junior Hockey League (QMJHL; , LHJMQ), formerly the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League is one of the three major junior ice hockey leagues that constitute the Canadian Hockey League (CHL). The league includes teams in Quebec ...

(QMJHL) while under contract to the

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

of 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 ...

(NHL). He was drafted 28th overall by the Flames in the 2024 NHL entry draft.

Playing career

Gridin began playing hockey at three years old in his hometown of

Kurgan A kurgan is a type of tumulus (burial mound) constructed over a grave, often characterized by containing a single human body along with grave vessels, weapons, and horses. Originally in use on the Pontic–Caspian steppe, kurgans spread into mu ...

. He played youth hockey for Spartak St. Petersburg and

Avangard Omsk Hockey Club Avangard (, Vanguard), also known as Avangard Omsk, is a professional ice hockey club based in Omsk, Russia. It is a member of the Chernyshev Division in the Kontinental Hockey League (KHL). Franchise history Early years of Omsk hock ...

's organizations before being selected by the

Muskegon Lumberjacks The Muskegon Lumberjacks are a Tier I junior ice hockey team in the Eastern Conference of the United States Hockey League. They play in Muskegon, Michigan, at Trinity Health Arena. The Lumberjacks replaced the International Hockey League fr ...

in the 15th round of the 2022 USHL draft. During the 2022–23 season, he recorded eight goals and 11 assists in 40 games for the Lumberjacks. During the 2023–24 season, Gridin led the USHL in scoring with 38 goals and 45 assists in 60 games. He ranked fourth in the league in goals and tied for fourth in assists. Following the season he was named to the All-USHL first team. Following his successful season, Gridin was drafted 28th overall by the

in the 2024 NHL entry draft. On 5 July 2024, he signed a three-year, entry-level contract with the Flames. On 3 July 2024, Gridin was drafted first overall by the Val-d'Or Foreurs in the 2024 CHL Import Draft. He was committed to play

college ice hockey College ice hockey is played principally in the United States and Canada, though leagues exist outside North America. In the United States, competitive "college hockey" refers to ice hockey played between colleges and universities within the go ...

Michigan Michigan ( ) is a peninsular U.S. state, state in the Great Lakes region, Great Lakes region of the Upper Midwest, Upper Midwestern United States. It shares water and land boundaries with Minnesota to the northwest, Wisconsin to the west, ...

, but forfeited that eligibility after signing his entry-level contract with the Flames instead. As a result, he played the 2024–25 season in the QMJHL. The Foreurs traded his rights to the Shawinigan Cataractes, and he led the team in scoring with 36 goals and 43 assists. He was twelfth overall in league scoring, and received the Michel Bergeron Trophy and Sidney Crosby Trophy as offensive rookie and overall rookie of the year, as well as being named to the All-Rookie Team.

Career statistics

Awards and honours

References

External links

* 2006 births Living people Calgary Flames draft picks Muskegon Lumberjacks players NHL first-round draft picks Sportspeople from Kurgan, Kurgan Oblast Russian ice hockey right wingers Shawinigan Cataractes players 21st-century Russian sportsmen {{Russia-icehockey-bio-stub