Jordan Hunter Gross (born May 9, 1995) is an American professional ice hockey defenseman who is currently playing for HC Dinamo Minsk in the Kontinental Hockey League (KHL). He has formerly played with the Arizona Coyotes, Colorado Avalanche and the Nashville Predators in the National Hockey League (NHL).
| Jordan Gross | |||
|---|---|---|---|
 Gross playing with the Nashville Predators in 2022 | |||
| Born |
May 9, 1995 Maple Grove, Minnesota, U.S. | ||
| Height | 5 ft 10 in (178 cm) | ||
| Weight | 190 lb (86 kg; 13 st 8 lb) | ||
| Position | Defense | ||
| Shoots | Right | ||
| KHL team Former teams |
Dinamo Minsk Arizona Coyotes Colorado Avalanche Nashville Predators | ||
| NHL draft | Undrafted | ||
| Playing career | 2018–present | ||
Playing career
editAmateur
editGross played school hockey in Minnesota with Maple Grove High School before playing junior in the United States Hockey League (USHL) with the Green Bay Gamblers. Undrafted, Gross committed to collegiate hockey with the University of Notre Dame, beginning as a freshman in the 2014–15 season.
In his senior season with the Fighting Irish and although under-sized Gross developed into one of the top defenseman in the NCAA. In the 2017–18 season, Gross registered 10 goals and 30 points in 40 games, ranking third on Notre Dame in scoring and led all Fighting Irish defensemen in points. Gross helped the Fighting Irish advance to the Frozen Four championship game where he was named to the NCAA (Championship) All-Tournament Team and later the Big Ten Conference First All-Star Team.[1]
Professional
editArizona Coyotes
editAs a free agent, Gross attracted NHL interest, opting to sign a two-year, entry-level contract with the Arizona Coyotes on April 12, 2018.[2] He immediately joined the Coyotes' AHL affiliate, the Tucson Roadrunners, on an amateur try-out, making his professional debut in a solitary appearance and registering 2 assists to end the regular season, in a 6-3 victory over the San Diego Gulls on April 14, 2018.[3]
In the following 2019–20 season, Gross was assigned to continue his development with the Roadrunners in the AHL, before he was recalled by the Coyotes on December 22, 2019, and made his NHL debut for the Coyotes against the Detroit Red Wings and scored his first NHL point with an assist on the Coyotes' fifth goal.[4] Returning to the Roadrunners following two games, Gross tied for first among Tucson defensemen with 10 goals and finished second with 27 points while appearing in 56 contests.
On October 10, 2020, as a restricted free agent, Gross was signed to a one-year, two-way contract extension with the Arizona Coyotes.[5] In the pandemic delayed 2020–21 season, Gross spent the majority of the season on the Coyotes extended taxi squad. On April 2, 2021, Gross registered a career-high 3 assists against the Anaheim Ducks, the most tallied by a Coyotes rookie defenseman in a single game since Keith Ballard in 2006.[6] Gross finished with 3 points through 7 games before missing the final 14 games of the shortened season due to a lower body injury.
Colorado Avalanche
editAs a free agent from the Coyotes, due to lack of games played at the NHL level, Gross was signed to a one-year, two-way contract with the Colorado Avalanche for the 2021–22 season on July 31, 2021.[7] Assigned to AHL affiliate, the Colorado Eagles following training camp with the Avalanche, Gross was a staple on the blueline, leading all defenseman and tied for the team lead in scoring with 18 points through 21 games before earning his first recall to the Avalanche on December 15, 2021.[8] He made his Avalanche debut the following day, taking two minor penalties in a 5-2 defeat to the Nashville Predators.[9] He was returned to the Eagles following the game, as the Avalanche took a hiatus due to COVID-19. In continuing his break out season with the Eagles, Gross finished the regular season leading the league in scoring on the blueline with 10 goals and 55 assists for 65 points over 61 games, earning selection to the AHL's First All-Star Team.[10] He was awarded the Eddie Shore Award in recognition of his season as the AHL's outstanding defenseman.[11]
Nashville Predators
editAs a free agent from the Avalanche, Gross capitalised on his successful season by agreeing to a two-year, $1.525 million contract with the Nashville Predators on July 13, 2022.[12]
Dinamo Minsk
editAt the conclusion of his contract with the Predators, Gross as a pending free agent opted to pursue a career abroad, securing a one-year contract with Belarusian outfit, HC Dinamo Minsk of the KHL, on June 28, 2024.[13]
Career statistics
edit| Regular season | Playoffs | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Team | League | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | ||
| 2010–11 | Maple Grove High | USHS | 25 | 6 | 18 | 24 | 8 | 3 | 2 | 4 | 6 | 4 | ||
| 2011–12 | Maple Grove High | USHS | 25 | 15 | 24 | 39 | 27 | 3 | 2 | 5 | 7 | 2 | ||
| 2011–12 | Green Bay Gamblers | USHL | 6 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2012–13 | Green Bay Gamblers | USHL | 64 | 7 | 24 | 31 | 12 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 | ||
| 2013–14 | Green Bay Gamblers | USHL | 50 | 2 | 23 | 25 | 31 | 4 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 6 | ||
| 2014–15 | Notre Dame | HE | 42 | 7 | 21 | 28 | 14 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2015–16 | Notre Dame | HE | 37 | 9 | 22 | 31 | 30 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2016–17 | Notre Dame | HE | 40 | 10 | 22 | 32 | 12 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2017–18 | Notre Dame | B1G | 40 | 10 | 20 | 30 | 26 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2017–18 | Tucson Roadrunners | AHL | 1 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2018–19 | Tucson Roadrunners | AHL | 61 | 5 | 20 | 25 | 28 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2019–20 | Tucson Roadrunners | AHL | 56 | 10 | 17 | 27 | 14 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2019–20 | Arizona Coyotes | NHL | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2020–21 | Arizona Coyotes | NHL | 7 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 2 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2021–22 | Colorado Eagles | AHL | 61 | 10 | 55 | 65 | 44 | 9 | 1 | 9 | 10 | 6 | ||
| 2021–22 | Colorado Avalanche | NHL | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2022–23 | Milwaukee Admirals | AHL | 53 | 10 | 28 | 38 | 36 | 11 | 2 | 9 | 11 | 6 | ||
| 2022–23 | Nashville Predators | NHL | 15 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 2 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2023–24 | Milwaukee Admirals | AHL | 42 | 6 | 16 | 22 | 24 | 12 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 | ||
| NHL totals | 25 | 3 | 4 | 7 | 8 | — | — | — | — | — | ||||
Awards and honors
edit| Award | Year | |
|---|---|---|
| USHL | ||
| USHL/NHL Top Prospects Game | 2013 | |
| College | ||
| HE Second All-Star Team | 2016 | |
| HE Honorable Mention All-Star Team | 2017 | |
| Big Ten All-Tournament Team | 2018 | |
| All-Big Ten First Team | 2018 | [1] |
| NCAA East Regional MVP/Tournament Team | 2018 | |
| NCAA Frozen Four All Tournament Team | 2018 | |
| AHL | ||
| First All-Star Team | 2022 | [10] |
| Eddie Shore Award | 2022 | [11] |
References
edit- ^ a b "Notre Dame goalie is Big Ten player of the year; four honoured". Minnesota Star Tribune. March 13, 2018. Retrieved December 12, 2018.
- ^ "Coyotes sign Gross to entry-level contract". Arizona Coyotes. April 12, 2018. Retrieved December 12, 2018.
- ^ "Roadrunners 6, Gulls 3". American Hockey League. April 14, 2018. Retrieved December 12, 2018.
- ^ "Jordan Gross to make NHL debut". Arizona Coyotes. December 22, 2019. Retrieved December 22, 2019.
- ^ "Coyotes sign Gross, Hunt to one-year contracts". Arizona Coyotes. October 10, 2020. Retrieved October 10, 2020.
- ^ "Kessel, Pederson rally Coyotes to a 4-2 victory over the Ducks". ESPN. April 2, 2021. Retrieved April 2, 2021.
- ^ "Avalanche signs Jordan Gross". Colorado Avalanche. July 31, 2021. Retrieved July 31, 2021.
- ^ "Jordan Gross recalled by Colorado Avalanche". oursportscentral.com. December 15, 2021. Retrieved December 15, 2021.
- ^ "Forsberg, Preds beat Avalanche 5-2 as both team battle COVID-19". ESPN. December 16, 2021. Retrieved December 16, 2021.
- ^ a b "2021-22 AHL First, Second All-Star Teams unveiled". American Hockey League. April 28, 2022. Retrieved April 28, 2022.
- ^ a b "Gross wins Eddie Shore Award". Colorado Eagles. May 6, 2022. Retrieved May 6, 2022.
- ^ "Predators sign Jordan Gross to a two-year contract". Nashville Predators. July 13, 2022. Retrieved July 13, 2022.
- ^ "Jordan Gross signs with Dinamo Minsk" (in Russian). HC Dinamo Minsk. June 28, 2024. Retrieved June 28, 2024.
External links
edit- Biographical information and career statistics from NHL.com, or Eliteprospects.com, or Hockey-Reference.com, or The Internet Hockey Database