Lawson Crouse

Lawson Crouse
Born	June 23, 1997 Mount Brydges, ON, CAN[1]
Height	6 ft 4 in (193 cm)
Weight	215 lb (98 kg; 15 st 5 lb)
Position	Left Wing
Shoots	Left
NHL team (P) Cur. team	Florida Panthers Kingston Frontenacs (OHL)
NHL Draft	11th overall, 2015 Florida Panthers
Playing career	TBD–present

Lawson Crouse (born June 23, 1997) is a Canadian major junior ice hockey winger playing for the Kingston Frontenacs as an alternate captain of the Ontario Hockey League (OHL). He was part of the Canadian gold medal winning team at the 2015 World Junior Ice Hockey Championships. Crouse has been given the nickname "The Sheriff" because of the way he looks after his teammates in Kingston.^[2]

Early life

Lawson was born and raised in London, Ontario. He is the youngest of three children and has two sisters, Sara and Kyla. His father Mike coached him throughout his minor hockey career, and mother Kristen is a principal and was born in Thunder Bay, Ontario.

Playing career

Junior

Kingston Frontenacs (2013–present)

Crouse was selected by the Kingston Frontenacs of the OHL in the first round, fifth overall, in the 2013 OHL Priority Selection. In the 2013–14 season, Crouse appeared in his first career OHL game on September 19, 2013, scoring his first career goal in that game against Andrew D'Agostini in the Frontenacs 11–4 win over the Peterborough Petes. On October 4, 2013, Crouse recorded his first multi-goal game of his junior career, scoring twice in a 7–4 win over the Ottawa 67's. On March 4, 2014, Crouse had a season high four point game, scoring two goals and adding two assists, as Kingston lost to the Barrie Colts 7–5. Overall, Crouse finished the 2013–14 season with 15 goals and 27 points in 63 games, helping the Frontenacs into the playoffs. In seven post-season games, Crouse was limited to one assist, as the Frontenacs were upset by the Peterborough Petes in the first round.

Crouse improved during his second season with the Fronteancs in 2014–15. He recorded his first career OHL hat trick on November 28, 2014, scoring three goals against Dawson Carty of the Kitchener Rangers in a 5–0 Frontenacs victory. He played in 56 games with Kingston, scoring 29 goals and 51 points. In four playoff games, Crouse had two goals and three points.

Crouse returned to the Frontenacs for a third season in 2015-16, and Crouse once again saw an improvement in his offensive numbers. On March 5th, Crouse recorded a hat trick, scoring three goals and adding an assist in a 7-2 win over the Flint Firebirds. Overall, in 49 games, Crouse scored 23 goals and 62 points. In the post-season, Crouse scored seven goals and 11 points in nine games.

Professional

Florida Panthers (2015-present)

Crouse was drafted eleventh overall in the 2015 NHL Entry Draft by the Florida Panthers. On July 15, 2015, the Panthers signed Crouse to a three-year entry level contract.^[3]

The Panthers assigned Crouse to his junior hockey team, the Kingston Frontenacs, for the 2015-16 season, however, when the Frontenacs were eliminated from the post-season, Florida assigned Crouse to their AHL affiliate, the Portland Pirates, for the remainder of the season.

Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs

				Regular season						Playoffs
Season	Team	League		GP	G	A	Pts	PIM		GP	G	A	Pts	PIM
2012–13	St. Thomas Stars	GOJHL		5	0	1	1	0		—	—	—	—	—
2013–14	Kingston Frontenacs	OHL		63	15	12	27	64		7	0	3	3	7
2014–15	Kingston Frontenacs	OHL		56	29	22	51	70		4	2	1	3	18
2015–16	Kingston Frontenacs	OHL		49	23	39	62	56		9	7	4	11	2
OHL totals				168	67	73	140	190		20	9	8	17	27

Medal record
Representing  Canada
Men's ice hockey
World Junior Championships
	2015 Canada
IIHF World U18 Championship
	2013 Russia

International

Year	Team	Event	Result		GP	G	A	Pts	PIM
2014	Canada Ontario	U17	5th		5	2	2	4	0
2014	Canada	IH18			5	6	0	6	8
2014	Canada	WJC18			7	1	0	1	0
2015	Canada	WJC			7	1	2	3	0
2016	Canada	WJC	6th		5	2	3	5	2
Junior totals					29	12	7	19	10

Awards and honours

Award	Year
OHL
Second All-Rookie Team	2014	[4]
International
IIHF World U20 Championships Gold Medal	2015

References

1. "Lawson Crouse prospect profile". National Hockey League. 2015-04-01. Retrieved 2015-04-01.
2. "Crouse, Lawson – 2015 NHL Draft Prospects". National Hockey League. Retrieved 2015-05-28.
3. "Florida Panthers Agree to Entry-Level Contract with F Lawson Crouse". panthers.nhl.com. July 15, 2015. Retrieved July 15, 2015.
4. "Travis Konecny named rookie of the year". Ontario Hockey League. 2014-04-15. Retrieved 2015-04-14.

External links

• Lawson Crouse's career statistics at EliteProspects.com