Sebastian Antero Aho (born 26 July 1997) is a Finnish professional ice hockey player and alternate captain for the Carolina Hurricanes of the National Hockey League (NHL). Aho formerly played with Oulun Kärpät in the Finnish SM-liiga. Aho made his professional debut with Oulun Kärpät during the 2013–14 season. Drafted 35th overall in the 2015 NHL Entry Draft, he made his NHL debut during the 2016–17 season with the Hurricanes.
| Sebastian Aho | |||
|---|---|---|---|
 Aho in 2016 | |||
| Born | 26 July 1997 Rauma, Finland | ||
| Height | 6 ft 0 in (183 cm) | ||
| Weight | 176 lb (80 kg; 12 st 8 lb) | ||
| Position | Centre / Left wing | ||
| Shoots | Left | ||
| NHL team Former teams | Carolina Hurricanes Oulun Kärpät Ässät | ||
| National team |  Finland | ||
| NHL draft | 35th overall, 2015 Carolina Hurricanes | ||
| Playing career | 2014–present | ||
Playing career
editSM-liiga
editAho made his SM-liiga debut playing with Oulun Kärpät during the 2013–14 season.[1] In the playoffs of the 2014-2015 season, Aho scored the game-winning goal in overtime of Game seven of the finals and won the Finnish championship for Kärpät.
Carolina Hurricanes
editAho was rated amongst the top 20 European forward skaters eligible for the 2015 NHL Entry Draft.[2][3] In the draft, he was selected in the second round, 35th overall, by the Carolina Hurricanes.
On 13 June 2016, Aho signed a three-year, entry-level contract with Carolina.[4] On 13 October 2016, he made his NHL debut—and recorded his first point, an assist—in the opening game of the 2016–17 season.[5] On 12 November 2016, he scored his first goal, which was followed by a second goal in a 5–1 win over the Washington Capitals.[6] On 31 January 2017, Aho scored his first career hat-trick in a game against the Philadelphia Flyers.[7] Consequently, he became the youngest player in Hurricanes/Whalers franchise history to score a hat-trick.[8]
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After the Hurricanes failed to make the 2018 Stanley Cup playoffs, Aho represented Finland at the 2018 IIHF World Championship.[9]
During the 2018–19 season, Aho passed Ron Francis' franchise record for longest season-opening point streak by recording a point in the Hurricanes' first 12 games. As well, it tied an NHL record for recording a point per game from the start of the season.[10] His streak ended on 3 November in a 4–3 overtime loss to the Arizona Coyotes.[11] On 2 January, Aho was selected to participate in the 2019 NHL All-Star Game after leading the team in goals, assists and points through 38 games.[12] On 13 January 2019, Aho recorded his second career hat-trick in a 6–3 win over the Nashville Predators.[13] Aho led the Hurricanes in scoring (five goals, seven assists) during their first trip to the playoffs in 10 years in the 2018–19 season.[14]
On 1 July 2019, Aho signed an offer sheet with the Montreal Canadiens, becoming the first player to sign an offer sheet since Ryan O'Reilly in 2013. The contract included a lucrative bonus structure, including $21.7 million within the first 12 months of the contract.[15][16] On 7 July, the Hurricanes officially matched the offer sheet, re-signing Aho to a five-year, $42.27 million contract.[17]
On 26 July 2023, Hurricanes re-signed forward Sebastian Aho to an eight-year, $78 million contract extension. The deal will begin with the 2024–25 NHL season and will pay Aho an average-annual value (AAV) of $9.75 million through 2031–32.[18]
Personal life
editAho was born in the Satakunnan keskussairaala in Pori, but his legal birthplace is Rauma.[19]
Career statistics
editRegular season and playoffs
edit| Regular season | Playoffs | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Team | League | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | ||
| 2012–13 | Kärpät | FIN U18 | 38 | 28 | 32 | 60 | 32 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2012–13 | Kärpät | FIN U20 | 5 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 | ||
| 2013–14 | Kärpät | FIN U18 | 2 | 3 | 3 | 6 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2013–14 | Kärpät | FIN U20 | 44 | 25 | 34 | 59 | 18 | 12 | 4 | 8 | 12 | 10 | ||
| 2013–14 | Kärpät | Liiga | 3 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2014–15 | Kärpät | FIN U20 | 10 | 1 | 9 | 10 | 4 | 5 | 1 | 4 | 5 | 2 | ||
| 2014–15 | Kärpät | Liiga | 27 | 4 | 7 | 11 | 10 | 10 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 2 | ||
| 2014–15 | Ässät | Liiga | 3 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2015–16 | Kärpät | Liiga | 45 | 20 | 25 | 45 | 2 | 14 | 4 | 11 | 15 | 8 | ||
| 2016–17 | Carolina Hurricanes | NHL | 82 | 24 | 25 | 49 | 26 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2017–18 | Carolina Hurricanes | NHL | 78 | 29 | 36 | 65 | 24 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2018–19 | Carolina Hurricanes | NHL | 82 | 30 | 53 | 83 | 26 | 15 | 5 | 7 | 12 | 2 | ||
| 2019–20 | Carolina Hurricanes | NHL | 68 | 38 | 28 | 66 | 26 | 8 | 3 | 9 | 12 | 4 | ||
| 2020–21 | Carolina Hurricanes | NHL | 56 | 24 | 33 | 57 | 32 | 11 | 6 | 5 | 11 | 12 | ||
| 2021–22 | Carolina Hurricanes | NHL | 79 | 37 | 44 | 81 | 38 | 14 | 4 | 7 | 11 | 12 | ||
| 2022–23 | Carolina Hurricanes | NHL | 75 | 36 | 31 | 67 | 42 | 15 | 5 | 7 | 12 | 12 | ||
| 2023–24 | Carolina Hurricanes | NHL | 78 | 36 | 53 | 89 | 36 | 11 | 4 | 8 | 12 | 2 | ||
| NHL totals | 598 | 254 | 303 | 557 | 250 | 74 | 27 | 43 | 70 | 44 | ||||
International
edit| Year | Team | Event | Result | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2013 | Finland | IH18 | 5th | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | |
| 2014 | Finland | WJC18 | 6th | 5 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 4 | |
| 2014 | Finland | IH18 | 5th | 4 | 5 | 2 | 7 | 0 | |
| 2015 | Finland | WJC | 7th | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | |
| 2015 | Finland | WJC18 |  | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | |
| 2016 | Finland | WJC |  | 7 | 5 | 9 | 14 | 4 | |
| 2016 | Finland | WC | | 10 | 3 | 4 | 7 | 4 | |
| 2016 | Finland | WCH | 8th | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| 2017 | Finland | WC | 4th | 10 | 2 | 9 | 11 | 4 | |
| 2018 | Finland | WC | 5th | 8 | 9 | 9 | 18 | 2 | |
| Junior totals | 26 | 12 | 13 | 25 | 12 | ||||
| Senior totals | 31 | 14 | 22 | 36 | 10 | ||||
Awards and honors
edit| Award | Year |
|---|---|
| NHL | |
| NHL All-Star Game | 2019, 2022, 2024 |
| International | |
| World Championships best forward | 2018 |
References
edit- ^ Simon, David (7 February 2015). "Finnish Sebastian Aho: "We made it to the semi-finals, but every game in the CHL is different"". www.championshockeyleague.net. Archived from the original on 20 April 2016. Retrieved 17 October 2016.
- ^ "NHL CSS 2015 International skaters final rankings". NHL.com. Retrieved 17 October 2016.
- ^ "NHL Central Scouting's 2015 final rankings". NHL.com. 8 April 2015. Retrieved 8 April 2015.
- ^ Williams, Terrell (13 June 2016). "Canes Agree to Terms with Sebastian Aho". NHL.com. Retrieved 17 October 2016.
- ^ Alexander, Chip (15 October 2016). "After NHL debut, Aho after a win". The Charlotte Observer. Retrieved 17 October 2016.
- ^ Potter, Mike (12 November 2016). "Aho has 2 goals as Canes beat the Capitals 5-1". The News & Observer. Retrieved 13 November 2016.
- ^ Potter, Mike (1 February 2017). "Sebastian Aho's 1st hat trick helps Hurricanes beat Flyers to end skid". Fayetteville Observer. Retrieved 1 February 2017.
- ^ Finger, Brett (6 February 2017). "Sebastian Aho Quickly Turning into a Star for the Carolina Hurricanes". Canes Country. Retrieved 6 February 2017.
- ^ "Hurricanes Aho, Teravainen added to Finland's roster for IIHF worlds". sportsnet.ca. 22 April 2018. Retrieved 9 May 2018.
- ^ "Marchand scores twice including winner as Bruins beat Hurricanes". sportsnet.ca. 30 October 2018. Retrieved 12 November 2018.
- ^ Robinson, Alan (3 November 2018). "Aho's assist streak ends for Hurricanes in loss to Coyotes". NHL.com. Retrieved 12 November 2018.
- ^ "Sebastian Aho Named to NHL All-Star Game". NHL.com. 2 January 2019. Retrieved 14 January 2019.
- ^ Smith, Michael (13 January 2019). "Recap: Aho, Canes Roll Past Predators". NHL.com. Retrieved 14 January 2019.
- ^ "Carolina Hurricanes Skating Postseason Stats 2018-19". espn.com. 20 May 2019. Retrieved 20 May 2019.
- ^ "Canadiens tender offer sheet to restricted free agent Sebastian Aho". NHL.com. 1 July 2019. Retrieved 1 July 2019.
- ^ "Elliot Friedman on Twitter: "Aho's actual salary will be between $700K-$750K per season. Rest is all bonuses. Approx $21M in first 12 months."". Twitter.com. 1 July 2019. Retrieved 1 July 2019.
- ^ "Aho to have offer sheet matched by Hurricanes". NHL.com. NHL Enterprises, L.P. 2 July 2019. Retrieved 2 July 2019.
- ^ "Canes re-sign Aho to eight-year extension". Carolina Hurricanes. 26 July 2023. Retrieved 26 July 2023.
- ^ "Onko Sebastian Aho syntynyt Raumalla vai Porissa? – äiti kertoo totuuden Kiekkoareenalle". LS24 (in Finnish). 7 May 2018. Retrieved 14 July 2022.
External links
edit- Biographical information and career statistics from NHL.com, or Eliteprospects.com, or Eurohockey.com, or Hockey-Reference.com, or The Internet Hockey Database