Massimo Rizzo (ice hockey)

Massimo Rizzo is a Canadian collegiate ice hockey center in Denver. He was an All-American for the Pioneers and helped the program win a National Championship in 2022.[1]

Massimo Rizzo
Born (2001-06-13) June 13, 2001
Burnaby, British Columbia, Canada
Height 5 ft 10 in (178 cm)
Weight 180 lb (82 kg; 12 st 12 lb)
Position Center
Shoots Left
NCAA team Denver
NHL Draft 216th overall, 2019
Carolina Hurricanes

Playing career

The Burnaby native was a standout player in juniors, averaging at or near 2 points per game for his U-18 clubs before joining the Penticton Vees in 2017. While his production was lower, the competition was also much tougher. Despite dealing with multiple injuries in his second year, his scoring exploits made him attractive enough as a prospect for the Carolina Hurricanes to select Rizzo near the end of the NHL draft.[2] The following year, Rizzo was a member of the Coquitlam Express and helped the club finish atop the league standings. Once they got into the postseason, Rizzo led the club in scoring by the end of the first round series, however, the COVID-19 pandemic forced the cancellation of the remainder of the playoffs.[3] Rizzo sat out the entire COVID season and prepared himself for the start of his collegiate career.

Rizzo debuted for Denver in 2021 and joined a team that had narrowly missed the NCAA tournament the year before. He combined with several other freshmen to provide an instant boost for the Pioneers and propelled the team to a 1st-place finish in the NCHC. Denver stumbled a bit in the conference tournament but went on a run in the NCAA bracket. Rizzo scored the team's 3rd goal in the title game and helped Denver win the 9th championship in program history.[4] The following year, Rizzo led the club in scoring, helping them once again win a league crown. While he was named as an All-American, he couldn't get the team to repeat as champions and the Pios were knocked out in the first round.

On August 9, 2023 Rizzo's rights were traded to the Philadelphia Flyers from the Carolina Hurricanes. The Philadelphia Flyers traded the rights to forward David Kase to the Carolina Hurricanes on Wednesday in exchange for the rights to forward Massimo Rizzo and a fifth-round pick in the 2025 NHL Draft.[5]

Career statistics
Regular season Playoffs
Season Team League GPGAPtsPIM GPGAPtsPIM
2016–17 Penticton Vees BCHL 3000071010
2017–18 Penticton Vees BCHL 50132639201146106
2018–19 Penticton Vees BCHL 371129402463362
2019–20 Coquitlam Express BCHL 421925442644376
2021–22 University of Denver NCHC 3912243648—————
2022–23 University of Denver NCHC 3817294614—————
NCAA totals 7729538262—————

Awards and honors
AwardYear Ref
College
NCHC All-Rookie Team 2021–22 [6]
All-NCHC First Team 2022–23 [7]
AHCA West Second Team All-American 2022–23 [1]

References
  1. "2022-23 Men's CCM Hockey Division I All-Americans". ahcahockey.com. April 7, 2023. Retrieved April 8, 2023.
  2. "Carolina Hurricanes excited about Massimo Rizzo's skill level, despite injuries". Grand Forks Herald. June 25, 2019. Retrieved May 3, 2023.
  3. "CJHL Announces Official Cancellation for Remainder of 2019-20 season". CJHL. 13 March 2020.
  4. Trefzger, Ed (April 9, 2022). "Most Outstanding Player Benning redeems himself for penalty with Denver's game-winning goal". USCHO. Retrieved June 4, 2022.
  5. Sportsnet staff (2023-08-09). "Flyers trade David Kase to Hurricanes for Massimo Rizzo, fifth-round pick". Sportsnet.ca. Retrieved 2023-08-19.
  6. "Record four Pioneers, two Fighting Hawks recognized for strong freshman seasons". nchchockey.com. March 8, 2022. Retrieved March 16, 2022.
  7. "NCHC Reveals 2022-23 All-Conference Teams". NCHC. March 8, 2023. Retrieved March 14, 2023.
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