Bulldog Alum Simon Denis Named To Japanese National Hockey Roster
Tokyo, Japan - Ferris State University men's ice hockey alum Simon Denis has been named to the Japanese National Hockey team, becoming the seventh Bulldog alum to make a national team.
Denis joins a small group of former Ferris State players to play for a national team, including Chris Kunitz who was an Olympic Gold Medalist for Hockey Canada in 2014 and also represented Canada at IIHF World Championships in 2008, Norm Krumpschmid (Austria, 1998-99), Bob Nardella (Italy, 1995-98, 2006), John Gruden (USA, 2002), Andy Roach (USA, 2004-05), Zach Redmond (USA, 2015), and Chad Billins, who represented the United States of America at the 2018 Olympics.
Denis, a 2016 graduate, was a standout for the Bulldogs as a five-year rostered player. Denis holds the distinction of being the only player in school history to be on the roster for three NCAA Tournaments (2012, 2014, 2016) though he missed much of the 2014 season due to a broken neck.
The Burnaby, British Columbia native played an integral role in Ferris State's 2012 run to the Frozen Four, where he had a goal and 13 assists for 14 points in his freshman campaign. The lone goal, his first collegiate, was the game-winner against Denver in the NCAA Midwest Regional Semifinal on March 23, 2012 in Green Bay.
After a strong performance as a sophomore in 2012-13 (18 points, 4-14-18), Denis was injured five games into the 2013-14 season. After missing his junior year and being granted a redshirt, Denis made a comeback, skating for the first time since the injury in the spring of 2014 following Ferris State's 29-win season, and returned for the regular-season opener of the 2014-15 season.
In 2015-16, Denis helped lead the Bulldogs to the NCAA West Regional Championship against the Denver Pioneers and a Western Collegiate Hockey Association (WCHA) Broadmoor Trophy Championship, then awarded to the playoff champion of the WCHA, earning Ferris State their automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament. Denis registered seven goals and eight assists for 15 points as a senior.
Following his time at Ferris State, Denis became one of minor professional hockey's top players. He shattered assist and single season point scoring records for the Toledo Walleye, the National Hockey League's (NHL) Detroit Red Wings' East Coast Hockey League (ECHL) affiliate, in 2016-17 with 15 goals and 40 assists for 55 points in 70 games. Denis followed the performance up with 35 points in 49 games the following season, earning him a call-up to the American Hockey League (AHL) with the Hartford Wolfpack, the New York Rangers' top affiliate, where he had four assists in seven games.
Following the 2017-18 season, Denis elected to take his game overseas to the Asia League for the Daemyung Killer Whales of South Korea where he had nine points in 25 games last season. Denis is currently with the Tohoku Free Blades in the Asia League where he has three points in 11 games in Northern Japan.