Clay Hanus & Tyson Kozak Named Winterhawks Co-Captains for 2021-22 Season
Portland, Ore. – Portland Winterhawks Senior Vice President, General Manager and Head Coach Mike Johnston announced that defenseman Clay Hanus and forward Tyson Kozak will represent the team as co-captains for the remainder of the 2021-22 season.
Hanus, 20, is playing in his fifth and final season with the Winterhawks and he is a veteran of more than 200 career Western Hockey League games. The Excelsior, Min. native has been a steady defenseman for Portland through his career and he is on pace for a career-best in points, leading all Winterhawks defensemen this year in points with 14. Hanus was originally listed by the Winterhawks before the 2017-18 season.
Kozak, 18, is playing in his third full season in Portland and is regarded as one of the best two-way centers in his class. The Souris, Man. native was drafted by the Buffalo Sabres in the 2021 NHL Draft and he currently sits third on the Winterhawks with 15 points through the team’s first 20 games. Reliable in all three zones, Kozak has produced 55 points in 106 career WHL games to date and has helped the Winterhawks to a top-five penalty kill during his tenure in the Rose City. Kozak was originally selected by the Winterhawks in the sixth round, 121st overall, of the 2017 WHL Prospect Draft.
Hanus will begin wearing the “C” when the Winterhawks wear their red and black jerseys and Kozak will act as captain when the team wears its white jerseys. Both players helped the Winterhawks to a Scotty Munro Championship during the 2019-20 season.
Hanus and Kozak become the 46th and 47th captains in team history, joining the likes of former captains Brent Peterson, Adam Deadmarsh, Brenden Morrow, and Paul Gaustad as well as recent captains Nick Cicek, Johnny Ludvig, Cody Glass, Keoni Texiera, and Nic Petan. The two take over the captaincy position from Nick Cicek, who was with the Winterhawks for three seasons and is now playing for the San Jose Barracuda in the American Hockey League.
Rounding out the leadership group, the Winterhawks also named Jonas Brøndberg, Robbie Fromm-Delorme, Jaydon Dureau, Cross Hanas, Gabe Klassen, and Kurtis Smythe as their six alternate captains for the 2021-22 season and will alternate duties for home and away games. This is the second season Tampa Bay Lightning prospect Jaydon Dureau will don the “A” on his jersey.
Portland Winterhawks announce 2021-22 team captains. (From left to right: Gabe Klassen, Cross Hanas, Robbie Fromm-Delorme, Clay Hanus, Ardyce Moore, Tyson Kozak, Jaydon Dureau, Jonas Brøndberg, Kurtis Smythe)
