Hunter Shinkaruk

Hunter Shinkaruk
Born	(1994-10-13) October 13, 1994 Calgary, Alberta, Canada
Occupation	Professional ice hockey forward
Known for	Playing for Cardiff Devils in the UK's Elite Ice Hockey League (EIHL); former NHL player for Vancouver Canucks and Calgary Flames

Hunter Shinkaruk (born October 13, 1994) is a Canadian professional ice hockey forward who currently plays for the Cardiff Devils in the UK's Elite Ice Hockey League (EIHL). Selected 24th overall by the Vancouver Canucks during the 2013 NHL Entry Draft, he has also been a member of the Calgary Flames.

Shinkaruk's hockey foundation was built in junior ranks with the Medicine Hat Tigers of the Western Hockey League (WHL) before advancing to professional play with the Utica Comets, the Canucks' affiliate in the American Hockey League (AHL).

Minor

Originating from Calgary, Alberta, Shinkaruk played his early minor hockey with the Calgary Royals. After an impressive performance of 32 goals and 63 points over 27 major bantam contests, he was chosen 14th overall by Medicine Hat in the 2009 WHL Bantam Draft. However, during his progression to midget hockey, he sustained fractures to his tibia and fibula in his right leg, which sidelined him for almost the entire 2009–10 season.

Junior

Upon recovery, Shinkaruk debuted with Medicine Hat in the 2010–11 WHL season, tallying 42 points (14 goals, 28 assists) across 63 games and ranking tenth among rookies. He contributed an additional nine points in 14 playoff appearances as the Tigers advanced to the WHL semifinals.

In the 2011–12 campaign, Shinkaruk elevated his output to 49 goals and 91 points over 66 games, placing him twelfth in league scoring. The subsequent season, serving as team captain, he amassed 37 goals and 86 points in 64 games, securing fourteenth place among WHL scorers.

Entering the 2013 NHL Draft ranked sixth among North American skaters, Shinkaruk was selected by Vancouver at 24th overall. After participating in Canucks training camp, roster adjustments led to his return to junior. Early in the 2013–14 season, he played while managing a torn hip labrum but underwent surgery in January 2014, concluding his season after registering 16 points in 18 games. It was later disclosed that this hip injury had impacted much of his junior tenure.

During his recovery phase, Shinkaruk concentrated on enhancing his strength and reportedly increased his body weight by approximately 15 pounds before rejoining the Canucks' training camp in 2014 with improved physical conditioning.

Professional

In September 2014, Shinkaruk participated in the Canucks' Young Stars Tournament and was subsequently assigned to their AHL team, the Utica Comets, for the 2014–15 season. Although he started sluggishly with six goals over his first 42 games, he surged late by scoring nine goals in his final 16 regular-season matches and added four goals throughout 23 playoff contests as Utica reached the Calder Cup Finals.

During the following season (2015–16), Shinkaruk notched ten goals—including two hat tricks—in his initial dozen games for Utica before earning a call-up to Vancouver. He made his NHL debut on November 16, 2015 but was sent back to Utica after just one game. Leading Utica with 39 points across 45 games, he was traded on February 22, 2016 to the Calgary Flames and assigned to their AHL affiliate, the Stockton Heat.

Shinkaruk made his Flames debut on March 28, 2016, recording his first NHL point and scored his inaugural NHL goal two days later against the Anaheim Ducks. On August 20, 2018, he was traded to the Montreal Canadiens in exchange for Kerby Rychel and signed a one-year two-way contract valued at $650,000 at the NHL level. Throughout the 2018–19 season, he played for Montreal’s AHL affiliate, the Laval Rocket, contributing five goals and ten points over 54 games.

After Montreal opted not to extend a qualifying offer in June 2019, Shinkaruk inked a one-year AHL deal with reigning Calder Cup champions, the Charlotte Checkers, on July 18, 2019. He tallied seven points across twenty games during that season before terminating his AHL contract to pursue an overseas opportunity with Chinese KHL team HC Kunlun Red Star on December 23, 2019.

Shinkaruk spent two seasons competing for Kunlun before signing as a free agent with Latvian KHL franchise Dinamo Riga on June 2, 2021.

In July 2024, Shinkaruk committed to join UK EIHL club Cardiff Devils.

International play

Shinkaruk demonstrated his abilities during the 2010 World U-17 Hockey Challenge, where he was named to the WHC All-Tournament team. At the 2012 IIHF World U18 Championships, he contributed to Team Canada's Bronze Medal victory by netting the overtime goal in the bronze medal match.

He received invitations to participate in Team Canada's national junior selection camps for both the 2013 and 2014 events. Although he competed while managing a hip injury in 2014, he was ultimately released prior to the announcement of the final roster.

Regular season and playoffs

				Regular season						Playoffs
Season	Team	League		GP	G	A	Pts	PIM		GP	G	A	Pts	PIM
2010–11	Medicine Hat Tigers	WHL		63	14	28	42	24		14	4	5	9	0
2011–12	Medicine Hat Tigers	WHL		66	49	42	91	38		8	2	9	11	6
2012–13	Medicine Hat Tigers	WHL		64	37	49	86	44		8	3	3	6	8
2013–14	Medicine Hat Tigers	WHL		18	5	11	16	29		—	—	—	—	—
2014–15	Utica Comets	AHL		74	16	15	31	28		23	4	2	6	4
2015–16	Utica Comets	AHL		45	21	18	39	18		—	—	—	—	—
2015–16	Vancouver Canucks	NHL		1	0	0	0	0		—	—	—	—	—
2015–16	Stockton Heat	AHL		17	6	6	12	2		—	—	—	—	—
2015–16	Calgary Flames	NHL		7	2	1	3	2		—	—	—	—	—
2016–17	Stockton Heat	AHL		52	15	20	35	20		5	2	1	3	4
2016–17	Calgary Flames	NHL		7	0	1	1	2
2017–18	Stockton Heat	AHL		63	17	15	32	30
2018–19	Laval Rocket	AHL		54	5	5	10	20
2019–20	Charlotte Checkers	AHL		20	4	3	7	4
2019–20	HC Kunlun Red Star	KHL		19	3	6	9	16
"2020–21 KHL season"	"Kunlun Red Star"	"KHL"		"12"|"18"|"30"|"10"
"2021–22 KHL season"	"Dinamo Riga"	"KHL"		"5"|"8"|"13"|"14"
"2021–22 HockeyAllsvenskan season"	"HV71"	"Allsv"		"0"|"3"|"3"|"0"	"3"|"8"|"11"|"6"
"2022–23 KHL season"	"HC Neftekhimik Nizhnekamsk"	"KHL"		"2"|"3"|"5"|"4"
"2023–24 DEL season"	"Iserlohn Roosters"	"DEL"		"5"|"9"|"14"|"12"
NHL totals				15	2	2	4	4 !— !— !— !— !—
KHL totals				124	22	35	57	44 !— !— !— !— !—

International

Year	Team	Tournament	Achievement		Games Played	Goals	Assists	Points	Penalty Minutes
2010	Canada Pacific	U17	Template:Bronze3		6	5	4	9	2
2011	Canada	IH18	Template:Gold1		5	1	1	2	4
2012	Canada	WJC18	Template:Bronze3		6	4	4	8	6
Aggregate junior statistics					17	10	9	19	12

Awards and honours

Distinctions	Year
Bronze medal and All-Star Team at World U-17 Hockey Challenge	2010
Bronze medal at IIHF World U18 Championship	2012