Waterloo Black Hawks alumnus Max Sasson has made his National Hockey League debut this evening, skating for the Vancouver Canucks on the road against the Ottawa Senators.

Sasson played for Waterloo during the 2020/21 season.  It was his final junior campaign.  Sasson led the Hawks in goals (20), assists (29), and points (49) during 49 appearances.   He also produced four game-winning goals and churned out a 12-game point streak from February 26th to April 1st that spring.  Six games during that run were multipoint efforts.  Sasson was a two-time pick as USHL Forward of the Week.
 
The Birmingham, Michigan, native is a rare player who spent time with both the Black Hawks and Cedar Rapids RoughRiders during his USHL career.  The RoughRiders were off ice in 2020/21 due to the derecho storm which severely damaged Cedar Rapids Ice Arena.  Waterloo added Sasson in a dispersal draft of Cedar Rapids players.  During two prior seasons with the RoughRiders, Sasson generated 19 goals and 23 assists in 107 regular season appearances across two years.  He had also played in one game for the Muskegon Lumberjacks in 2017/18.

After junior hockey, Sasson was a two-year member of the Western Michigan Broncos.  He was named the program's Rookie of the Year following his freshman season.  In that campaign, Sasson ranked eighth on the team with 22 points (nine goals, 13 assists).  As a sophomore, he jumped to third with 42 points (15 goals, 27 assists).  The Canucks signed him to a free agent contract following the season.  Last year with the Abbotsford Canucks in the American Hockey League, Sasson was responsible for 18 goals and 24 assists in 56 regular season games.

As he takes the ice this evening, Sasson becomes the 10th Waterloo alum to appear in an NHL game during 2024/25.  Earlier this week, Shane Bowers played in his first game of the season for the New Jersey Devils.  The Hawks' active NHL alumni list also includes Vancouver's Brock Boeser, although Boeser is not on the ice with Sasson this evening due to an injury.  Mark Friedman is also under contract with the Canucks and was Sasson's teammate in Abbotsford, however Friedman has not played in an NHL game this year.

Sasson's NHL debut is the first by a former Black Hawk since Nick Swaney skated with the Minnesota Wild on April 13, 2023.

Sasson's primary USHL clubs will meet next week.  Waterloo hosts Cedar Rapids on Thursday for the annual Thanksgiving game between the teams.  Good seats are still available for the 7:05 p.m. matchup on November 28th.  To order, visit tickets.waterlooblackhawks.com or call the Domino's Black Hawks Box Office at (319) 291-7680.

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