Former Waterloo Black Hawks forward Vinnie Hinostroza was traded from the Minnesota Wild to the Florida Panthers for future considerations on Friday.
The deal sets up Hinostroza's second stint with the club. The now-31-year-old spent nine games with the Panthers during the 2020/21 season as part of a career which has included 460 NHL regular season appearances since 2015/16.
Hinostroza was originally drafted by the Chicago Blackhawks in 2012, following his second of three seasons in Waterloo. While skating in the Cedar Valley, he played in 151 USHL regular season games, scoring 53 goals and generating 73 assists. Hinostroza's 126 points and 73 assists both tie for 10th during the Black Hawks' junior era. Away from regular league competition, the suburban Chicago native helped Waterloo to the silver medal at the 2012 Junior Club World Cup in Omsk, Russia.
Hinostroza's 460 NHL games (seventh), 171 points (sixth), and 62 goals (sixth) all rank among the top ten for Waterloo alumni in the league. He made his NHL debut with Chicago on October 17, 2015, and spent parts of four seasons there during two separate tenures with the team. His most prolific stop was across two seasons with the Arizona Coyotes, where he played in 140 games with 61 points (21 goals, 40 assists) during 2018/19 and 2019/20. Coming out of the COVID-shortened spring of 2020, Hinostroza signed with Florida, but finished the 2020/21 season back in Chicago. He has since appeared in the NHL for the Buffalo Sabres, Pittsburgh Penguins, Nashville Predators, and Minnesota Wild.
This season in Minnesota, he notched three goals and seven assists while averaging just over 10 minutes per contest across 48 games. Those 48 appearances are the most since he was in Buffalo's lineup 62 times in 2021/22.
Hinostroza is one of ten former Black Hawks who has played in the NHL this season.
The Panthers' next game is on Tuesday against the Detroit Red Wings.
Black Hawks alumni updates are presented by Karen's Print Rite, 2515 Falls Avenue in Waterloo.
