Aaron Keller (ice hockey player)
Date of birth | March 1, 1975 |
place of birth | Kamloops , British Columbia , Canada |
size | 182 cm |
Weight | 84 kg |
position | defender |
Shot hand | Right |
Career stations | |
1992-1996 | Kamloops Blazers |
1996-1997 | Peoria Rivermen |
1996-1997 | Chicago Wolves |
1996-1997 | Baltimore Bandits |
1999-2001 | Snow Brand Sapporo |
2001-2002 | Sapporo Polaris |
2002-2014 | Ōji Eagles |
Aaron Keller ( Japanese ア ー ロ ン ・ キ ャ ラ ー , Āron Kyarā ; born March 1, 1975 in Kamloops , British Columbia ) is a former Japanese - Canadian ice hockey player who was under contract with the Ōji Eagles in the Asia League Ice Hockey from 2002 to 2014 .
Career
Keller began his career as a hockey player with the Kamloops Blazers from his hometown, who play in the Western Hockey League , a youth league. With the Blazers he won the WHL title in 1994 and 1995. In 1996 the defender moved to the East Coast Hockey League for the Peoria Rivermen , which he soon left and ran on the ice that same season with the Chicago Wolves in the International Hockey League and with the Baltimore Bandits in the American Hockey League . He couldn't really assert himself with any of the three teams and so he went to Japan in the Japan Ice Hockey League in 1999 , where he was under contract with Snow Brand Sapporo for two years and then with Sapporo Polaris for one year . In 2002 he was drawn to the Japanese record champions Ōji Eagles in Tomakomai . With the Eagles he was Japanese champion in 2005. Since the multinational Asia League Ice Hockey with teams from China, Japan and South Korea was founded in 2003 , Keller played with his team in this competition and won the title in 2008 and 2012. In 2014 he ended his playing career at the age of 39.
International
After taking on the Japanese citizenship, Keller played for the first time in February 2005 in the Olympic qualification for the games in Turin 2006 in the Japanese national team, but his team lost all three games and was bottom of the group at the tournament in Kloten behind Gastger Switzerland , Norway and Denmark . Keller was also present at the qualifying tournaments for the 2010 Games in Vancouver and 2014 in Sochi , but with the Japanese he again missed participation in the Olympic tournament .
Keller took part in the World Championships in Division I in 2005 , 2006 , 2008 , 2009 , 2010 , 2012 , 2013 and 2014 . In the competitions in 2008, 2009 and 2013 he was honored as the best defensive player of the tournament and in 2009 and 2013 as a member of the All-Star Team.
In 2011, Keller took part in the Asian Winter Games for the first time and won the silver medal with the Japanese team behind Kazakhstan . Here, too, he was named the best defender of the tournament.
Achievements and Awards
- 2005 Japanese champion with the Ōji Eagles
- 2008 Champion of the Asia League Ice Hockey with the Ōji Eagles
- 2008 Best Defender at the World Cup Division I, Group B
- 2009 Best Defender and Member of the All-Star Team at the World Cup Division I, Group A.
- 2011 silver medal at the Winter Asian Games with Japan
- 2011 Best Defender at the Asian Winter Games
- 2012 Champion of the Asia League Ice Hockey with the Ōji Eagles
- 2013 Best Defender and member of the All-Star Team at the World Cup Division I, Group A.
League statistics
Seasons | Games | Gates | Assists | Points | Penalty minutes | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
AHL regular season | 1 | 11 | 3 | 2 | 5 | 2 |
AHL playoffs | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Japan League Regular Season | 5 | 150 | 18th | 71 | 89 | 34 |
ALIH Regular Season | 11 | 374 | 70 | 221 | 291 | 299 |
ALIH playoffs | 6th | 33 | 10 | 13 | 23 | 26th |
Web links
- Aaron Keller at eliteprospects.com (English)
- Aaron Keller at hockeydb.com (English)
personal data | |
---|---|
SURNAME | Keller, Aaron |
ALTERNATIVE NAMES | ア ー ロ ン ・ キ ャ ラ ー (Japanese script); Āron Kyarā |
BRIEF DESCRIPTION | Japanese ice hockey player of Canadian origin |
DATE OF BIRTH | March 1, 1975 |
PLACE OF BIRTH | Kamloops , British Columbia , Canada |