Christian David Hanson (born March 10, 1986) is an American former professional ice hockey player who played for the Toronto Maple Leafs in the NHL. Hanson played college hockey for the University of Notre Dame. He was not selected in the NHL entry draft but signed a contract as a free agent with the Maple Leafs after his senior season.
Playing career He attended high school at Peters Township High School, where he was a member of their Pennsylvania State AA Hockey Championship teams. He played for the Tri-City Storm in the state of Nebraska from 2003-2005. He played Midget "AAA" hockey for the Pittsburgh Hornets, where he was a teammate of Los Angeles Kings prospect Patrick Mullen.
Hanson was signed to a two-year, $1.575-million contract with the Toronto Maple Leafs on March 31, 2009, which included an annual $87,500 signing bonus.
Hanson made his NHL debut on April 3, 2009 against the Philadelphia Flyers. Four nights later, Hanson scored his first career NHL goal against Martin Brodeur in a 4–1 win over the New Jersey Devils. This goal tied his father's career goal mark as well. On April 10, 2010, Hanson recorded his first short-handed goal and his first multi-goal game versus Montreal.
Hanson was selected to join the Team USA roster for the 2010 World Hockey Championship.
Hanson played for Planet USA in the 2010 AHL All-Star Game in Portland, Maine.
On 10 July 2011, the Washington Capitals signed Hanson as an unrestricted free agent, and he was assigned to play in the AHL with the Hershey Bears for the 2011–12 AHL season.
On July 9, 2012, Hanson signed a one-year, two-way contract with the Boston Bruins. The contract paid Hanson $600,000 if he played in the NHL and $105,000 while playing with the Bruins' AHL affiliate, the Providence Bruins. Hanson spent the entire duration of the 2012–13 season with Providence and contributed 29 points in 67 games.
On August 20, 2013, Hanson agreed to a one-year, two-way contract with the St. Louis Blues. He played with the Blues' AHL affiliate, the Chicago Wolves, for the 2013–2014 season.
In a 2017 article for The Players' Tribune, Hanson said that he had retired from professional ice hockey and is working at Sutton Special Risk, a Toronto-based insurance company for which he is Assistant Vice President, Sports.
Family His father is Dave Hanson, who also played professional hockey and starred as one of the Hanson Brothers in the movie Slap Shot.
Career statistics Regular season and playoffs Regular seasonPlayoffs Season Team League GP G A Pts PIM GP G A Pts PIM 2003–04 Tri-City Storm USHL 58 11 8 19 35 9 2 1 3 4 2004–05 Tri-City Storm USHL 60 19 33 52 23 9 1 2 3 8 2005–06 University of Notre Dame CCHA 23 1 2 3 14 — — — — — 2006–07 University of Notre Dame CCHA 33 6 2 8 24 — — — — — 2007–08 University of Notre Dame CCHA 47 13 9 22 57 — — — — — 2008–09 University of Notre Dame CCHA 37 16 15 31 28 — — — — — 2008–09 Toronto Maple Leafs NHL 5 1 1 2 2 — — — — — 2009–10 Toronto Marlies AHL 38 12 19 31 35 — — — — — 2009–10 Toronto Maple Leafs NHL 31 2 5 7 16 — — — — — 2010–11 Toronto Marlies AHL 58 13 21 34 51 — — — — — 2010–11 Toronto Maple Leafs NHL 6 0 0 0 4 — — — — — 2011–12 Hershey Bears AHL 52 10 11 21 42 — — — — — 2012–13 Providence Bruins AHL 67 12 17 29 53 12 1 2 3 8 2013–14 Chicago Wolves AHL 63 5 11 16 32 9 2 0 2 4 2014–15 Sun Valley Suns BDHL 4 7 1 8 0 — — — — — 2014–15 Stavanger Oilers GET 9 2 4 6 4 15 3 4 7 18 2015–16 Sun Valley Suns BDHL 2 1 1 2 4 — — — — — AHL totals 278 52 79 131 213 21 3 2 5 12 NHL totals 42 3 6 9 22 — — — — —
International Year Team Event GP G A Pts PIM 2010 United States WC 6 0 1 1 2 Senior totals 6 0 1 1 2
Awards and honors Award Year All-CCHA Second Team 2008–09
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