ECHL: The Return of Aaron Luchuk

Thursday, July 20th, the Orlando Solar Bears announced the return of number 91, Aaron Luchuk. Luchuk is 26 years old and has played 103 games for the Solar Bears. This will be the first time Luchuk plays under new head coach Matt Carkner. Solar Bear fans are anxiously awaiting to see a fan favorite back on our ice! During the 2020-21 season, Aaron Luchuk impressed us by leading the ECHL in scoring. He had an impressive 28 goals and 46 assists, giving him 74 points. 

Before he entered professional hockey, Luchuk played in the Ontario Hockey League (OHL) for the Windsor Spitfires for 274 games. During his time with the Spitfires, they won the Memorial Cup during the 2016-17 season. Aaron Luchuk has five years of playing professional hockey under his belt. He was seen on Newfoundland, Brampton, and Orlando rosters, where he has played 181 ECHL games. Since the 2018-19 season, Luchuk has played 41 AHL games between Belleville, Toronto, Laval, and Hartford. 

If you missed Luchuk last year, you might be surprised that the Ontario native signed with HockeyAllsvenskan, the second-highest league in Sweden. Playing for Södertälje SK and Östersunds IK, he played 21 games, scoring eight goals and adding five assists. While overseas, he also played for Austria’s top professional league, the ICEHL, playing for HC Pustertal. During his time with the team, he played 23 games, scoring five goals and adding six assists. 

Orlando Solar Bears fans seem fired up about welcoming home Aaron Luchuk. I’m excited to see what he brings this year and if he can help lead our team to see playoff games. While Luchuk was away from the Solar Bears, we saw popular players such as Ross Olsson, captain for the 2022-23 season, leave hockey and pursue a different career path. The same for Kevin Lohan, captain before Ross Olsson. Aaron Luchuk is a highly talented player who played some of his best hockey in Orlando. Will Aaron put up big numbers like he did in the previous years? 90 days, we will see if he gained skills while away in Austria and Sweden.