Cody Hodgson

Early life

Cody Hodgson was born in Toronto, Ontario, to parents Marie and Chris. His father leads the Ontario Mining Association and previously served as a Progressive Conservative cabinet minister in Ontario under Premier Mike Harris. His mother runs a day care as its executive director. Hodgson has an older brother named Clayton and two younger sisters, Charlotte and Caroline.

Charlotte studies at the University of Western Ontario, while Caroline attends Belmont University in Nashville, Tennessee; both sisters played organized hockey in Markham, Ontario. Hodgson spent his early years in Haliburton, Ontario, before his family relocated to Markham in 1998, though they returned to their cottage on Haliburton Lake each summer. He started playing organized hockey at age four in Haliburton with the Haliburton Huskies of the Ontario Minor Hockey Association, where he was teammates with childhood friend Matt Duchene.

The two remained close through minor and junior hockey, playing together for the Brampton Battalion and Canadian national teams. Hodgson's family also knew Jeff Skinner's family from Markham. In bantam hockey, he captained the Toronto Jr. Canadiens of the Greater Toronto Hockey League, a team that included four future 2008 NHL draftees—Alex Pietrangelo, Tyler Cuma, Josh Brittain, and Stefan Della Rovere—and won a provincial championship. He then played for the Markham Waxers at bantam and midget levels, recording 51 points in 30 games during his midget season.

While with the Waxers, he played alongside future NHL players Steven Stamkos and Michael Del Zotto. Hodgson attended Buttonville Public School and Unionville High School in Markham, helping the latter win multiple hockey tournaments. After the Vancouver Canucks drafted him, he was accepted into York University's business program for fall 2008 but put his studies on hold because of training camp obligations and a university staff strike.

Playing career

Cody Hodgson entered the Ontario Hockey League when the Brampton Battalion picked him 17th overall in the 2006 OHL Priority Selection. He chose jersey number 19 as a tribute to his childhood idol, Detroit Red Wings captain Steve Yzerman. As a rookie, Hodgson led the Battalion in scoring among first-year players, notching 23 goals and 46 points. He contributed four points in four playoff games, but Brampton fell to the Barrie Colts in the first round.

The following season, Hodgson boosted his production to 85 points over 68 games, placing him second on the team behind centre John Hughes. He represented the Eastern Conference at the 2008 OHL All-Star Classic, scoring a goal, and then added five goals in five playoff contests as Barrie again eliminated Brampton in the opening round. Before the 2008 NHL Entry Draft, the NHL Central Scouting Bureau ranked Hodgson ninth among North American skaters.

The Vancouver Canucks selected him 10th overall. After the 2007-08 season, OHL coaches voted Hodgson the smartest player in the Eastern Conference. He signed a three-year, entry-level contract worth the rookie maximum of $2.625 million on October 5, 2008, but was reassigned to Brampton the next day. Upon returning, Hodgson was named the ninth captain in Battalion history, taking over from Thomas Stajan.

International play

Hodgson first competed internationally for Canada at the 2007 Ivan Hlinka Memorial Tournament in Hodonín, Czech Republic, and Piešťany, Slovakia, where Canada finished fourth. He scored two goals in the 5–4 bronze medal game loss to Russia and contributed a team-high five points in four games, tied with Steven Stamkos. Later that year, he represented Ontario at the 2007 Canada Winter Games, winning gold over Manitoba 6–4. At the 2008 IIHF World U18 Championships in Kazan, Russia, Hodgson served as team captain and scored the game-winning goal in a 2–1 quarter-final victory over Finland, earning player of the game honours.

He finished with a tournament-high 12 points in seven games as Canada defeated Russia 8–0 for the gold medal, and was chosen as one of Canada's three top players by tournament coaches, along with Jordan Eberle and Jake Allen. In his third year of junior, Hodgson was selected for the 2009 World Junior Championships in Ottawa as an alternate captain to Thomas Hickey. In a round-robin game against Kazakhstan, he accumulated six points (two goals, four assists), one point shy of the single-game Canadian record.

He scored the game-winning goal against the United States in a 7–4 win, and in the final against Sweden, he scored two goals and one assist to overtake John Tavares as tournament leading scorer with 16 points in six games. Canada won the gold medal 5–1, and Hodgson was named to the Tournament All-Star Team. He was later named to Team Canada's selection camp for the 2010 World Junior Championships but withdrew due to his back not being ready.