Matt Luff (born May 5, 1997) is a Canadian professional

ice hockey Ice hockey (or simply hockey) is a team sport played on ice skates, usually on an ice skating rink with lines and markings specific to the sport. It belongs to a family of sports called hockey. In ice hockey, two opposing teams use ice hock ...

winger for the

Detroit Red Wings The Detroit Red Wings (colloquially referred to as the Wings) are a professional ice hockey team based in Detroit. The Red Wings compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Atlantic Division (NHL), Atlantic Division in the East ...

of the

National Hockey League The National Hockey League (NHL; french: Ligue nationale de hockey—LNH, ) is a professional ice hockey league in North America comprising 32 teams—25 in the United States and 7 in Canada. It is considered to be the top ranked professional ...

(NHL).

Playing career

Coming off a successful season with the Oakville Rangers Midget AAA, Luff split his time between the Rangers and the

Oakville Blades The Oakville Blades are a Junior "A" ice hockey team from Oakville, Ontario, Canada. They are a part of the Ontario Junior Hockey League. History The Blades started as a Junior C team, and made it to the Clarence Schmalz Cup Final once to compet ...

of the

Ontario Junior Hockey League The Ontario Junior Hockey League (OJHL) is a Junior A ice hockey league in Ontario, Canada. It is under the supervision of the Ontario Hockey Association (OHA) and the Canadian Junior Hockey League (CJHL). The league was listed as the 7th best ...

for the 2013–14 season. On June 9, 2014, Luff signed a contract with the Blades for the 2014–15 season, however he chose to commit to the

Belleville Bulls The Belleville Bulls were a junior ice hockey team, founded in 1981 and based in Belleville, Ontario, Canada. The team played in the Eastern Division of the Eastern Conference of the Ontario Hockey League. The team moved to Hamilton, Ontario ...

of the

Ontario Hockey League The Ontario Hockey League (OHL; french: Ligue de hockey de l'Ontario (LHO)) is one of the three major junior ice hockey leagues which constitute the Canadian Hockey League. The league is for players aged 16–19. There are exceptions for overag ...

who had drafted him in the OHL Draft. In his rookie year with the Bulls, Luff was named a finalist for the Rookie of the Year, with the award eventually going to

Alex DeBrincat Alexander DeBrincat (born December 18, 1997) is an American professional ice hockey Winger (ice hockey), right winger for the Ottawa Senators of the National Hockey League (NHL). He was selected by the Chicago Blackhawks in the second round, 39t ...

. Following the 2014–15 season, the Bulls were renamed the

Hamilton Bulldogs The Hamilton Bulldogs are a major junior ice hockey team in the Ontario Hockey League that began to play in the 2015–16 OHL season, 2015–16 season. Based in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada, the Bulldogs play their home games at FirstOntario Cent ...

. After going undrafted in the

NHL Entry Draft The NHL Entry Draft (french: Repêchage d'entrée dans la LNH) is an annual meeting in which every franchise of the National Hockey League (NHL) systematically select the rights to available ice hockey players who meet draft eligibility requirem ...

, Luff attended the

Los Angeles Kings The Los Angeles Kings are a professional ice hockey team based in Los Angeles. The team competes in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Pacific Division in the Western Conference and was founded on June 5, 1967, after Jack Kent ...

development and training camp as a free agent. He eventually signed a three-year entry level contract with the Kings on September 23, 2016, becoming the first Bulldog to sign an NHL contract. Luff returned to the OHL for the 2016–17 season where he played only 45 games due to a shoulder injury and concussion. Despite his shortened season, Luff was reassigned to the Kings

American Hockey League The American Hockey League (AHL) is a professional ice hockey league based in the United States and Canada that serves as the primary Minor league#Ice hockey, developmental league for the National Hockey League (NHL). Since the 2010–11 AHL se ...

(AHL) affiliate, the

Ontario Reign The Ontario Reign are a professional ice hockey team in the American Hockey League (AHL) that began play in the 2015–16 season. Based in Ontario, California, and affiliated with the National Hockey League's Los Angeles Kings, the team plays i ...

on April 7, 2017. Luff began the 2018–19 season with the Ontario Reign after being assigned there from the Kings training camp. Luff was recalled to the NHL on November 3, 2018, and he made his NHL debut that night against the

Columbus Blue Jackets The Columbus Blue Jackets (often simply referred to as the Jackets) are a professional ice hockey team based in Columbus, Ohio. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Metropolitan Division in the Eastern Conference, ...

. Luff played 9:43 in his debut to help the Kings win 4–1 over the Blue Jackets. After playing in three games, Luff was reassigned to the Ontario Reign on November 11 only to be recalled three days later on November 14. Luff recorded his first career NHL goal in a 2–0 win over the

St. Louis Blues The St. Louis Blues are a professional ice hockey team based in St. Louis. The Blues compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Central Division in the Western Conference. The franchise was founded in 1967 as one of the ...

on November 19. On November 25, in a 5–2 win over the

Edmonton Oilers The Edmonton Oilers are a professional ice hockey team based in Edmonton. The Oilers compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Pacific Division of the Western Conference. They play their home games at Rogers Place, which ...

, Luff recorded his fourth goal in the same number of games, becoming the fifth Kings rookie to do so since

Jimmy Carson James Charles Carson (born July 20, 1968) is an American former professional hockey player. He played 10 seasons in the National Hockey League with five different teams. In 1988, he became only the second teenager in NHL history to score 50 goals ...

in 1987. His streak ended the following game against the

Vancouver Canucks The Vancouver Canucks are a professional ice hockey team based in Vancouver. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Pacific Division of the Western Conference, and play their home games at Rogers Arena. Bruce B ...

. After appearing in 30 games for the Kings, and recording 10 points, Luff was reassigned to the Ontario Reign on February 8, 2019. Luff played for five years within the Los Angeles Kings organization before leaving as a free agent following the season. He was signed to a one-year, two-way contract with the

Nashville Predators The Nashville Predators (commonly referred to as the Preds) are a professional ice hockey team based in Nashville, Tennessee. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Central Division in the Western Conference, and ha ...

on July 28, 2021. On July 13, 2022, Luff signed a one-year, two-way contract with the

. During the 2022–23 season, he recorded two goals and two assists in 19 games with the Red Wings, and eight goals and 17 assists in 28 games for the

Grand Rapids Griffins The Grand Rapids Griffins are a professional ice hockey, hockey team in the American Hockey League (AHL) based in Grand Rapids, Michigan, and play home games at Van Andel Arena. They are the AHL affiliate to the Detroit Red Wings of the National H ...

of the AHL. On July 1, 2023, Luff signed a one-year, two-way contract with the Red Wings.

Career statistics

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Luff, Matt 1997 births Living people Belleville Bulls players Canadian ice hockey right wingers Detroit Red Wings players Grand Rapids Griffins players Hamilton Bulldogs (OHL) players Los Angeles Kings players Milwaukee Admirals players Nashville Predators players Ontario Reign (AHL) players Undrafted National Hockey League players