KALAMAZOO, Mich. — The Kalamazoo Wings, ECHL affiliate of the Vancouver Canucks, have re-signed defenseman Charlie Vastauro to a contract for the 2017-18 season.
Vasaturo, 26, returns to the Wings for his third season of professional hockey. The defenseman was the team’s lone iron man last year, as he was the only skater who played in all 72 regular season contests during the 2016-17 campaign. Vasaturo continued his development on the back end for Kalamazoo, as he established career highs in games played (72), goals (7), assists (9), points (16) and penalty minutes (50). He also saw action in all seven of the Wings’ playoff games, and contributed two goals in the process.
In two professional seasons, Vasaturo has skated in 109 career contests, compiling 27 points (11g-16a) to go along with 70 penalty minutes.
Before his professional career, Vasaturo spent two seasons with the Salmon Arm Silverbacks of the British Columbia Hockey League, where he skated in 114 contests and racked up 48 points (11g-37a) and 153 penalty minutes.
At the conclusion of his tenure with Salmon Arm, he spent four years at Union College, where he won three consecutive (2012-14) ECAC league titles and was a member of the Dutchmen’s 2014 NCAA National Championship winning squad. Vasaturo’s leadership in college earned him team captain honors during his senior season, and he was twice named as an ECAC All-Academic Team member.