Yamamoto returns to Rush

Action photo of Keanu Yamamoto of the Rapid City Rush

RAPID CITY, S.D. – The Rapid City Rush, ECHL affiliate of the National Hockey League’s Calgary Flames, announced the re-signing of second-year forward Keanu Yamamoto for the 2023-24 season.

Yamamoto spent all of the 2022-23 campaign with the Rush, his first as a professional, putting up 45 points (18g-27a) in 71 games. He led all Rush rookies in scoring and finished fourth overall in assists and fifth overall in points on the team last season.

Hailing from Spokane, Washington, Yamamoto, 27, turned professional last season after five seasons in Canadian college hockey with McGill University. In his USports tenure, he notched 82 points (29g-53a) in 98 games. Before going to college, Yamamoto spent four seasons in the Western Hockey League with his hometown Spokane Chiefs, tallying 177 points (71g-106) in 271 games. Yamamoto is the older brother of Seattle Kraken forward Kailer Yamamoto, the 22nd overall draft pick in the 2017 NHL Entry Draft who has skated in 244 NHL games with the Edmonton Oilers.