Color of Hockey: Park thriving as freshman at Michigan, ‘going to be a stud’

William Douglas has been writing The Color of Hockey blog since 2012. Douglas joined NHL.com in 2019 and writes about people of color in the sport. Today, he profiles University of Michigan freshman forward Aidan Park, who was selected in the seventh round (No. 223) by the Edmonton Oilers in the 2025 NHL Draft.

Some things are just comfortable, like a warm fuzzy blanket on a cold winter day.

And so it is with Aidan Park and his hoodie.

The 19-year-old University of Michigan freshman forward still rocks the white hoodie he wore with shorts when he was famously and unexpectedly selected in the seventh round (No. 223) by the Edmonton Oilers at the 2025 NHL Draft at L.A. Live’s Peacock Theater in Los Angeles on June 28.

“It’s a nice hoodie and I still wear it a decent amount,” Park said. “Whenever I wear it, the boys give it to me a little. A couple of my teammates, they saw an Instagram reel of me wearing the hoodie and sent it to me, and we just laugh about it.”

These days, Park is seen more in highlight reels than in fashion videos. The next-to-last player selected in the draft has 10 points (six goals, four assists) in 19 games with the Wolverines, who are No. 1 in various NCAA Division I men’s hockey polls. Park had a goal and two assists in a 10-2 win against Robert Morris on Oct. 17, the game-winner in a 5-3 victory at Notre Dame on Oct. 31, and scored a power-play goal in an 8-1 win against Ohio State on Nov. 22.

“He's going to be a stud hockey player,” Michigan coach Brandon Naurato said. “He's helping us right now, figuring some stuff out, having some success as a freshman. He's going to be a big-time piece this second half and a big-time player for Michigan down the road. I think his best attribute is his hockey IQ. You’ve really got to watch him and then spend time with him to appreciate it. We see him down the road being used in all situations and a leader on this team.”

Park attributes his start to his ability to find open space on the ice to create enough time to get a shot off.

“I think getting open ice is a really important skill, I think it's kind of underrated,” he said. “Finding quiet ice, spinning off for guys when you're covered, having the right timing, I think it's all like a skill that you can develop.

“And that's something I've had conversations with the coaching staff with…It's just like a testament to how detailed our coaching staff is. I get a lot of reps in practice, and we do a lot of small area games, that fun stuff. And I think it's just something I work on a lot, and I'm hoping to continue to get better at.”

Park is one of 11 freshmen on the Wolverines this season and has played multiple roles for the team.

“Our lines change a lot, and I’ve played with a bunch of different guys,” he said. “Some people might not like that, but I really do. I think an important skill is being able to play with anyone. I was with Cole McKinney (San Jose Sharks second round pick, No. 53 in 2025 NHL Draft) and Malcolm Spence (New York Rangers second round pick, No. 43 in 2025 draft) (two) weekends ago. I'm just really lucky because they’re all great players.”

Park is the nephew of retired forward Richard Park, who was the second player born in South Korea to reach the NHL and played 738 games for six teams in the League from 1994-2012. The younger Park was bypassed in the 2024 NHL Draft following a season when he had 93 points (30 goals, 63 assists) in 56 games for storied Shattuck-St. Mary’s School in Faribault, Minnesota, four points (three goals, one assist) in five games for the United States at the 2023 Hlinka Gretzky Cup tournament, and four points (two goals, two assists) in eight postseason games for Green Bay.

He kept his 2025 Draft expectations low, even after he was fifth in the United States Hockey League with 66 points (33 goals, 33 assists) in 55 games with Green Bay last season and was No. 94 on NHL Central Scouting's final ranking of North American skaters.

He attended the first day of the draft on June 27 to see Ryker Lee, a former Shattuck St. Mary’s teammate, get selected in the first round (No. 26) by the Nashville Predators. Lee was whisked off to Nashville on a private jet the next day, but Park decided to attend the draft’s Rounds 2-7 anyway. Instead of being dressed to the nines like the top prospects, Park came California casual for Draft Day 2, expecting to be a spectator.

“I ended up getting picked,” he said.

A smiling Park calmly walked up to the theater’s stage with a sparse audience looking and swapped his hoodie for a blue Oilers home jersey. It was a viral moment caught by Lee, who was in the middle of a media availability and saw Park’s pick on a television that was in the room.

"That's my roommate last year, just got picked in shorts and a hoodie," said Lee, now a freshman forward at Michigan State University.

Park said he didn’t think twice about taking the hoodie to Ann Arbor and wearing it on campus. It’s comfortable and a reminder of a defining moment in his hockey career. But it doesn’t define him.

“That was a little bit ago,” he said. “We’re focused on new things here now.”

NHL.com Deputy Managing Editor Adam Kimelman contributed to this story