Hicketts, 22, is in his third season with the Griffins and has tallied 27 points (3-24-27), a plus-five rating and 50 penalty minutes in 61 games. In addition to leading Grand Rapids defensemen in scoring, Hicketts ranks among the team's overall leaders with 24 assists (4th), 27 points (7th), 50 penalty minutes (5th), 106 shots on goal (10th) and 10 power-play assists (3rd). The 5-foot-8, 180-pound blueliner has also made 13 appearances for Detroit over the last two seasons, including eight this season, totaling three points (0-3-3), two penalty minutes, 11 shots on goal, 24 hits and 25 blocked shots in 17:11 average time on ice. Hicketts has also skated in 201 career games with the Griffins, notching 73 points (13-60-73), a plus-10 rating and 122 penalty minutes. He helped the team win the 2017 Calder Cup championship as a first-year pro and has recorded 10 points (1-9-10) in 24 career postseason games.
Originally signed by the Red Wings as an undrafted free agent in September 2014, the Kamloops, British Columbia, native spent four seasons with the Western Hockey League's Victoria Royals from 2012-16. He served as the team's captain the last two years and posted back-to-back 60-point seasons for the Royals. Hicketts totaled 173 points (32-141-173), 149 penalty minutes and a plus-69 rating in 224 games with the Royals and was a WHL West Second-Team All-Star in 2015 and First-Team All-Star in 2016. Internationally, Hicketts represented Canada twice at the IIHF World Junior Championship, winning gold in 2015 and serving as an alternate captain for the team in 2016 while recording six points (1-5-6) in 12 games during the two tournaments. He also earned medals at three additional tournaments for his country, winning gold at the 2014 Ivan Hlinka Memorial Tournament, picking up a silver at the 2013 World Under-17 Hockey Challenge and earning bronze at the 2014 World Under-18 Championship.
