Firebirds captain Max McCormick expected to miss 2025-26 season due to hip surgery
Jesus Reyes
PALM DESERT, Calif. (KESQ) – The Coachella Valley Firebirds are set to miss a key player before the season even gets underway. Forward Max McCormick, team captain, will undergo hip surgery and is expected to miss the entirety of the 2025-26 season.
Firebirds will be without star forward and captain Max McCormick this season due to hip surgery. Obviously a big blow for the Birds but something they will have to overcome with other players filling the leadership role. @KESQ @KenjiitoKESQ @kendallkesq @Tarp1969 @pwilliamsAHL pic.twitter.com/lQtZQ8Gbfk
— Blake Arthur (@BlakeArthur24) October 1, 2025
McCormick, 33, is the franchise’s all-time leader in points (140) and goals (67) and has played in the second-most games in team history (158).
The Green Bay, WI native collected an additional 38 points (22 goals, 16 assists) in 44 postseason games with Coachella Valley, helping lead the team to back-to-back Western Conference Championships. McCormick also holds the Firebirds’ single-season records for most goals (32) and most points (67).
Before heading to the NCAA with Ohio State University, McCormick was drafted in the sixth round of the 2011 NHL Entry Draft by the Ottawa Senators (171st overall). Following a successful collegiate career, McCormick appeared in 62 games during his rookie season for the Senators’ then-AHL affiliate, the Binghamton Senators, notching 20 points.
McCormick made his NHL debut with Ottawa on October 25th, 2015, against the Arizona Coyotes. Between the Senators, Carolina Hurricanes, and Seattle Kraken, McCormick skated in 94 career NHL games over his 11-year professional career.
In over 540 AHL games, McCormick logged 337 points (159 goals, 178 assists), suiting up for the Belleville/Binghamton Senators, Charlotte Checkers, Colorado Eagles, and Coachella Valley Firebirds. McCormick is a two-time AHL All-Star, earning a nod in 2023 and 2024.
McCormick re-signed with the Seattle Kraken on a two-year, two-way NHL contract on June 29th, 2024.