OHL Alumni Central

The Phoenix Coyotes and the Detroit Red Wings are currently embroiled in a Western Conference quarter final series in the NHL’s 2010 Stanley Cup playoffs. Ten Ontario Hockey League alumni are featured in this series, five from each team. Click on the names below to view each player’s profile page on their team’s official website.

Phoenix Coyotes

Wojtek Wolski played four seasons in the OHL with the Brampton Battalion from 2002-03 to 2005-06. His final season featured a 128 point performance in just 56 games for Brampton. A first round pick of the Colorado Avalanche in 2004, Wolski came over from the Avalanche to the Coyotes at this season’s trade deadline.

Mathieu Schneider is one of the few left in pro hockey that can say they played for the Cornwall Royals. Mathieu played three seasons with the OHL team from 1986-87 to 1988-89. In his nearly 1300 game NHL career, Mathieu has played for a number of teams, including the Montreal Canadiens, New York Islanders, Toronto Maple Leafs, New York Rangers, Los Angeles Kings, Detroit Red Wings, Anaheim Ducks, Atlanta Thrashers, Vancouver Canucks and the Coyotes.

Taylor Pyatt played three seasons in the OHL with the Sudbury Wolves from 1997-98 to 1999-00. An 8th overall pick of the New York Islanders in 1999, Taylor played his first season in the NHL with that club before being traded to the Buffalo Sabres. Taylor spent three seasons each in Buffalo then Vancouver before landing in Phoenix this season.

Ed Jovanovski played two seasons in the OHL with his hometown Windsor Spitfires, 1993-94 and 1994-95. He was the first overall pick in the 1994 NHL draft, going to the Florida Panthers. This is Ed’s fourth season with the Coyotes.

Paul Bissonnette played four seasons in the OHL from 2001-02 to 2004-05. He began his career with the North Bay Centennials and moved with the team to Saginaw in his second season. In his final OHL season, Paul was shipped midway through the season to the Owen Sound Attack. Paul saw his first NHL action with the Pittsburgh Penguins last season and played 41 regular season games with the Coyotes this year.

Detroit Red Wings

Daniel Cleary played four seasons in the OHL from 1994-95 to 1997-98, all with the Belleville Bulls. Cleary was a first round pick of the Chicago Blackhawks in 1997 but only played 41 games over two seasons with the team before being traded to the Edmonton Oilers. He became an NHL regular with the Oilers in 2000-01 and played with the team for four seasons. In 2003-04, he played a full season with the Coyotes. After the strike season, he found himself in Detroit.

Todd Bertuzzi played four seasons in the OHL with the Guelph Storm from 1991-92 to 1994-95. Detroit is Todd’s sixth NHL team, the others: New York Islanders, Vancouver Canucks, Florida Panthers, Anaheim Ducks and Calgary Flames.

Kris Draper played just one 39 game season in the OHL with the Ottawa 67′s in 1990-91. Originally drafted by the Winnipeg Jets back in 1989, Kris played a total of 20 games over 3 seasons with the Jets before moving to Detroit where he has just finished his 16th regular season with the club. He has played over 1100 NHL regular season games and over 200 playoff games.

Kirk Maltby played three seasons in the OHL with the Owen Sound Platers from 1989-90 to 1991-92. Kirk is in his 14th season with the Red Wings after starting his career in Edmonton with the Oilers.

Jason Williams played four seasons in the OHL from 1996-97 to 1999-00, all with the Peterborough Petes. Jason started out in the Red Wings organization before making stops in Chicago, Atlanta and Columbus. Williams returned to Detroit at the start of this season.

The Vancouver Canucks are taking on the Los Angeles Kings in the 2010 NHL Western Conference Stanley

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 Cup quarter finals. There are ten OHL alumni featured in this series. Los Angeles has 7 OHL grads on the roster while Vancouver has the least of any NHL playoff team with just 3 former OHLers. Click on the names below to view each player’s profile page on the team’s official website.

Vancouver Canucks

Kyle Wellwood played four seasons in the OHL from 1999-00 to 2002-03. Kyle played his first two full seasons with the Belleville Bulls before being traded midway through his third season to the Windsor Spitfires, where he finished out his OHL career. Kyle started his NHL career with the Toronto Maple Leafs and came over to Vancouver to start the 2008-09 season.

Shane O’Brien played three seasons in the OHL from 2000-01 to 2002-03. He played his first two full seasons with the Kingston Frontenacs before splitting his final season with Kingston and the Toronto St. Michael’s Majors. Shane has previously played for the Anaheim Ducks and the Tampa Bay Lightning before coming to Vancouver at the start of last season.

Andrew Raycroft played three seasons between the pipes in the OHL from 1996-97 to 19998-99. His first two seasons were played in Sudbury with the Wolves and his final season was played with the Kingston Frontenacs. The Calder Trophy winner in 2003-04 as the NHL’s rookie of the year with the Boston Bruins, Andrew has struggled to reach that brilliance again in a career that has taken him from Boston to Toronto to Vancouver.

Los Angeles Kings

Drew Doughty played three seasons in the OHL with the Guelph Storm from 2005-06 to 2007-08. Picked second overall by the Los Angeles Kings in 2008, Drew has only missed one regular season game in his first two seasons in the NHL.

Dustin Brown played three seasons in the OHL with the Guelph Storm from 2000-01 to 2002-03. Dustin was a first round pick of the Kings in 2003 and is now the team captain.

Wayne Simmonds played two seasons in the OHL, 2006-07 and 2007-08. His first season was played with the Owen Sound Attack and his second was split between the Attack and the Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds. Simmonds became a regular with the Kings right out of junior.

Brad Richardson played four seasons in the OHL, all with the Owen Sound Attack, from 2001-02 to 2004-05. Brad’s first three seasons in the NHL were spent with the Colorado Avalanche and the past two have been with the Kings.

Justin Williams played two seasons in the OHL with the Plymouth Whalers, 1998-99 and 1999-00. Justin began his NHL career with the Philadelphia Flyers, the team that drafted him in the first round of the 2000 draft. He also had a stint with the Carolina Hurricanes before landing with the Kings.

Richard Clune played four seasons in the OHL from 2003-04 to 2006-07. His first three seasons were spent in Sarnia with the Sting and he played his final season with the Barrie Colts. He saw his first NHL action this season after being called up by the Kings last in the season. He has seen only 14 regular season NHL games but goes into the playoffs as an integral part of the Kings.

Sean O’Donnell played three seasons in the OHL way, way back starting in 1988-89. His full OHL career was spent with the Sudbury Wolves. Sean has played for six different teams in the NHL since 1994 including the Kings, Minnesota Wild, New Jersey Devils, Boston Bruins, Phoenix Coyotes and the Anaheim Ducks. Sean is currently on his second tour of duty with the Kings after spending his first six seasons in the league with the club.

The Chicago Blackhawks are taking on the Nashville Predators in the 2010 NHL Stanley Cup Western Conference quarter finals. The series features 12 Ontario Hockey League graduates. 7 alumni are on the Predators roster while 5 are playing for the Hawks. Click on each player’s name below to view their profile page on each team’s official website.

Chicago Blackhawks

Patrick Kane played just one season in the OHL, 2006-07 with the London Knights and what an amazing season it was. Kane put in 62 goals and added 83 assists to lead the league with 145 points. He would add another 31 points in 16 playoff games. Picked first overall by Chicago in 2007, Patrick is in his third season with the team.

David Bolland played four seasons in the OHL with the London Knights from 2002-03 to 2005-06. After just 17 points in his first season, David ended up his OHL career with 299 points and added another 65 in the playoffs. He played one game with the Hawks in 2006-07, split the 2007-08 season between the Hawks and their AHL affiliate and became a regular with the NHL club last season.

Ben Eagerdefinitely added an element of toughness during his four year career in the OHL with the Oshawa Generals from 2000-01 to 2003-04. Eager sat 795 minutes in the penalty box during the regular season with Oshawa. A first round pick of the Phoenix Coyotes, Ben played his first NHL hockey with the Philadelphia Flyers but would not become a regular until last season with Chicago.

Brian Campbellplayed four seasons in the OHL with the Ottawa 67′s from 1995-96 to 1998-99. Brian started his career with the Buffalo Sabres and had a stop in San Jose along the way before becoming a Blackhawk last season.

Nick Boynton played his OHL career along side Brian Campbell – four seasons with the Ottawa 67′s from 1995-96 to 1998-99. Twice picked in the first round – in 1997 by the Washington Capitals and in 1999 by the Boston Bruins. Nick has spent time with the Bruins, Phoenix Coyotes, Florida Panthers and the Anaheim Ducks before coming over to Chicago midway through this season.

Nashville Predators

Nick Spaling played three seasons in the OHL with the Kitchener Rangers from 2005-06 to 2007-08. This is his first season with the Predators after spending last season and the start of this season with the Milwaukee Admirals of the AHL.

Jason Arnott played two seasons in the OHL with the Oshawa Generals, 1991-92 and 1992-93. A seventh overall pick of the Edmonton Oilers in 1993, Jason has played nearly 1100 NHL games with the Oilers, New Jersey Devils, Dallas Stars and the Predators. This is his fourth season in Nashville.

Joel Ward played four seasons in the OHL with the Owen Sound Platers/Attack from 1997-98 to 2000-01.  Ward played his first NHL hockey with the Minnesota Wild in 2006-07 and has been a regular with Nashville the past two seasons.

David Legwand played two seasons in the OHL with the Plymouth Whalers, 1997-98 and 1998-99. David was a second overall pick of the Predators in 1998 and has now put in over 700 regular season games with the team.

Steve Sullivan played two seasons in the OHL with the Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds, 1992-93 and 1993-94. Despite a 51 goal and 113 point production in his second season in the OHL, he was drafted very low by the New Jersey Devils in 1994, 233rd overall. Sullivan has played nearly 850 regular season games with the Devils, Toronto Maple Leafs, Chicago Blackhawks and the Predators. Despite those numbers, Steve had only appeared in 29 playoff games before this season.

Kevin Klein played in the OHL for four seasons from 2000-01 to 2003-04. His first three seasons were played with the Toronto St. Michael’s Majors. In his fourth season, he was traded to the Guelph Storm after just five games with the Majors. Kevin saw sporadic action with the Predators until last season when he became a regular on the blueline.

Cal O’Reilly played three seasons in the OHL with the Windsor Spitfires from 2003-04 to 2005-06. The past two seasons have seen him split his time between the Predators and their AHL affiliate in Milwaukee.

The San Jose Sharks will meet the Colorado Avalanche in the first round of the 2010 NHL Stanley Cup playoffs. 14 Ontario Hockey League grads will be on the rosters for this match-up including 9 for Colorado and 5 for San Jose. The 9 OHL alumni on Colorado is the most on any team in this year’s playoffs, tied with Buffalo.

The Avalanche have picked from a good selection of OHL teams, whereas the Sharks have 3 of the 5 players having played at least a portion of their OHL careers with the Ottawa 67′s.

The 14 OHL grads are listed below. As always, you can click on each player’s name to view their profile page on the team’s official website.

San Jose Sharks

Manny Malhotra played two full seasons in the OHL for the Guelph Storm in 1996-97 and 1997-98. He then played a full season with the New York Rangers in 1998-99 before returning to the Storm for 5 regular season games and 6 playoff games in 1999-00. He had huge expectations on his shoulders back in 1998 when he was picked seventh overall by the New York Rangers. He played sparingly with the Rangers until 2001-02 when he was traded mid-season to the Dallas Stars. Dallas didn’t really pan out and Manny was traded to Columbus during the 2003-04 season where he finally became a regular. This is first season with the Sharks.

Jamie McGinn played four seasons in the OHL with the Ottawa 67′s from 2004-05 to 2007-08. Drafted by the Sharks 36th overall in the 2006 draft, Jamie is in his first full season with San Jose after splitting last season between the Sharks and their AHL affiliate in Worcester.

Logan Couture, like Jamie McGinn, played four seasons in the OHL with the Ottawa 67′s but from 2005-06 to 2008-09. A ninth overall pick by the Sharks in the 2007 draft, Logan started the season with Worcester of the AHL but looks to have overcome that hurdle to be part of the best team in the west.

Joe Thornton played two seasons in the OHL with the Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds, 1995-96 and 1996-97. His final season, he had a stellar 41 goals and 81 assists for 122 points in just 59 games to finish second to Marc Savard in league scoring. Joe was the first overall pick in 1997 by the Boston Bruins and has lived up to ever expectation in his incredible career that has seen him produce over a point a game in over 900 regular season games. Joe is in his fifth season as a Shark.

Brad Staubitz played four seasons in the OHL from 2001-02 to 2004-05. His career was entirely with the Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds up until midway through his final season when he was traded to an Ottawa 67′s team that would go to the OHL finals before losing out to the mighty London Knights. With London hosting the Memorial Cup, Ottawa competed as well as the finalist from the host league. Brad is in his second season with the Sharks.

Colorado Avalanche

Matt Duchene played two seasons in the OHL with the Brampton Battalion, 2007-08 and 2008-09. As the third overall pick in the 2009 NHL draft, Matt jumped right into life in the NHL, playing 81 of 82 games this season.

Ryan O’Reilly played two seasons in the OHL with the Erie Otters, 2007-08 and 2008-09. He made the jump smoothly right into the NHL this season, playing 81 games with the youthful Avalanche.

Craig Anderson stopped pucks for the Guelph Storm for three season from 1998-99 to 2000-01. Craig has been mostly a backup goalie in the NHL with the Chicago Blackhawks and the Florida Panthers until this season. Craig played in 71 games with the Avalanche in his first season with the team.

Chris Stewart was a Kingston Frontenac for three seasons from 2004-05 to 2006-07. Stewart is in his second season with the Avalanche, the team that picked him in the first round of the 2006 NHL draft.

Kyle Quincey played three seasons in the OHL from 2002-03 to 2004-05. His first season was with the London Knights. He was traded to Mississauga 5 games into his second season and finished off his OHL career with the IceDogs. Used sparinginly by the Detroit Red Wings in his first three seasons of professional hockey, Kyle became a regular with Los Angeles last season in a break-out season and has been a leader on the blueline for the Avalanche this season.

Stephane Yelle played three seasons in the OHL with the Oshawa Generals from 1991-92 to 1993-94. He began his NHL career with the Avalanche and spent his first seven seasons in the league with the team. He’s had stints in Calgary, Boston and Carolina before being returned to Denver at the trade deadline this season.

Adam Foote was as Sault Ste. Marie Greyhound for three seasons from 1988-89 to 1990-91. He began play with the Avalanche franchise back in 1991-92 when they were still known as the Quebec Nordiques. With the exception of two and a half seasons spent with the Columbus Blue Jackets before being returned to the Avalanche, Adam has spent his entire career with Colorado.

Ryan Wilson played a fairly rare five seasons in the OHL. He played for the Toronto St. Michael’s Majors for three seasons from 2003-04 to 2005-06. He then played for the Sarnia Sting for the 2006-07 and 2007-08 season. This is Ryan’s first season with Colorado and his first in the NHL.

Peter Budaj played three seasons in the OHL with the Toronto St. Michael’s Majors from 1999-00 to 2001-02. Peter is in his fifth season between the pipes for the Avalanche but has lost his starting role to fellow former OHLer Craig Anderson. Peter played for Slovakia at the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver.

The Pittsburgh Penguins face the Ottawa Senators in the first round of the NHL’s 2010 Stanley Cup playoffs. The series features 14 graduates of the Ontario Hockey League. Ottawa will dress 8 OHL alumni and Pittsburgh will dress 6.

Below are the 14 players. As usual, you can click on the player’s name to view his profile page on the team’s official website.

Pittsburgh Penguins

Brent Johnson played between the pipes for the Owen Sound Platers for three seasons from 1994-95 to 1996-97. Brent is in his first season with the Penguins after an NHL career split between the St. Louis Blues, Phoenix Coyotes and Washington Capitals.

Jordan Staal played two seasons in the OHL with the Peterborough Petes, 2004-05 and 2005-06. A first round pick, second overall by the Penguins in 2006, Jordan did not dissapoint and his been a star player with the team from day one.

Tyler Kennedy played four seasons for the Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds from 2002-03 to 2005-06. He was a fourth round pick of the Penguins and after a season with their AHL affiliate, he his now in his third season with the NHL club.

Jay McKee played three seasons in the OHL from 1993-94 to 1995-96. His first season was with Sudbury Wolves, his last was with the Niagara Falls Thunder and the middle season was split between the two. Jay was a first round pick of the Buffalo Sabres in 1995 and played with the NHL club until 2006-07 when he began his first of three seasons with the St. Louis Blues. This is McKee’s first season with the Penguins.

Matt Cooke played three seasons in the OHL from 1995-96 to 1997-98. He played his first two full seasons with the Windsor Spitfires and split his final season in the OHL with the Spitfires and the Kingston Frontenacs. Drafted relatively low, in the 6th round, by the Vancouver Canucks didn’t stop Matt from becoming an NHL regular by the 1999-00 season. After 9 seasons with the Canucks, Matt played a ‘post-deadline’ stint with the Washington Capitals in 2007-08 and has been a Penguin ever since.

Michael Rupp began his OHL career in 1997-98 with the Windsor Spitfires and was traded midway through the season to the Erie Otters, where he would spend the 1998-99 and 1999-00 seasons. Rupp has done two tours of duty with the New Jersey Devils as well as stints with Phoenix and Columbus. This is his first full season with the Penguins.

Ottawa Senators

Jason Spezza played in the OHL from 1998-99 to 2001-02. It was four seasons and four different teams in the OHL for this second overall pick of the Senators. His first full season was spent with the Brampton Battalion. His second full season was with the Mississauga IceDogs. In his third season, he was traded to Windsor and in his final season he was traded from Windsor to the Belleville Bulls. Spezza has been a rock for the Senators, averaging over a point per game over his careeer.

Chris Campoli played four seasons in the OHL with the Erie Otters from 2000-01 to 2003-04. A deep 7th round pick of the New York Islanders, Chris played his first full season in 2005-06 after a season with the Islanders’ AHL affiliate, the Bridgeport Sound Tigers. Chris was traded to the Senators during the 2008-09 season.

Chris Kelly played in the OHL from 1997-98 to 2000-01. He was a London Knight until midway through his final season when he was traded to the Sudbury Wolves. A career Senator, Chris has now played over 400 games in Ottawa.

Shean Donovan began his OHL career way back in 1991-92 and played four seasons with the Ottawa 67′s. The Senators are Shean’s seventh NHL team, having played for the San Jose Sharks, Colorado Avalanche, Atlanta Thrashers, Pittsburgh Penguins, Calgary Flames and Boston Bruins before coming to Ottawa, where he has spent the past three seasons.

Matt Carkner was a Peterborough Pete for four seasons from 1997-98 to 2000-01. It took until 2005-06 before Matt played his first NHL game, a single game with the San Jose Sharks. In 2008-09, he played another single game in the NHL, this time with the Senators. Persistance paid off for Carkner this season as he played in 81 of Ottawa’s 82 games.

Mike Fisher played two seasons with the Sudbury Wolves, 1997-98 and 1998-99. In his second season, his 106 points were good enough for 5th in OHL scoring. This season marks the tenth with the Senators for Fisher.

Nick Foligno played three seasons in the OHL with the Sudbury Wolves from 2004-05 to 2006-07, providing toughness along with a scoring touch. This is the third season with the Senators for Foligno.