OHL Alumni Central

For the second year in a row, Ontario Hockey League grads Jamie Langenbrunner and Jason Arnott will start the season on the same team. Last season, both were with the New Jersey Devils and both were traded away to different teams by the end of the season. In 2011-12, the two veterans will bring leadership and experience to a youth-packed St. Louis Blues team.

Before the 2010-11 season, Langenbrunner and Arnott had a series of near misses. Jamie began his Ontario Hockey League career with the Peterborough Petes in 1993-94 while Jason ended his OHL career with the Oshawa Generals in 1992-93. During the 2001-02 season, the two were traded for each other with Langenbrunner going from the Dallas Stars to New Jersey while Arnott went in the opposite direction.

Jason Arnott played two season in the Ontario Hockey League, 1991-92 and 1992-93, both with the Oshawa Generals. He was a seventh overall pick by the Edmonton Oilers in the 1993 NHL Entry Draft and was an instant stick with the Oilers in 1993-94. Along the way, he has played 1172 NHL games with the Oilers, Devils, Stars, Nashville Predators and Washington Capitals.

Jamie Langenbrunner played two seasons in Ontario Hockey League, as well. Jamie played for the Peterbough Petes in 1993-94 and 1994-95. Langenbrunner was drafted the same year as Arnott, 1993, going in the second round, 35th overall, to the Dallas Stars. He was drafted right out of high school in the United States and came to the Petes already an NHL prospect. Langenbrunner has totalled 1035 regular season NHL games from 1995-96 to the present with Dallas and New Jersey.

This duo brings to St. Louis the combined experience of three Stanley Cup victories (Langenbrunner -2, Arnott – 1). Their leadership qualities are immense. Langenbrunner served as the team captain of the New Jersey Devils from 2007-08 until his trade to Dallas last season. Arnott wsa team captain of the Nashville Predators from 2006-07 to 2009-10.

With the signing of these two veterans, St. Louis instantly became one of the team’s to watch in the upcoming NHL season.

Check out the story announcing the double signing from the St. Louis Blues official website.

After a great season in the Central Hockey League with the Quad City Mallards, Ontario Hockey League grad Mike McLean is off to Great Britain to play in the EIHL with the Coventry Blaze.

Mike McLean with the ECHL's Dayton Bombers in 2008-09.

Mike McLean played in the Ontario Hockey League from 2002-03 to 2006-07. His first year consisted of just two games with his hometown Oshawa Generals. His second season started with the Generals and saw him end up with the Guelph Storm after eleven games. McLean was a mainstay with the Storm until the end of the 2006-07 season.

Undrafted by an NHL club, McLean has spent the past four seasons playing for eight different clubs in three different leagues. He was a point per game man with the Dayton Bombers of the ECHL in 2008-09 with 46 points in 47 games. This past season, Mike was tied for the points lead on the Quad City Mallards of the Central Hockey League with 51 in 55 games. The player he was tied with played eleven more games. McLean played in the CHL All-Star game in 2010-11. The Mallards finished seventh out of nine teams in the Turner Conference and made a quick exit from the first round of the playoffs.

McLean’s arrival in Coventry is highly anticipated. The Blaze finished sixth in the ten team Elite Ice Hockey League this past season and lost to the Belfast Giants in the first round of the playoffs. The team plays out of the Skydome Arena in Coventry which seats just 3,000 for hockey. Since 2002-03, the Coventry Blaze have been regular season champions five times and have been playoff champs twice.

HK Acroni Jesenice of Austria’s Erste Bank Eishockey Liga has begun re-tooling for the 2011-12 season after a dismal 2010-11. Jesenice was six goals removed from being the lowest scoring team in the ten team league while finishing in last place overall. After picking up three Ontario Hockey League grads that have been known for their offensive abilities, goal scoring shouldn’t be a problem going into next season.

Yesterday, it was confirmed that Ontario Hockey League grads Dylan Hunter, Tyler Donati and Justin Donati will join the Slovenia based team. All three played in the North American minor leagues in 2010-11.

Dylan Hunter spent five years in the Ontario Hockey League from 2001-02 to 2005-06, all with the London Knights. In 2004-05, along with winning the Robertson Cup and Memorial Cup with the Knights, Hunter placed second in league scoring with 104 points during the regular season. In his final season, the point total increased to 117 but his position in the OHL dropped to fourth.

Dylan was taken by the Buffalo Sabres in the ninth round of the 2004 NHL Entry Draft, 273rd overall. He has since bounced around with several teams in the AHL and ECHL. This past season, Hunter played for the Cincinnati Cyclones of the ECHL and was an alternate captain. He finished out the year with the Milwaukee Admirals of the AHL.

Similar to the NHL’s Sedin twins, the Donati’s have taken turns over the past two seasons leading the ECHL in scoring. In 2009-10, it was Tyler leading the league with 114 points. This past season, it was Justin taking the title with 94.

Justin Donati played four seasons in the Ontario Hockey League split between the Oshawa Generals, Toronto St. Michael’s Majors and Sudbury Wolves. In 2005-06, Justin finished eight points and two positions in OHL scoring behind Dylan Hunter. This will be Justin’s second attempt at Europe, having played three games with Thurgau of Switzerland’s National League B at the start of the 2009-10 season.

In an Ontario Hockey League season when the show was stolen by Patrick Kane and John Tavares, Tyler Donati’s 2006-07 offensive totals were overshadowed. Donati finished fourth in points in the OHL with 129 on 54 goals and 75 assists with the Belleville Bulls. He added another 26 in 15 playoff games.

Tyler Donati played four seasons in the OHL, split between the Oshawa Generals, Toronto St. Michael’s Majors and Belleville Bulls. This past season, Tyler was limited to nine games with the AHL’s Connecticut Whale and 18 with the ECHL’s Elmira Jackals. Like brother Justin, Tyler played three games in with Thurgau in Switzerland at the start of the 2009-10 season.

With the Owen Sound Attack in uncharted waters as far as that franchise is concerned, it’s fitting that the head coach, two assistants and the general manager were all Canadian Hockey League players at one time and three are graduates of the Ontario Hockey League.

The Attack were the top team in the Western Conference during the 2010-11 regular season and are squaring off against the Mississauga St. Michael’s Majors in the Robertson Cup final. Both teams are assured entry to the Memorial Cup tournament as Mississauga is the host.

Head Coach Mark Reeds played three years with the Peterborough Petes from 1977-78 to 1979-80. In just 54 games in his final season with the Petes, Reeds put up very respectable numbers with 34 goals and 45 assists for 79 points. Mark saw NHL action between 1981-82 and 1988-89 with the St. Louis Blues and Hartford Whalers. In 1989-90, Reeds went to Italy and contributed 131 points in just 44 games with HC Flemme Cavalese.

Reeds is in his fourth season as head coach of Owen Sound. He has been in the coaching biz since 1992-93 when he started out as the Assistant Coach of the IHL’s Peoria Rivermen. When the Rivermen made the switch to the ECHL for the 1996-97 season, Mark made the switch to head coach. He has been a head coach with the Rivermen, Missouri River Otters and Kalamazoo Wings before coming to Owen Sound.

Assistant Coach Brad Tiley played three seasons with the Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds from 1988-89 to 1990-91. Over his playing career, Brad saw 10 NHL games with the Phoenix Coyotes and a pair with the Philadelphia Flyers. He played actively until the 2008-09 season and appeared on teams in the IHL, AHL, DEL (Germany), EBEL (Austria) and the Asia League (Japan). This is Tiley’s second season with the Attack.

General Manager Dale DeGray played for the Oshawa Generals from 1979-80 (1 game) to 1982-83. DeGray saw NHL time in the 1980′s with the Calgary Flames, Toronto Maple Leafs, Los Angeles Kings and Buffalo Sabres. After several years in the IHL, DeGray’s playing days ended after the 1997-98 season. Dale is in his fourth year as GM in Owen Sound after spending five years as a scout for the NHL’s Florida Panthers.

Assistant Coach Terry Virtue played in the WHL from 1988-89 to 1990-91. Virtue skated in five NHL games over his career, four with the Boston Bruins and one with the New York Rangers. Terry’s lengthy hockey career, mostly spent in the AHL, came to and end after the 2006-07 season. He spent three years as assistant coach of the WHL’s Tri-City Americans before coming to Owen Sound for the 2010-11 season.

Vaclav Meidl played four seasons in the Ontario Hockey League from 2003-04 to 2006-07. He began his OHL career with the Plymouth Whalers after being drafted 3rd overall in the 2003 CHL import draft and was traded to the Saginaw Spirit midway through the 2005-06 season. Meidl played eight games with the Oshawa Generals during the 2006-07 season before returning to his native Czech Republic.

Vaclav’s most productive season in the Ontario Hockey League was his first with 14 goals and 42 points in 67 games. His numbers dropped each successive season after that. Meidl was a member of Team Czech Republic at the 2006 IIHF World Under-20 Championships. The team lost to the United States in the quarter finals.

After his first season with Plymouth, Meidl was drafted in the third round of the 2004 NHL Entry Draft by the Nashville Predators, 81st overall. Vaclav’s professional career since leaving Oshawa in 2006-07 has been a split between the Czech Republic’s Extraliga and Extraliga 2.

This past season, 2010-11, Vaclav played six games with the Extraliga’s HC Kometa Brno and 39 with the Extraliga 2′s HC Havlickuv Brod. With Brod, Meidl contributed 33 points on 15 goals, his best professional output to date. He is set to return to Brod for the 2011-12 season.