OHL Alumni Central

Back in 1974-75 and 1975-76, Greg Hotham played for the Kingston Canadians. Three decades later, both of Greg’s sons, Andrew and Scott, also played in the Ontario Hockey League. All three are blue liners.

The Toronto Maple Leafs selected Greg in the fifth round of the 1976 NHL Amateur Draft, 84th overall. Between 1979-80 and 1984-85, Greg played in 230 regular season NHL games with the Maple Leafs and Pittsburgh Penguins. He retired from the American Hockey League after the 1989-90 season, after playing 513 regular season games with the New Brunswick Hawks, Baltimore Skipjacks and Newmarket Saints (all three are extinct now).

The oldest Hotham son, Scott, played in the Ontario Hockey League from 2001-02 to 2004-05. He began with the North Bay Centennials and moved with the club to Saginaw, where he played one game with the Spirit in 2002-03. After that game, Scott went back to Canada to play for the Mississauga IceDogs. The following season, he was traded early again, this time to the Barrie Colts.

Scott Hotham went undrafted and spent the four years post-OHL with St. Mary’s University. Hotham entered the world of pro hockey in 2009-10, mostly with the ECHL’s Florida Everblades but also playing nine games with the Rochester Americans of the AHL. In 2010-11, he played for Lillehammer in Norway’s Get-Ligaen. This season, he is playing in Austria’s Erste Bank Hockey League (EBEL) for Olimija Ljubljana.

Andrew Hotham’s career has paralleled brother Scott’s in several ways. Both played for the Barrie Colts (at the same time) and Saginaw Spirit (not at the same time) in the Ontario Hockey League. Both played four years with St. Mary’s. Both had a cup of coffee with the Rochester Americans.

Andrew played in the Ontario Hockey League from 2003-04 to 2006-07 with the Barrie Colts, Erie Otters and Saginaw Spirit. He played with St. Mary’s from 2007-08 to 2010-11, joining the Americans after the CIS season had ended. With St. Mary’s, Andrew was an All-Canadian First Team All-Star in his final three seasons and was the Atlantic’s Most Valuable Player for 2010-11, This season, Hotham is playing for the Wheeling Nailers of the ECHL.

As usual, the Hershey Bears are storming through the American Hockey League season, taking no prisoners. The Bears are currently in first atop the Eastern Conference and second overall in the 30 team league behind only the Oklahoma City Barons. Helping out on the blue line are two grads of the Ontario Hockey League. These are the only two representatives of the OHL on the Hershey roster, a surprise when you consider there is only one non-North American born player on the club.

Danny Richmond was coaxed out of the NCAA by Dale Hunter to play one season with the London Knights in 2003-04. Richmond came to London already a draft pick of the Carolina Hurricanes. The Canes took Danny in the second round of the 2003 NHL Entry Draft, 31st overall. He had an exceptional season with the Knights and also won gold at the World Juniors as a member of Team U.S.A.

To date, Richmond has played in 49 NHL regular season games with Carolina and the Chicago Blackhawks. Of course, as a member of the Hershey Bears, he is now property of the Washington Capitals – a team stocked with former Knights and now coached by Dale Hunter. In eight years of professional hockey, Richmond has spent the majority of his time in the AHL. He has played for nearly 25% of the league’s 30 team, seven teams in eight years.

Where Danny Richmond was an American playing junior in Canada, Patrick McNeill was a Canadian playing junior in the United States. McNeill was a member of the Saginaw Spirit for four seasons from 2003-04 to 2006-07. Where Richmond is a bit of a hockey vagabond, McNeill was drafted by the Washington Capitals and has only played with their minor league affiliates since turning pro.

Patrick was a D-man with a nose for the opposing team’s net while in the OHL. In each of his final two seasons in Saginaw, he surpassed the 20 goal plateau. His 77 points in 2005-06 led all the Ontario Hockey League’s defensemen. It should be noted that McNeill was the first overall pick by the Spirit at the 2003 OHL Priority Selection.

McNeill was a fourth round pick of the Capitals at the 2005 NHL Entry Draft, 118th overall. Other than 19 games with the ECHL’s South Carolina Stingrays in his first pro season, he has been a mainstay with the Hershey Bears. For two consecutive years, 2008-09 and 2009-10, he helped the Bears win the Calder Cup as AHL playoff champs. The team is certainly headed in the same direction this season.

Since the name ‘International Hockey League’ is no longer in use in North America, Austria’s elite Erste Bank Eishockey Liga might think about changing their name to just that. The eleven team EBEL is truly an international hockey league. Just six of the eleven teams are based in Austria for 2011-12. There are two teams in Slovenia and one each in Hungary, Croatia and the Czech Republic. Halfway through the 54 game regular season schedule, the team is currently tied for ninth in the EBEL.

The latest team to join from outside Austria is Orli Znojmo. The ‘Eagles’ previously played out of the Czech Republic’s Extraliga 2. With the recent aquisition of Mike Danton, Orli Znojmo now has four Ontario Hockey League grads on the roster. One other, Jan Platil is rumoured to return to the team after being released by Tappara in Finland’s SM-Liiga. Platil started the season playing ten games with Znojmo.

Lubomir Stach played two seasons in the Ontario Hockey League, 2004-05 and 2005-06. He began with the Belleville Bulls but was moved to the Guelph Storm during his first season. In 2005-06, he was picked up mid-season by the Peterborough Petes and the compact defenseman played a major role in the Petes winning the Robertson Cup. Lubomir contributed 18 points from the point in 19 playoff games. Stach spent the past five years in his native Czech Republic, the last two years mostly with Znojmo.

Mike Danton played three seasons in the Ontario Hockey League, as Mike Jefferson, from 1997-98 to 1999-00. He began with the Sarnia Sting, made a stop with the Toronto St. Michael’s Majors before finishing his OHL career with the Barrie Colts. Like Stach, Danton was a member of a Robertson Cup winning team in his final OHL season. Danton was a fifth round pick of the New Jersey Devils at the 2000 NHL Entry Draft, 135th overall. He has appeared in NHL games with the Devils and St. Louis Blues.

After a five year hiatus from the game, Danton returned to play two years at the Canadian university level with Saint Mary’s. He started the 2011-12 season with IFK in Sweden’s Division 1. He was just picked up by Znojmo a few days ago.

Richard Jarusek played just one season in the Ontario Hockey League, 2008-09, with the Saginaw Spirit. Jarusek was a 49th overall pick of the Spirit at the 2008 CHL Import Draft. He returned to his homeland and played with the Under-20 version of Orli Znojmo in 2009-10 and 2010-11.

Yet another Robertson Cup winner, Petr Kanko, played three years with the Kitchener Rangers from 2001-02 to 2003-04. Kanko was taken by the Los Angeles Kings after his first OHL season in the third round of the 2002 NHL Entry Draft, 66th overall. He played ten games with the Kings in 2005-06, playing the rest of his North American professional career with their AHL affiliate, the Manchester Monarchs. Kanko returned to his native Czech Republic in 2008-09. This is first season in the EBEL and with Orli Znojmo.

Jan Platil played three years in the Ontario Hockey League with the Barrie Colts from 2000-01 to 2002-03. A seventh round pick of the Ottawa Senators in 2001, Platil played three years with their AHL affiliate in Binghamton before returning to Europe for the 2006-07 season. Since, Jan has played in Finland, Russia, Czech Republic, Slovakia, Germany and Austria. There is a pretty strong rumour that Platil will soon return to Znojmo.

Germany’s Deutsche Eishockey Liga (DEL) is nearing the halfway point of its 52 game 2011-12 season and three Ontario Hockey League grads can be found among the league’s top four point-getters. All three players are members of Grizzly Adams Wolfsburg. Wolfsburg is currently placed fourth in the fourteen team league. Last season, Grizzly Adams was first overall during the regular season and lost in the playoff finals.

Matt Dzieduszycki is currently tied for first in the league, with another member of Wolfsburg, with 11 goals and 14 assists for 25 points in 23 games. Matt played two seasons in the Ontario Hockey League, 1999-00 and 2000-01, with the Barrie Colts. He has been playing in the DEL since the 2006-07 season. He spent his first year with EV Duisburg then followed up with four years with the Hannover Scorpions. This is Dzieduszycki’s first season with Grizzly Adams.

Sitting alone in third place with 24 points is Tyler Haskins. Just one goal differentiates Haskins from Dzieduszycki. Haskins played five years in the Ontario Hockey League from 2002-03 to 2006-07. He began his OHL career with the Guelph Storm and was traded to the Toronto St. Michael’s Majors nine games into his second season. His final year in the OHL was spent with the Saginaw Spirit, where his 60 regular season assists placed him eighth in the league. Haskins was drafted by the Detroit Red Wings in the fifth round of the 2004 NHL Entry Draft. 2011-12 is Tyler’s second year in the DEL and second with Wolfsburg.

With one point less than Tyler Haskins, Norm Milley sits tied for fourth with four other players. Milley played four years with the Sudbury Wolves from 1996-97 to 1999-00. In 98-99, he was second in points to just Peter Sarno. He surpassed the 50 goal and 100 point plateaus in both his final two seasons with Sudbury. Norm was a second round pick of the Buffalo Sabres at the 1998 NHL Entry Draft. In all, Milley played 29 NHL games, all with Buffalo. 2011-12 is his fourth in the DEL and fourth with Wolfsburg.

After a great start to the 2011-12 season with the Kalamazoo Wings of the ECHL, Ontario Hockey League grad Patrick Asselin is off to Germany to test the European hockey waters for the second time in his career.

Patrick Asselin with the ECHL's Kalamazoo Wings.

Asselin played five seasons in the Ontario Hockey League from 2003-04 to 2007-08. He dressed mostly with the Saginaw Spirit but a trade fifteen games into his final season sent him to the Oshawa Generals. In that final season, Patrick scored 41 goals and assisted on 37 others for 78 points, his best offensive season in the OHL. He played in fifteen Robertson Cup playoff games with the Generals as the team made it to the Eastern Conference finals before losing to the Belleville Bulls.

Undrafted, Asselin spent his first year of professional hockey in Germany. Playing in the Oberliga (tier 3), he put up impressive numbers with 39 goals and 40 assists for 79 points in just 50 games. An interesting quirk in his 2008-09 season was the spike in penalty minutes. With Herner EV, Asselin sat out 110 minutes in those 50 games. The next highest single season total for Patrick was 45 with Saginaw during the 2005-06 season.

Patrick returned to North America the following season and has been playing in the East Coast Hockey League since, mostly with Kalamazoo. In 2010-11, he contributed at nearly a point per game with 27 goals and 65 points in 69 regular season games. He played in 19 more in the playoffs as the Wings made it to the Kelly Cup finals before losing to the Alaska Aces in five games.

The 2011-12 season started with a bang for Asselin, producing 15 points in his first 10 games for Kalamazoo. On November 21, he signed on with Starbulls Rosenheim of Germany’s 2.Bundesliga (tier 2 to the elite DEL). Rosenheim currently sits fifth in the thirteen team league. The 2.Bundesliga at the moment has three Ontario Hockey League grads sitting amongst the top five scorers in Patrick Jarrett, Bob Wren and Chris Stanley.