Steve Ott

Steve Ott
Ott with the St. Louis Blues in 2014.
Born	August 19, 1982 Summerside, PEI, CAN
Height	6 ft 0 in (183 cm)
Weight	193 lb (88 kg; 13 st 11 lb)
Position	Centre
Shoots	Left
NHL team Former teams	St. Louis Blues Dallas Stars Buffalo Sabres
National team	Canada
NHL Draft	25th overall, 2000 Dallas Stars
Playing career	2002–present

Steven Bradley Ott (born August 19, 1982) is a Canadian professional ice hockey player currently playing for the St. Louis Blues of the National Hockey League (NHL). Picked 25th overall in the 2000 NHL Entry Draft, Ott previously played nine seasons with the Dallas Stars and two with the Buffalo Sabres.

Playing career

Early career and years in Dallas

Born in Summerside, Prince Edward Island, Ott later moved to Windsor area. Ott played his minor hockey with the Sun County Panthers of the Ontario Minor Hockey Association (OMHA) and the Belle River Canadiens (Great-Lakes Jr. C) in the mid-1990s before signing for the 1998–99 season with the Leamington Flyers Jr. B club (WOJHL).

After a solid Jr. B season, Ott was selected in the second round, 41st overall, of the 1998 OHL Priority Selection by the Windsor Spitfires.

Ott with the Stars in October 2009

Ott was a first round draft pick of the Dallas Stars, 25th overall, at the 2000 NHL Entry Draft. He then played junior hockey for the OHL's Windsor Spitfires and had a brief spell with the Utah Grizzlies of the American Hockey League (AHL) before joining the Stars' NHL roster.

Ott represented Canada at the 2001 World Junior Hockey Championship, helping the team win the bronze medal. As part of his "peskiness," Ott learned and memorized offensive phrases in other languages to strategically annoy his opponents on the ice in a language they could understand.^[1] During the 2004–05 NHL lockout, Ott played for the Hamilton Bulldogs of the AHL, where he set a team record for penalty minutes in a season with 279.

In the 2007–08 season, Ott was suspended by the NHL for three games for a hit to the head of Jordan Leopold of the Colorado Avalanche during a game on March 9, 2008.^[2] Ott also played in 18 playoff games for the Stars on their run to the Western Conference Finals.

Ott was suspended one game by the NHL on March 1, 2009, for an incident during a game on February 28, 2009, against the Anaheim Ducks, where he received a match penalty for eye gouging Travis Moen. Ott claimed the eye gouge was accidental.^[3]

During the 2009–10 season, on March 31, 2010, Ott scored his first NHL career hat-trick at home against the San Jose Sharks.^[4]

Ott with the Buffalo Sabres in 2013.

Buffalo Sabres

On July 2, 2012, Ott was traded, along with Adam Pardy, to the Buffalo Sabres in exchange for Derek Roy.^[5] As a Sabre, he quickly became a fan favorite due to his hard work ethic, playing ability, toughness and desire to win. He scored his first goal as a Sabre in Buffalo's home opener on January 20, 2013, on a power play goal against the Philadelphia Flyers. He had his first fight as a Sabre on January 25, 2013, at home against Carolina Hurricanes defenseman Tim Gleason. On March 19, 2013, Ott scored an early goal in the first period and the overtime winner against the Montreal Canadiens to record his first multi-goal game with the Sabres. As of April 4, 2013, Ott was promoted to alternate captain after the Sabres traded captain Jason Pominville to the Minnesota Wild at the 2013 NHL trade deadline, joining Thomas Vanek and Drew Stafford as alternate captains for the Sabres. Ott finished his first season with Buffalo with nine goals, 15 assists, 93 penalty minutes and five fights in 48 games, though the Sabres failed to make the 2013 playoffs. On October 1, 2013, Ott, along with Thomas Vanek, were both awarded the captaincy of the Buffalo Sabres. Later in the month, however, Vanek, was traded to the New York Islanders on October 27, leaving Ott as the team's sole captain.

St. Louis Blues

Approaching the 2013–14 trade deadline, Ott and fellow impending free agent Ryan Miller were traded by the rebuilding Sabres to the St. Louis Blues in exchange for Jaroslav Halák, Chris Stewart, William Carrier and two future draft picks.^[6]

Personal life

Ott has a daughter by his ex-wife, Candice. Before beginning his professional hockey career, Ott raced kneeldown outboard hydroplanes and runabouts in the American Power Boat Association (APBA). His father is the current world champion and a past national champion in the Outboard Performance Craft - SST 45 class. He pit crews for his father during his off-season in the summer.

Career statistics

				Regular season						Playoffs
Season	Team	League		GP	G	A	Pts	PIM		GP	G	A	Pts	PIM
1999–00	Windsor Spitfires	OHL		66	23	39	62	131		12	3	5	8	21
2000–01	Windsor Spitfires	OHL		55	50	37	87	164		9	3	8	11	27
2001–02	Windsor Spitfires	OHL		53	43	45	88	178		14	6	10	16	49
2002–03	Utah Grizzlies	AHL		40	9	11	20	98		—	—	—	—	—
2002–03	Dallas Stars	NHL		26	3	4	7	31		1	0	0	0	0
2003–04	Dallas Stars	NHL		73	2	10	12	152		4	1	0	1	0
2004–05	Hamilton Bulldogs	AHL		67	18	21	39	279		4	0	0	0	20
2005–06	Dallas Stars	NHL		82	5	17	22	178		5	0	1	1	2
2006–07	Dallas Stars	NHL		19	0	4	4	35		6	0	0	0	8
2006–07	Iowa Stars	AHL		3	0	0	0	8		—	—	—	—	—
2007–08	Dallas Stars	NHL		73	11	11	22	147		18	2	1	3	22
2008–09	Dallas Stars	NHL		64	19	27	46	135		—	—	—	—	—
2009–10	Dallas Stars	NHL		73	22	14	36	153		—	—	—	—	—
2010–11	Dallas Stars	NHL		82	12	20	32	183		—	—	—	—	—
2011–12	Dallas Stars	NHL		74	11	28	39	156		—	—	—	—	—
2012–13	Buffalo Sabres	NHL		48	9	15	24	93		—	—	—	—	—
2013–14	Buffalo Sabres	NHL		59	9	11	20	55		—	—	—	—	—
2013–14	St. Louis Blues	NHL		23	0	3	3	37		6	0	2	2	14
2014–15	St. Louis Blues	NHL		78	3	9	12	86		6	0	0	0	26
NHL totals				774	106	173	279	1441		46	3	4	7	72

Awards and honours

Award	Year
OHL
Third All-Star Team	2001
CHL Second All-Star Team	2001
Second All-Star Team	2002

References

1. "Simply the pest: Dallas Stars' Ott ticks off foes". dallasnews.com. 2008-04-25. Retrieved 2008-11-10.
2. "League hands Ott three-game suspension for hit to leopold's head". ESPN.com. 2008-03-12. Retrieved 2009-02-06.
3. "NHL suspends Ott over eye-gouge". Canoe-Slam Sports. 2009-04-03. Retrieved 2009-04-03.
4. "Top 10 Hockey Agitators Of All-Time [Part 2/2]". Retrieved 2010-07-27.
5. "Stars acquire Roy from Sabres in exchange for Pardy and Ott". The Sports Network. 2012-07-02. Retrieved 2012-07-02.
6. "Sabres deal Miller, Ott to Blues for Halak, Stewart, Picks". The Sports Network. 2014-02-28. Retrieved 2014-02-28.

External links

• Steve Ott's career statistics at The Internet Hockey Database