Steve Ott

Steven Bradley Ott (born August 19, 1982) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey centre and current head coach of the Springfield Thunderbirds of the American Hockey League (AHL). He was selected in the first round, 25th overall, by the Dallas Stars in the 2000 NHL entry draft. Ott also previously played for the Buffalo Sabres, St. Louis Blues, Detroit Red Wings and Montreal Canadiens.

Playing career Early career and years in Dallas Born in Summerside, Prince Edward Island, Ott later moved to Stoney Point, Ontario. He played his minor hockey with the Sun County Panthers of the Ontario Minor Hockey Association (OMHA) and the Belle River Canadiens (Great Lakes Junior C Hockey League) in the mid-1990s before signing for the 1998–99 season with the Leamington Flyers Junior B club (WOJHL). After a solid season, Ott was selected in the second round, 41st overall, of the 1998 OHL Priority Selection by the Windsor Spitfires.

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", he learned and memorized offensive phrases in other languages to strategically annoy his opponents on the ice in a language they could understand. 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. Ott also played in 18 playoff games for the Stars during their run to the Western Conference Final.

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.

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

Buffalo Sabres On July 2, 2012, Ott was traded, along with Adam Pardy, to the Buffalo Sabres in exchange for Derek Roy. 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, he 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 and Thomas Vanek were both awarded the captaincy of the Sabres. However, later in the month on October 27, Vanek was traded to the New York Islanders, 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.

On December 5, 2015, Ott suffered a season-ending injury in a game against the Toronto Maple Leafs. Attempting to deliver a body check to Leafs captain Dion Phaneuf, Ott missed the hit and fell awkwardly into the boards. He was diagnosed with a torn hamstring and missed the remainder of the 2015–16 season. He practiced with the Blues prior to game three of their first-round series against the defending champion Chicago Blackhawks but did not play until their second-round series against the Dallas Stars. He played in nine playoff games, putting up one assist as the Blues lost in the Western Conference Final to the San Jose Sharks.

Detroit Red Wings Becoming a free agent in the offseason, Ott signed a one-year contract with the Detroit Red Wings on July 1, 2016.

Montreal Canadiens On February 28, 2017, Ott was traded to the Montreal Canadiens in exchange for a sixth-round draft pick in the 2018 NHL entry draft.

Coaching career St. Louis Blues

On May 25, 2017, Ott retired from his professional hockey playing career, and was named as an assistant coach for the St. Louis Blues for the 2017–18 season. He finished his career with 848 career games in the NHL.

On June 12, 2019, Ott won the Stanley Cup as the Blues defeated the Boston Bruins in seven games in the .

On January 19, 2026, Ott was named the head coach of the Springfield Thunderbirds following the dismissal of Steve Konowalchuk. On June 10, 2026, Ott signed a two-year extension to remain as Thunderbirds head coach.

Personal life Ott has been married twice and has three children, one from his first marriage, and two from his current marriage. Before beginning his professional hockey career, Ott raced kneeldown outboard hydroplanes. He gave it up at age 17 to focus on hockey. As of 2014 his father was a professional boat racer in the American Power Boat Association (APBA) and Ott was pit crewing for him during his off-season in the summer. About power boating Ott says "it’s extremely dangerous. A lot of people get injured, and life-threatening stuff as well. It’s something that you have to have in your blood to be able to do it, but I think it’s passed down from my dad."

Career statistics Regular season and playoffs Regular season Playoffs Season Team League GP G A Pts PIM GP G A Pts PIM 1998–99 Leamington Flyers WOHL 48 14 30 44 110 — — — — — 1999–2000 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 2015–16 St. Louis Blues NHL 21 0 2 2 34 9 0 1 1 8 2016–17 Detroit Red Wings NHL 42 3 3 6 63 — — — — — 2016–17 Montreal Canadiens NHL 11 0 1 1 17 6 0 0 0 0 NHL totals 848 109 179 288 1555 61 3 5 8 80

International Year Team Event GP G A Pts PIM 2001 Canada WJC 7 2 1 3 6 2002 Canada WJC 7 3 3 6 8 2010 Canada WC 7 0 1 1 20 Junior totals 14 5 4 9 14

Awards and honours Award Year OHL Third All-Star Team 2001 CHL Second All-Star Team 2001 Second All-Star Team 2002 NHL Stanley Cup champion (coaching staff) 2019