Alex Plante
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| Alex Plante | |||
|---|---|---|---|
.jpg) Plante at the Channel One Cup in 2017 | |||
| Born |
May 9, 1989 Brandon, Manitoba, Canada | ||
| Height | 6 ft 4 in (193 cm) | ||
| Weight | 230 lb (104 kg; 16 st 6 lb) | ||
| Position | Defence | ||
| Shot | Right | ||
| Played for |
Edmonton Oilers Dornbirner EC Lørenskog IK Anyang Halla | ||
| National team |
 South Korea | ||
| NHL draft |
15th overall, 2007 Edmonton Oilers | ||
| Playing career | 2009–2020 | ||
Alexandre Plante (born May 9, 1989) is a Canadian-South Korean former professional ice hockey defenceman. He was selected by the Edmonton Oilers 15th overall in the 2007 NHL entry draft and made his National Hockey League (NHL) debut in 2009–10. He is the son of former professional defenceman Cam Plante, while his brother, Tyler, is a goaltending coach for the Brandon Wheat Kings.
Plante played junior hockey for the Calgary Hitmen of the Western Hockey League (WHL). The Hitmen selected him with their second-round pick, 21st overall, in the 2004 WHL Bantam Draft.[1] He established himself as a regular on Calgary's blue line in 2005–06, playing in 54 games. He appeared in 58 more in 2006–07 and attracted greater attention from NHL scouts in the 2007 playoffs, scoring 11 points in 13 games. As a result, the Edmonton Oilers selected him 15th overall in the 2007 NHL entry draft, a higher position than he was initially expected to go.[2]
Several injuries limited Plante to 36 games in 2007–08 and he failed to report to Calgary's training camp prior to the 2008–09 WHL season, claiming that the team had treated him poorly the previous year.[3] While he initially demanded a trade out of Calgary,[4] Plante ultimately recanted and returned to the Hitmen early in the season.[5] He rebounded from his "nightmare season" in 2007–08 to rank among the leaders of the Hitmen defence with 45 points in the regular season and another 15 in the playoffs before Calgary was upset in the league championship series by the Kelowna Rockets.[6]
The Oilers signed Plante to a three-year contract following the season.[7] He began his professional career in 2009–10 with Edmonton's top minor league affiliate, the Springfield Falcons of the American Hockey League (AHL).[8] Several injuries on Edmonton's defence led the Oilers to recall Plante, and he made his NHL debut on February 1, 2010, against the Carolina Hurricanes and recorded an assist.[9] He was returned to Springfield as injured players returned to the Oilers' lineup.[10]
On July 18, 2013, Plante was signed as a free agent to his first European contract on a one-year deal with Dornbirner EC of the Austrian Hockey League.[11] He joined Anyang Halla of the Asia League Ice Hockey in 2015, and gained South Korean citizenship in 2017.[12]