Janne Ojanen

Janne Juhani Ojanen ( born April 9, 1968 in Tampere ) is a retired Finnish professional ice hockey player and current coach, who in his active from 1985 to 2010 was for Tappara Tampere of the SM - liiga and the New Jersey Devils in the National Hockey League has played.

Career

He began his professional career in 1985 at Tappara Tampere and was pulled at the NHL Entry Draft in 1986 by the New Jersey Devils in the third round as 45th. Ojanen permanent after two years in Finland before he made ​​the jump to North America. But before he got even with the Finnish National Olympic silver medal at the 1988 Olympics in Calgary.

The season 1988/89 he spent most of the farm team of the Devils, the Utica Devils in the American Hockey League. Only three times he came to the NHL used. The following season he played consistently with the New Jersey Devils in the NHL.

It was followed by two seasons in Finland, he spent back at Tappara and only to the NHL Playoffs of the 1991/92 season he returned to New Jersey. He start next season back with a farm team, the Cincinnati Cyclones of the International Hockey League, but was still active 31 games for the Devils, before he finally decided in 1993 for a return to Europe.

At the Olympic Games in 1994 in Lillehammer, he won the bronze medal with the Finnish team.

His time in Finland, he always spent at Tappara interrupted this once for a playoff game in Switzerland with the HC Lugano in 1995 and for two seasons from 1996 to 1998 in the Swedish Elitserien in Malmo IF.

He is life been player of Tappara Tampere in the Finnish league. From autumn 2000 until the end of his playing career (2009 /10) he was captain of the team. On 28 November 2009 he took the lead in the eternal topscorer Evaluation of the Finnish SM- liiga. Following the 2009/10 season, he finished his career. In his honor will wear the number 8 is no longer awarded in Tappara Tampere. In the season 2011/12 Ojanen worked as an assistant coach at his longtime home club Tappara Tampere.