Jonathan Ori Biography

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Jonathan Ori

Canada, British Columbia

6'2" 205 lb | Age 29 | Center

VHL Drafted: 8th overall S78 | VHLM Drafted 9th overall S79

 

Jonathan Ori has come a long way since his humble beginnings, born in a small town in British Columbia his family would move to a city called Vernon when he was 12. He had already honed his skating and stick skills before the move, but while hockey is the pride of Canada the small town he was from had little in ways of hockey facilities. He had friends to play and practice with but his parents felt in order for him to take his game to the next level they must move to a city. It should be no surprise that Ori watched a lot of hockey, it was always his escape from everything else in life, he always enjoyed a good match or a good hockey movie. He watched a mix of NHL and VHL games and while a lot of his favorite players came from the NHL like Joe Thornton and Adam Oates, playing in the VHL was a thought that never left his mind. He made sure to make the most of his early years, learning to skate at four and trying out all positions in the game, the goaltender position was much fun but he wanted to be a play maker, he always did admire those players who made top notch passes. Ori struggled the most when playing on the blue line, even now playing defense seems to be the one skill he still struggles at.

 

The move gave Ori the chance to further his skills, with new friends to make and better hockey lessons and more skilled opponents to play against. It took some time to adjust but once gain he would was playing beyond his age, his skill was more in line of those at 15 or 16, not at 12. He often got to play against the older kids and caught many off guard but he was the real deal. Through all of this Ori always remained humble, something his mother had drilled into him at young age, while he have occasionally boasted about his skills he never got carried away with it. Ori would eventually join the Vernon Vipers, putting up points totals in the low hundreds, it was around this time he made up his mind on heading towards the VHL first, due to the limited time career. Important to note that while Ori could have headed towards the VHL or NHL sooner he decided to take his time to hone his skill more and enjoy his time with the Vipers, he wasn't in a rush to leave.

 

And that takes us to his time in the VHL, he joined the VHLM team Minnesota Storm, a franchise since relocated to Oslo. Ori's one season in the M saw him get 40 points, with 36 of them being assists, and in the playoffs a run all the way to the finals where they would fall just short. In his VHL draft Ori would be picked by the Helsinki Titans, a team the had recently been taken over by the same general manager that picked him in the M draft. While heading to the US to play for the Storm was something he was needed a bit of time to adjust too, his first time playing for a team not in his homeland and it was another thing entirely too leave North America to play in Finland. The Titans we're rebuilding and getting accustomed to his new surrounds took a lot of time. In the end Ori would spend five seasons with the Titans, playing 360 games for them and putting up 327 points. Hitting free agency Ori decided that heading back to North America felt right for him, he would join the Seattle Bears, a team that had reached out to him during the season 79 draft, Ori spent two seasons with the franchise, playing 144 games and putting up 157 points, most notable is the run to the finals they had but would come up just short, making it two times he fell just short. This takes up to the present, the regular season is finished and Jonathan Ori is playing his final playoff games in the VHL. He put up 86 points with his new team, the D.C Dragons, a team he admired once they joined the league. For him it feels like a dream come true, to end his time in the VHL as a Dragon, he is hoping to end his time here with a cup win.

 

It's been a long journey for Ori and it isn't even the end, while his time in the VHL may be at an end we already know Ori intends to keep playing, his eyes sent on the NHL next. We look forward to seeing what new stories Ori will write in his career.

 

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