New Soo Greyhounds coach John Dean (second from left) – then of the Toronto Patriots – received the Coach of the Year Award from OJHL Chairman of the Board Scott McCrory (left), OJHL Commissioner Marty Savoy and OHA Vice Chair Gary Moroney (right) this spring.  (Photo by Andy Corneau / OJHL Images)

It’s not only players the Ontario Junior Hockey League is elevating to the next level.

The league’s 2017-18 coach of the year, John Dean of the Toronto Patriots, was named head coach of the Soo Greyhounds of the Ontario Hockey League today.

“We are excited to announce that John Dean has been named the 20th Head Coach in Soo Greyhounds team history,” Greyhounds General Manager Kyle Raftis announced this afternoon. “John’s passion and his ability to articulate his plans for the future of the Soo Greyhounds hockey club was very impressive and evident when going through our search for the next head coach.

“We are very confident that John is the right fit for the program at this time. John understands today’s athlete and has a proven track record of success. He’s an effective communicator, teacher and committed to pushing this franchise to the next level.”

​Dean replaces 2018 OHL and Canadian Hockey League coach of the year Drew Bannister who is the new coach of the San Antonio Rampage in the American Hockey League. Both of the Soo's assistant coaches also took other jobs after helping the team reach the OHL championship series this spring.

After three years as an assistant coach with the North Bay Battalion of the Ontario Hockey League, Dean was introduced as head coach and assistant GM of the Patriots last summer.

The Pats improved from 29-23-0-2 in 2016-17 to a league-best 40-8-3-3 last season. They were in the top half of the Canadian Junior Hockey League’s weekly Top 20 much of the year, finishing sixth-ranked in the nation.

“We are excited to welcome John to the Soo Greyhounds organization.  We believe his experience and passion will enable our team to continue on the successful path that we are on,” said Soo Team President / Governor Tim Lukenda.

“I am honored and excited to be named Head Coach of the Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds and look forward to carrying on the club’s tradition of excellence. I would like to thank Tim, Kyle and the entire board for giving me this amazing opportunity,” Dean said in a media release.

“I was blessed to be surrounded by an incredible staff and player group last season that has led me to a new chapter in my coaching career.  I would like to thank (Toronto Patriots owner) Manny Mounouchos, (General Manager) Mark Joslin, (Assistant Coach) Mike Daley and the Toronto Patriots players for an incredible season and their support in helping me transition to Sault Ste. Marie” he added.

Dean, a forward, spent his Major Junior career playing mainly with the North Bay Centennials before a three-year professional career (2001-02 to 2003-04) with the Amarillo Gorillas of the Central Hockey League.

Dean, 37, was head coach of Team East at the CJHL Prospects Game in Mississauga Jan. 23.

His Patriots went three rounds deep into the OJHL playoffs, after series wins over the Orangeville Flyers and Oakville Blades before losing the South/West Conference final to the Georgetown Raiders in seven games.

After two seasons as an assistant coach with North York of the OJHL, Dean led the Rangers into the second and third round of the OJHL playoffs while winning at .650 clip. Then North Bay came calling.

Earlier this spring, the previous season’s OJHL coach of the year, Greg Walters of Georgetown, was introduced as the new coach of the OHL’s Oshawa Generals

Other OHL coaches now coaching in the OHL include Stan Butler (Wexford) in North Bay, James Richmond (Georgetown, Aurora) in Mississauga and Dale Hawerchuk (Orangeville) in Barrie.

Three other OHL coaches – Ryan Oulahen (Flint), George Burnett (Guelph) and Billy Burke (Niagara) – played for Newmarket in the OJHL.

More than 130 OJHL players committed to NCAA, U Sports or OHL teams during the 2017-18 season.