Alex Grant is Milano Hockey Club’s first signing for the defensive unit. A major acquisition for the newly established club, which secures the services of one of the most respected defensemen on the international stage. NHL, AHL, KHL, Spengler Cup and Olympic Games: the résumé of the 37-year-old Canadian from Antigonish, Nova Scotia, leaves little to be desired.
Standing 191 cm tall and weighing 95 kg, the right-shot defenseman is the prototype of the modern offensive blueliner, capable of changing the course of a game through exceptional vision and puck-moving ability. Accurate in transition, dangerous on the power play thanks to the quality and power of his shot, Grant brings experience, leadership and offensive production from the back end.
Selected by the Pittsburgh Penguins in the fourth round of the 2007 NHL Draft, Grant spent years pursuing the dream of becoming a full-time NHL player, ultimately reaching the league on two separate occasions. He appeared in two games with the Anaheim Ducks during the 2013/14 season, scoring two goals on his first two NHL shots and entering the record books, before adding five more NHL appearances with the Arizona Coyotes in 2015/16.
The best years of his nine-season North American professional career came in the American Hockey League, where he established himself as a dominant presence on the blue line. Across spells with Wilkes-Barre/Scranton, Norfolk, Binghamton, Springfield, Providence and Iowa, Grant recorded 278 points in 514 AHL games.
In 2018, he made the move to the KHL, widely regarded as the second-most competitive hockey league in the world. Over eight seasons with Jokerit Helsinki, SKA St. Petersburg, Barys Astana and Avangard Omsk, he amassed 123 points, including 44 goals, in 274 games. During his time in Kazakhstan, he also set a league record for a defenseman by scoring four goals in a single game.
Several highlights of his international career also came during this period. Grant won the Spengler Cup with Team Canada in 2020 and represented his country at the 2022 Winter Olympic Games in Beijing, contributing one goal and one assist.
Last season, Grant played in Denmark’s top division with the Odense Bulldogs, registering 16 points in 31 appearances, including eight points during the playoffs.
Now he arrives in Milan, where he will wear jersey number 51.
