Slovakian forward Oliver Ozogany becomes the 13th tender in Tri-City's franchise history
The USHL has its first tender of the season Wednesday afternoon as Tri-City inked Slovakian forward Oliver Ozogany for the 2025-26 season.
Ozogany is listed at 6-foot-2 and 170 pounds and currently plays for the Cleveland Barons AAA program. The left-shot forward turns 16 in January and is the 13th tender in Tri-City’s franchise history.
“After reviewing a large group of the top United States teams and players for the 2009 birth class over the first months of this season, we were very impressed and excited with Oliver's play and potential,” Tri-City general manager Jason Koehler said in a statement. “He spent last season in the United States playing AAA hockey and returned this year to compete at both the U15 and U16 AAA levels with the Cleveland Barons program.
“Oliver has been an impact forward at each level and is one of the most attractive prospects for junior, college, and pro teams out of the Midwest region.”
Ozogany spent last season with the Oakmoor Academy Patriots AAA 15U team and racked up 92 points (45-47-92) over 64 games, along with 104 penalty minutes. He also had 32-16-48 over 50 games with the 16U team.
He’s played 13 games for the Barons 15U team this season and has four goals and 13 points, along with 25-28-53 over 23 games with the 16U club.
He attended Tri-City’s camp this past June in Vegas and also recently visited Kearney for a week before officially signing the tender.
"I am very excited to be joining the Tri-City Storm,” Ozogany said in a statement. “It is a goal of mine to play in the USHL and a big thank you to the Tri-City Storm for making my dream come true. I will do everything to bring the Clark Cup back to this organization. I would also like to thank my family, advisors, coaches and teammates who helped me get here."
The USHL saw a single-season record 12 tenders one year ago, which included Tri-City’s Ilya Morozov. The rookie forward currently has eight points (3-5-8) through his first 16 games.
The USHL tender process allows teams to sign up to two players from the 2009 birth year in exchange for their first and second-round picks in the USHL Phase I Draft. Each tendered player will be on their respective team’s roster the next season and play at least 55% of that team’s regular-season games.
Tri-City’s 13 all-time tenders rank second among USHL clubs, only trailing Muskegon (15).
The 2025 USHL Phase I Draft is set for May 5, followed by the Phase II portion on May 6.