Prior to his coaching career, the Comox, B.C., native played professionally as a forward for 18 seasons (1999-2017), compiling 1,111 games across seven different leagues (NHL, AHL, IHL, ECHL, SEL, Swiss-A and the Austrian League). Originally selected by the Dallas Stars in the ninth round (242nd overall) of the 1997 NHL Draft, McLean posted 162 points (56-106=162) in 385 career NHL games with the Chicago Blackhawks, Colorado Avalanche and Florida Panthers from 2002-09. For his AHL career, he totaled 198 points (72-26=198) in 274 games with Cincinnati, Saint John, Houston, Norfolk and Rockford (1998-12). He recorded 406 points (181-225=406) in 329 games in five seasons (1994-99) in the Western Hockey League (WHL) with Tacoma, Kelowna and Brandon. McLean also represented Canada multiple times during his playing career, including at the Under-18 level, the 1998 IIHF World Junior Championship and for six Spengler Cups. He won the Swiss-A championship in 2010 and the Spengler Cup in 2012.
