Scott Mellanby was selected 27th overall by the Philadelphia Flyers in the 1984 NHL Entry Draft. After being drafted, Mellanby went to the University of Wisconsin–Madison where he played for two seasons. After his second season in the WCHA was finished, he promptly played his first two NHL games. In 1989 Mellanby suffered a serious injury in a barroom brawl when he tried to help a friend and he wound up getting a severe cut from a broken beer bottle on his left arm. The cut sliced four tendons, a nerve and an artery in the arm. Doctors repaired it through surgery, but Mellanby had been close to amputation. Mellanby would play for Philadelphia until the summer of 1991, when he was traded to the Edmonton Oilers in a 6-player deal that included Jari Kurri going to Philadelphia (though Kurri was traded to the Los Angeles Kings the same day). Mellanby was left unprotected by the Edmonton Oilers in the 1993 NHL Expansion Draft, allowing him to be claimed by the new Florida Panthers. This was the team where Mellanby would have his best years. In fact he became a fan favorite in Florida when he killed a rat with his hockey stick in the team dressing room, spawning the rat trick" craze, where fans would litter the ice with thousands of plastic rats after each Panthers goal. It was brought to the hockey world's attention during the Panthers' run to the final in 1996. He also scored the Panthers' first ever goal in franchise history on October 9, 1993. Mellanby was traded to the St. Louis Blues in February 2001, and the move revitalized his declining career. He scored 57 points during the 2002–03 season, his highest total since 1996. Mellanby then signed as a free agent with the Atlanta Thrashers in the summer of 2004 and he re-signed with Atlanta for the 2006–07 season. Mellanby and his wife, Susan have a daughter, Courtney, and two sons Carter and Nicholas. Mellanby also is involved in many autism-related causes as his son Carter is autistic. Along with fellow NHLers Olaf Kolzig and Byron Dafoe, Mellanby is a founder of Athletes Against Autism."
