Brian Connelly

For the American painter, see Brian Connelly (painter).

For the British singer, see Brian Connolly.

Brian Connelly
Born	(1986-06-10) June 10, 1986 (age 39) Bloomington, Minnesota, U.S.
Height	5 ft 11 in (180 cm)
Weight	170 lb (77 kg; 12 st 2 lb)
Position	Defense
Shoots	Left
AlpsHL team Former teams	EHC Lustenau Rockford IceHogs Abbotsford Heat Houston Aeros Iowa Wild Leksands IF EC Red Bull Salzburg Dornbirner EC Nottingham Panthers
NHL draft	Undrafted
Playing career	2009–present

Brian Connelly (born June 10, 1986) is an American professional ice hockey defenseman currently contracted to EHC Lustenau of the Alps Hockey League (AlpsHL). Connelly previously iced with the Nottingham Panthers of the Elite Ice Hockey League (EIHL).

Playing career

Connelly played collegiate hockey with Colorado College of the WCHA as a puck-moving offensive defenseman.

Undrafted due to his diminutive size, Connelly signed a contract with the Chicago Blackhawks of the NHL. In his first season with the Blackhawks' affiliate, the Rockford IceHogs, Connelly quickly developed as the main scoring presence on the IceHogs' defense. In the 2010–11 season, Connelly was selected and played in the 2011 AHL All-Star Game. ^[1]

In the following 2011–12 season, in his third full season within the Blackhawks system and following his second consecutive AHL All-Star Game appearance, Connelly was traded to the Calgary Flames in exchange for veteran Brendan Morrison on February 27, 2012. He was then immediately assigned to the Flames' AHL affiliate, the Abbotsford Heat. ^[2] In helping the Heat to the second round of the playoffs, Connelly finished with a combined 52 points, placing second in the AHL amongst defenseman to earn a position in the AHL Second All-Star Team.

On July 6, 2012, Connelly signed as a free agent to a two-year, two-way contract with the Minnesota Wild. ^[3]

In the final year of his contract in the 2013–14 season, on February 26, 2014, Connelly was traded by the Wild in a return to the Chicago Blackhawks in exchange for Brad Winchester. ^[4]

On July 11, 2014, Connelly signed as a free agent to a one-year contract with Leksands IF of the Swedish Hockey League. ^[5] He endured a disappointing debut European season in 2014–15 with Leksands, contributing with only 2 goals and 12 points in 48 games.

In hopes of a rebound, Connelly left Leksands to sign a one-year contract with Austrian club Champions, EC Red Bull Salzburg of the Austrian Hockey League (EBEL) on May 29, 2015. ^[6]

Connelly played four seasons in the EBEL before leaving as a free agent to sign a one-year deal with English club, the Nottingham Panthers of the EIHL, on June 18, 2019. ^[7]

On June 24, 2020, Connelly left Nottingham to sign for AlpsHL side EHC Lustenau. ^[8]

Career statistics

				Regular season						Playoffs
Season	Team	League		GP	G	A	Pts	PIM		GP	G	A	Pts	PIM
2004–05	Tri-City Storm	USHL		20	0	3	3	12		9	0	1	1	2
2005–06	Tri-City Storm	USHL		54	3	9	12	16		5	1	0	1	0
2006–07	Colorado College Tigers	WCHA		35	2	15	17	22		—	—	—	—	—
2007–08	Colorado College Tigers	WCHA		41	3	16	19	32		—	—	—	—	—
2008–09	Colorado College Tigers	WCHA		38	3	24	27	46		—	—	—	—	—
2008–09	Rockford IceHogs	AHL		9	1	2	3	6		3	0	0	0	2
2009–10	Rockford IceHogs	AHL		78	4	31	35	28		4	0	3	3	2
2010–11	Rockford IceHogs	AHL		80	11	41	52	39		—	—	—	—	—
2011–12	Rockford IceHogs	AHL		44	5	31	36	16		—	—	—	—	—
2011–12	Abbotsford Heat	AHL		28	1	15	16	10		8	0	2	2	8
2012–13	Houston Aeros	AHL		54	5	34	39	14		5	1	3	4	4
2013–14	Iowa Wild	AHL		50	5	27	32	18		—	—	—	—	—
2013–14	Rockford IceHogs	AHL		16	3	5	8	4		—	—	—	—	—
2014–15	Leksands IF	SHL		48	2	10	12	10		—	—	—	—	—
2015–16	EC Red Bull Salzburg	EBEL		51	2	25	27	28		18	1	5	6	12
2016–17	Dornbirner EC	EBEL		36	3	21	24	20		—	—	—	—	—
2017–18	Dornbirner EC	EBEL		54	4	38	42	30		6	0	0	0	2
2018–19	Dornbirner EC	EBEL		52	2	23	25	22		—	—	—	—	—
2019–20	Nottingham Panthers	EIHL		46	5	19	24	20		—	—	—	—	—
2020–21	EHC Lustenau	AlpsHL		36	1	32	33	37		9	0	6	6	6
2020–21	EHC Lustenau	Austria2		—	—	—	—	—		4	1	4	5	4
AHL totals				359	35	186	221	135		20	1	8	9	16

References

1. "Elite Prospects - AHL All-Star Game". Eliteprospects.com. February 27, 2011. Retrieved February 27, 2011.
2. "Blackhawks acquire veteran Morrison". Chicago Blackhawks. February 27, 2012. Retrieved February 27, 2012.
3. "Wild signs defenseman Brian Connelly". Minnesota Star Tribune. July 6, 2012. Retrieved July 6, 2012.
4. "Blackhawks acquire Connelly from Minnesota". Chicago Blackhawks. February 26, 2014. Retrieved February 26, 2014.
5. "Brian Connelly is ready for Leksand" (in Swedish). Leksands IF. July 11, 2014. Retrieved July 11, 2014.
6. "Red Bulls strengthen the defense with Connelly" (in German). EC Red Bull Salzburg. May 29, 2015. Retrieved May 29, 2015.
7. "Smooth skater Connelly signs". Nottingham Panthers. June 18, 2019. Retrieved June 18, 2019.
8. "EHC Lustenau verpflichtet ehemaligen EBEL Verteidiger".

External links

• Biographical information and career statistics from NHL.com , or  Eliteprospects.com , or  The Internet Hockey Database