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Brett Connolly

Minor Transactions: 06/30/23

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We’re in the heart of the NHL offseason now, with free agency set to open tomorrow. As NHL clubs ready for the free agent frenzy tomorrow, numerous clubs in minor and foreign leagues are signing players and completing transactions. We’ll keep track of those here.

  • Four-time NHL 15-goal scorer Brett Connolly has signed with SC Rapperswil-Jona Lakers, leaving his former club HC Lugano after one season. The 31-year-old 2010 sixth-overall pick scored 12 goals and 38 points in 45 games for Lugano, and now joins former NHLer Victor Rask on a club set to play in the Champions Hockey League next season.
  • Zaccharya Wisdom, a prospect who was drafted by the Seattle Kraken 212th overall yesterday, has committed to Colorado College to play NCAA hockey. He’ll join NHL draft picks such as Noah Laba of the New York Rangers, and will hope to carry over the success of his final USHL season (28 goals, 48 points) to his collegiate career.
  • Washington Capitals 2021 fifth-round pick Haakon Hanelt has signed a contract with the German DEL’s Cologne Sharks. The Capitals have the exclusive rights to sign Hanelt until June 1st, 2025, and will now track his development in a men’s pro league. Hanelt spent the last two seasons with the Gatineau Olympiques of the QMJHL, and this past year scored 18 points in 34 games.
  • Veteran Liiga defenseman Mikko Niemela has signed with the Lahti Pelicans, a club he played six games with in 2014-15. Niemela is a three-time Liiga champion who has played over 500 games in Finland’s top league, meaning he’ll bring a wealth of experience to the blueline of Liiga’s runner-ups. Niemela split last season between Karpat in Liiga and Brynas in the SHL, and although he played well he could not save Brynas from relegation to the HockeyAllsvenskan, and now he heads back to Liiga.
  • ECHL All-Star forward Mathew Santos has signed a deal to play in Slovakia next season, per a social media post from his new team HK Dukla Michalovce. Santos is a 28-year-old Canadian winger who has been an electric scorer in two seasons with the ECHL’s Maine Mariners. He’s scored 103 points in 91 games for Maine, earning AHL call-ups for three teams, including 17 games with the AHL’s Milwaukee Admirals. He only scored one point in that 17-game span, though, and now with his chances at climbing the North American pro hockey ladder potentially drying up, he’ll head to an overseas club for the first time.
  • Former Chicago Blackhawks prospect David Gilbert will not be returning to EIHL Champions Belfast Giants for next season, according to the team. The 32-year-old forward signed with Belfast a year ago after a high-scoring year with Rouen in France’s Ligue Magnus. Gilbert is a former high-scoring ECHLer who has 54 games of AHL action on his resume, and career highlights that include a championship in Belfast as well as a three-year stint in Czechia that included winning his club promotion to the country’s top league.

This page will be updated throughout the day.

Minor Transactions: 04/02/23

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It’s another busy day across the hockey world as we reach an important stretch of the NHL season with several teams in the thick of tight playoff races, especially in the Western Conference. The New York Islanders take on the Carolina Hurricanes in what could be a first-round playoff preview, while the Los Angeles Kings take on the Vancouver Canucks in a game that could push L.A. ahead of the Edmonton Oilers in the race for the Pacific Division’s second seed.

In Europe, multiple playoff semifinals are underway, and today Frolunda HC captured a crucial victory against Vaxjo in Sweden, tying the SHL’s semifinals at one game apiece. In Germany, Grizzlys Wolfsburg tied their DEL semifinal against EHC Red Bull Munchen 1-1, while an important third-period tie-breaking goal by former New York Rangers prospect Ty Ronning helped ERC Ingolstadt win 6-3 over Adler Mannheim and tie their side of the DEL semifinals. As fans take in all of the hockey on offer today, teams around the world are making tweaks to their roster or preparing for next season. We’ll keep track of those moves here.

  • Stanley Cup champion and former NHL top prospect Brett Connolly is among the players leaving Swiss club HC Lugano, according to a team announcement. Connolly signed in Switzerland over the summer after spending most of last season with the AHL’s Rockford IceHogs. The Canadian forward, who is still just 30 years old and was a decent NHL goal-scorer as recently as 2019-20, did well in his first year overseas, scoring 12 goals and 38 points in 45 games. He was sandwiched between two other former NHLers, Markus Granlund and Mirco Mueller, in Lugano’s scoring rankings, and he helped his side reach the Swiss playoffs.
  • Former Pittsburgh Penguins prospect Philip Samuelsson, the son of two-time Stanley Cup champion Ulf Samuelsson, is among the players announced not to be returning to the DEL’s Fischtown Pinguins. Samuelsson, 31, has 13 NHL games on his resume, the last few coming in 2015-16 with the Arizona Coyotes. Samuelsson played three straight seasons exclusively as an AHLer before heading overseas in 2019-20 to play most of the year in his native Sweden. He split the last three seasons between Leksands IF and IK Oskarshamn in the SHL before signing last summer in the DEL. He scored 31 points in 47 games for Fischtown, helping lead them to a playoff series win over the Nurnburg Ice Tigers.
  • 2008 Minnesota Wild first-round pick Tyler Cuma has signed a two-year contract with Austria’s EK Zell am See, a club in the AlpsHL, a league with many second-tier Austrian clubs as well as teams in Italy and Slovenia. The 33-year-old blueliner has played in one career NHL game, which took place in 2011-12 with the Wild. Since then, he spent two more seasons in the AHL before deciding to head to Austria, and has now played nearly 300 games at the highest level of Austrian pro hockey. He’ll be moving down a level with this move after a season spent with Innsbruck HC, where he scored nine points in 43 games.
  • Former New York Rangers prospect Andrew Yogan will not continue his career with the IceHL’s Graz99ers, per a team announcement. The 31-year-old has been a star in the ICEHL since leaving North America, with 247 points in 236 career games. Yogan made the choice to leave Austria in 2021 to play with HC Slovan Bratislava in the Slovak league, and the 52 points in 48 games he scored propelled the team to a Slovak Extraliga championship. Yogan split 2022-23 between Slovakia and Austria, scoring 15 points in 16 games for Poprad before transferring and scoring 13 goals and 20 points for Graz.
  • Dylan St. Cyr’s tryout with the AHL’s Grand Rapids Griffins is over, per the team. The 23-year-old former Michigan State Spartan appeared in one game with the Griffins, saving seven shots in relief of Jon Lethemon during a March 31st loss to the Milwaukee Admirals. The son of famous women’s hockey goaltender Manon Rheaume, St. Cyr will now look for his next chance in professional hockey with some valuable first experience under his belt.
  • 2013 San Jose Sharks fourth-round pick Fredrik Bergvik will not be returning to HockeyAllsvenskan’s Sodertalje SK for next season. The 28-year-old has been a tandem netminder for the second-tier Swedish side for the past four seasons, spending the last two as the backup for Nikita Tolopilo, who signed with the Canucks on Friday. Bergvik posted 2 shutouts and a 5-2 record in 10 total games played, with a .902 save percentage, and will now hit the open market for the first time in several years.
  • Michal Jordan is leaving the Lakers. The former Carolina Hurricanes defenseman is among the players not returning to Switzerland’s SC Rapperswil-Jona Lakers, per a team announcement. The 32-year-old spent 19 games in Switzerland after transferring there in December. Before that point, he had captained the KHL’s Amur Khabarovsk, playing over 250 games there. Jordan last appeared in the NHL in 2015-16 and will now look elsewhere to continue his pro career.

This page will be updated throughout the day. 

Brett Connolly Signs In Switzerland

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Another NHL veteran has opted to sign in Europe to continue his professional career. Swiss club HC Lugano announced today that the team has signed winger Brett Connolly to a one-year contract for the 2022-23 season.

Connolly spent the last season and a half in the Chicago Blackhawks organization, where he ended up playing just 19 NHL games compared to 37 AHL games for the Rockford IceHogs. Connolly had just a goal and two assists in those 19 games across the 2020-21 and 2021-22 seasons, while faring much better in the AHL with 35 points in 37 games in 2021-22 for Rockford.

This past season, Connolly’s NHL time was limited in part due to a four-game suspension for interfering with Dallas Stars forward Tanner Kero. With his bloated seven-figure cap hit, Connolly also cleared waivers multiple times. Connolly was bought out this summer with one season remaining on a four-year, $3.5MM AAV deal signed prior to the 2019-20 season.

At the age of 30, this could very well be the last we’ve seen of Connolly in the NHL. The sixth overall pick in 2010 currently has a career total of 101 goals, 94 assists, and 195 points in 536 games.

He’ll be strong offensive reinforcement for Lugano, who also fortified their goaltending by bringing former Edmonton Oilers goalie Mikko Koskinen back to Europe. They’ll look to make it out of the National League quarterfinals for the first time since losing the championship series in 2018.

Snapshots: Backstrom, Miller, Connolly

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Washington Capitals center Nicklas Backstrom has put together an incredible career, especially considering that he has been dealing with chronic hip pain for parts of at least half of it. Up until this season, Backstrom has missed very little time due to injury throughout his career despite the nagging injury, however as the injury became more and more unbearable, the veteran knew he needed to address it for real, not simply ride it out. That ultimately lead to hip resurfacing surgery back in June, a procedure that should alleviate much of Backstrom’s day-to-day pain, but could affect his long-term career plans, much as the procedure did to Ryan Kesler and Ed Jovanovski.

Recently, Backstrom sat down for an interview with Swedish website expressen.se to discuss life before and after the surgery (link to original Swedish article). Washington Hockey Now’s Sammi Silber broke down Backstrom’s interview, originally in Swedish, profiling the Capitals star’s road to recovery (link to Silber’s article in English). Of note, Backstrom said prior to the surgery he had trouble doing things as simple as tying his shoes or putting on his socks. He added that skating had become easier than walking at times with the injury. On the brightside, however, Backstrom says that since the surgery, his quality of life has improved greatly and he’s been able to enjoy the offseason. Though the injury can end the careers of professional athletes, and there’s no timetable on when or if Backstrom can return, the All Star says that he’s not ready to think about hanging up his skates and for the first time in a long time, feels optimistic about where things are. Despite the injury and his age (34), Backstrom remains an incredibly important part of the Capitals’ build and has three more seasons at a $9.2MM AAV left on his contract.

  • CHEK’s Rick Dhaliwal appeared on the Sekeres and Price podcast to discuss the impact that Nazem Kadri’s free agent deal will have on 2023 UFA and current Vancouver Canucks forward J.T. Miller. In sum, Dhaliwal told the pair, “Kadri’s agent did J.T. Miller’s agent a favor,” referencing the seven year, $49MM contract Kadri signed with the Calgary Flames. Looking a little deeper at what Dhaliwal means, Kadri is about to turn 32 years of age, coming off a career-best 87 points in 71 games, crushing his previous career-best of 61 points in 82 games back in 2016-17. If Kadri, who is a year-and-a-half older than Miller will be next summer, can secure a seven-year deal after one 87-point season, “there is no way Miller will accept anything under seven or eight years.” While there’s never been anything stopping Miller from setting that as his asking price, Kadri’s contract simply helps Miller make his own case for at least the same, if not a better contract. Miller is coming off his own career-best of 99 points in 80 games, but also boasts an impressive 46 points in 53 games and 72 points in 69 games the two seasons prior. Still, it will be up to Miller to have another stellar performance like he did this year if he wants to easily secure a contract greater than Kadri’s.
  • An interesting bit of news, if it can be called that, was free agent forward and former Capital Brett Connolly joined several members of the Capitals at an informal skate at the team’s facility in Arlington, Virginia on Friday. Connolly skated alongside  John Carlson, Lars Eller, Carl Hagelin, Garnet Hathaway, Hendrix Lapierre, Joe Snively, Sam Anas and Alexander Alexeyev, and though he was a teammate of a few of them from 2016-19, he wasn’t skating with them as a teammate Friday. The veteran forward instead told El-Bashir he was in town for personal reasons and simply needed a place to skate. An NHLer, and one who helped bring a Stanley Cup to D.C., Connolly was simply able to skate in a familiar place with some familiar faces. The veteran is currently a UFA awaiting his next deal, which could likely be on a PTO and invite to training camp with an NHL team looking for a proven offensive weapon.

Brett Connolly, Henrik Borgstrom Clear Unconditional Waivers

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July 12: Both players have cleared waivers and will be bought out today, making them unrestricted free agents.

July 11: The Chicago Blackhawks have started the buyout process for two players, placing Henrik Borgstrom and Brett Connolly on unconditional waivers today. Because he is under the age of 25, the team will only be on the hook for one-third of Borgstrom’s remaining salary. As a result, they will receive the following cap penalties moving forward:

  • 2022-23: $1,166,667 (Connolly) + $83,334 (Borgstrom)
  • 2023-24: $1,166,667 (Connolly) + $183,334 (Borgstrom)

The two forwards actually arrived in Chicago the same way, through a trade with the Florida Panthers in 2021 that saw Lucas Wallmark and Lucas Carlsson go the other way. While Riley Stillman remains from that deal, it was Borgstrom that was considered a big part of the return, having been a first-round pick by the Panthers in 2016.

After just 52 games with Chicago he’ll hit the market as an unrestricted free agent, an interesting addition just before things open up on Wednesday. While he has just 26 points in 110 games, Borgstrom is still just 24 (he’ll turn 25 next month) and possesses an interesting skill/size mix that could intrigue some teams.

Connolly meanwhile has a much longer track record at the NHL level but not a very good one the last few years. He scored 19 goals and 33 points in 2019-20 but then was an absolute ghost during the 2020-21 season, registering just six points in 31 total games. This season, he spent most of the year at the minor league level with the Rockford IceHogs and although he performed well there, it’s not much of a platform for a free agent deal.

These buyouts continue general manager Kyle Davidson’s rapid house cleaning, and represent another head-scratching move for the young executive. Borgstrom’s contract, which had just one year left on it and carried a cap hit of $1MM, could have been buried entirely in the minor leagues. This buyout will save them around $733K in actual dollars, but now actually has a slightly negative effect on the cap situation.

In fact, it wouldn’t be entirely unreasonable to see a team claim Borgstrom before the buyout can be finalized tomorrow, given how little risk would be involved.

Sami Niku, Brett Connolly Clear Waivers

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Jan 27: Both players have cleared waivers according to James Mirtle of The Athletic, meaning they can be sent to the minor leagues.

Jan 26: The Montreal Canadiens have placed Sami Niku on waivers, as they continue to get players back from injury on the back end. This is actually the second time Niku has been on waivers this season, though the first was in training camp with the Winnipeg Jets when he agreed to a contract termination in order to pursue a different opportunity.

While it’s easy to wonder why anyone would target a defenseman from a team that sits 31st in goals against, Niku actually may draw some interest on the wire. The 25-year-old defenseman has shown he can dominate at the minor league level, including posting a 16-goal, 54-point season in 2017-18, and has generated 16 points in 67 career NHL games. Still, his size and defensive ability raise enough questions that it’s hard to envision him stepping into a regular role on a contender at this point, meaning he might end up in the minor leagues once again.

He isn’t alone, though, as Chris Johnston of TSN reports that Brett Connolly has also been placed on waivers by the Chicago Blackhawks. Connolly cleared waivers in October and was assigned to the minor leagues, where he has spent a good chunk of the season. Now, he’s spent enough time on the NHL roster that he needed waivers again in order to be sent down.

The thing hurting Connolly’s chances at NHL playing time right now is his contract, which carries a $3.5MM cap hit through 2022-23. While he likely could catch on somewhere if he had a more reasonable price tag, there’s little chance that someone would agree to take that contract off waivers. Should he clear, the Blackhawks will be able to once again bury $1.125MM of his cap hit in the minor leagues.

Blackhawks Notes: Khaira, Stillman, Connolly

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Per the Daily Herald’s John Dietz, the Chicago Blackhawks moved forward Jujhar Khaira to injured reserve today. He has a lower back injury, and the move is retroactive to January 17. Khaira can come off injured reserve as soon as the 27th,  meaning the soonest he can return is January 28th at home against Colorado. He has just three goals in 27 games during his first season with Chicago.

More from the Blackhawks today, all per Dietz:

  • Defenseman Riley Stillman was also moved to injured reserve today, dealing with a shoulder injury he sustained last night against Minnesota. The soonest he can return is February 1st, meaning he’ll miss at least the team’s next five games. In his absence, Caleb Jones should see playing time with more consistency. Stillman has a respectable 10 points in 28 games.
  • The team also assigned forward Brett Connolly to the active roster, bringing him up from the taxi squad. He should play in his fifth game of the season tonight, drawing in on the fourth line alongside Sam Lafferty and Ryan Carpenter. Connolly was suspended earlier in the season for interfering with Dallas forward Tanner Kero.

COVID Notes: Halak, Sabres, Connolly, Sheary, Oilers, Stutzle, Sillinger

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The Canucks announced (Twitter link) that goaltender Jaroslav Halak has been placed into COVID protocol.  The veteran was set to get the start for today’s game against Carolina but instead, that will go to Thatcher Demko with Spencer Martin coming up from the taxi squad.  Halak has made just eight appearances this season and has a $1.25MM bonus pending when he gets to his tenth.  He’ll now have to wait a little longer to get that bonus, one that has recently landed himself in trade speculation as well.

More COVID news from around the NHL:

  • Sabres winger Tage Thompson and center Peyton Krebs have both cleared COVID protocol, notes Bill Hoppe of the Olean Times Herald. Thompson will suit up tonight in Detroit while they will take it a little slower with Krebs and re-assess his status on Sunday.
  • Blackhawks winger Brett Connolly has entered COVID protocol, relays John Dietz of the Daily Herald (Twitter link). The veteran has only played in four games with Chicago this season and has spent most of the year in the minors.  Defenseman Ian Mitchell was recalled from AHL Rockford just a day after being sent down.
  • The Capitals announced (Twitter link) that winger Conor Sheary has been placed in COVID protocol. The 29-year-old has impressed in his second season in Washington, notching ten goals and nine assists in 31 games, good for third on the team in goals.
  • The Oilers have taken wingers Warren Foegele and Tyler Benson plus defenseman Slater Koekkoek out of COVID protocol, mentions Sportsnet’s Jack Michaels (Twitter link). With those activations, Edmonton – who last played on January 5th – will be able to dress 18 skaters against Ottawa tonight.
  • The Senators announced (Twitter link) that they have removed winger Tim Stutzle from COVID protocol. The just-turned 20-year-old has had a bit of a quieter sophomore season than expected, collecting five goals and ten assists in 29 games.
  • The Blue Jackets have placed center Cole Sillinger in COVID protocol, per a team release.  The rookie has held down a regular spot in the lineup with Columbus this season, notching 13 points in 35 games.  Liam Foudy has been recalled from the taxi squad to take Sillinger’s place on the roster.

Marc-Andre Fleury Added To COVID Protocol

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The Chicago Blackhawks have recalled Collin Delia from the AHL after Marc-Andre Fleury entered the COVID protocol. The team has also activated Calvin de Haan from the protocol while moving Brett Connolly to the taxi squad.

Chicago is set to resume their season on Wednesday against the Winnipeg Jets, but it appears as though Fleury will not be available to them. The reigning Vezina Trophy winner has been good of late, raising his season save percentage to .913 in the process. Though he’s 9-10-1 overall, Fleury went 4-1-1 in December and helped the Blackhawks climb out of the league basement.

Delia meanwhile has played in just nine games this season, all at the AHL level. The 27-year-old undrafted netminder once looked like he might be part of the future in Chicago, but has regressed in recent seasons and has just a .907 for the Rockford IceHogs this year. Still a capable fill-in, it remains to be seen how the Blackhawks navigate the goaltending position with Fleury out. Kevin Lankinen figures to get the start on Wednesday should the game proceed as planned.

Brett Connolly Suspended Four Games

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The verdict is in for Blackhawks winger Brett Connolly.  The Department of Player Safety announced (video link) that they have issued him a four-game suspension for his interference incident on Stars winger Tanner Kero on Saturday.

In the video, it was noted that Connolly tried to argue that it was more of a collision than an intentional body check.  However, while the league acknowledged that it wasn’t a full-force collision, it was still a suspendable offense:

It is important to note that Kero was never in possession of the puck on this play and therefore is not eligible to be checked in any manner.  Fully aware of Kero’s presence and, with a substantial amount of time to change his path, avoid the contact entirely, move toward the wall to seal off the boards, or do more to minimize the impact on Kero, Connolly braces himself for impact and skates directly through his opponent.  And because Kero is never close to being in possession of the puck, he is in no way braced for contact, making him substantially more vulnerable. 

In the ruling, the league also acknowledged Kero’s injury as a factor but also that Connolly had no prior history of any fines or suspensions.  He will forfeit $70K in salary as a result of the suspension which, as always, goes to the Players’ Emergency Assistance Fund.

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