Boston Bruins Report Card: Brett Connolly
The Boston Bruins effectively traded Johnny Boychuk for Brett Connolly during the 2014-15 season. The New York Islanders got themselves a top-four defensemen that helped solidify their blue line and make them into a team that can make the playoffs. The Bruins got themselves a former first-round draft pick who was supposed to be a top-six forward to help the Bruins score more goals. When Connolly broke his hand during his second practice (limiting him to only five games that year), it should have been a sign for the B’s.
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Brett Connolly – Forward
Games Played: 71
Goals/Assists/Points: 9/16/25 (two power play goals and two game winning goals) 95 SOG with a 9.5% shot success rate.
The Boston Bruins were hoping it was just bad luck when Connolly broke his hand last season. So, the Bruins used Connolly as a top-six forward, putting him on the line with Patrice Bergeron and Brad Marchand. Bergeron is an amazing player that can usually make any other player on his line play better. Connolly is the rare exception to the Bergeron rule.
25 points is pretty good for a bottom-six forward who is asked to play solid defense and provide supplementary scoring. 25 points is terrible when you’re paired with two players who were in the top 20 for goals this season. His season plus/minus of -1 is just another example of the Bruins’ biggest flaw in the Claude Julien philosophy. Instead of taking a chance with a young player with potential, he went with the devil he knew.
Connolly was capable of flashes of brilliance. Early in the season, he showed and affinity to play the puck. But it went down hill for the 23-year old forward, and it went down hill for him quickly.
Connolly was invisible in the second half of the season, getting his last goal on March 7 against the Florida Panthers. As his play worsened, Connolly found himself first on the third line, then the fourth. He was eventually supplanted out of that position by AHL players who just brought more heart and a desire to win than Connolly (who looks washed up at just 23-years old). He spent the final games of the season on the ninth level.
Was Connolly the worst player on the ice for Boston this year? No. I think it’s safe to say that honor goes to Zac Rinaldo (who actually looked good for a little while). But he was the biggest disappointment in a series of disappointments for the Black and Gold this season. Connolly is a free agent this year, and with the amount of talent coming up this summer, it is highly unlikely that Connolly will be back in Boston. The only way I see him staying is if the B’s sign him to a two-way contact and move him to Providence.
Final Grade: D-