The Caps took a flyer on Brett Connolly and it worked out about as well as anyone could have hoped. With his career at a crossroads, Connolly signed a one-year deal with the Caps, hoping to carve out a role on a Cup contender. Connolly didn’t just carve out a role, he became an important part of the Caps’ regular-season success and showed he’s a capable third line winger.
By The Numbers
| 66 | games played |
| 10:41 | time on ice per game |
| 15 | goals |
| 8 | assists |
| 55.7 | 5-on-5 shot-attempt percentage, adjusted |
| 70.7 | 5-on-5 goal percentage, adjusted |
Visualization by HockeyViz
About this visualization: This series of charts made by Micah Blake McCurdy of hockeyviz.com shows various metrics for the player over the course of the 2016-17 season. A short description of each chart:
- Most common teammates during 5-on-5
- Ice time per game, split up by game state
- 5-on-5 adjusted shot attempts by the team (black) and opponents (red)
- 5-on-5 adjusted shooting percentage by the team (black) and opponents (red)
- Individual scoring events by the player
- 5-on-5 adjusted offensive (black) and defensive (red) zone starts
Pat’s Take
The Caps brought in Brett Connolly on a low-risk deal. Best-case scenario: Connolly would bring a scoring threat to the Caps third line. The best-case scenario happened. Connolly potted 15 goals and 23 points in 66 games. His 1.26 goals/60 at 5-on-5 was second on the team only to TJ Oshie, partially buoyed by a career-high shooting percentage of 18.9 percent.
Connolly was part of what could fairly be called the best third line in hockey. In 263 minutes, the Caps third line of Connolly, Lars Eller, and Andre Burakovsky posted a 60.9 percent shot-attempt percentage, third among all forward combos in the NHL. The trio also posted a 73.5 goals-for percentage, good for fourth among all trios in 2016-17.
But we can’t discuss Connolly without discussing his playoff performance, or lack thereof. Connolly dressed for just seven games in the playoffs and spent some of that time on the fourth line. Was this a case of Connolly not showing up at the most important time of the year? Or was this a case of Barry Trotz too soon abandoning something that worked so well during the regular season? After all, it’s not as if the Caps third line performed badly during their times together. In 33 minutes together during the playoffs, the trio owned 57 percent of the shot attempts. I’m sure there are some who soured on Connolly due to his lack of scoring in the playoffs. But I find it hard to fault a guy who only got a small handful of games with his regular linemates before being relegated to fourth line duty and the press box.
If the Caps can bring back Connolly on a fair deal ($1.5 million per season or less) to again play on the right side of the third line, I’d be all for it.
Connolly on RMNB
- Connolly was the Capitals’ nominee for the Bill Masterton Memorial Trophy, given to the player “who best exemplifies the qualities of perseverance, sportsmanship, and dedication to ice hockey.”
- Big Game Brett participated in Washington’s Hockey n Heels event, a great night with a horrible name.
- On one play in late October, Connolly scored his first goal as a Capital and helped Zach Sanford nab his first NHL assist.
- Part of what made Connolly so effective this season was being the hatchet man for an excellent third line. Check out his finish on this Burakovsky pass.
4th of the season for @bconnolly8 gives Caps the early lead. #CapsDevils on @csnma pic.twitter.com/4SpT7PORl7
— Washington Capitals (@Capitals) December 31, 2016
- Check out the tenacity on this play, which gave Connolly a new career high in goals scored.
- That kind of work had Nathan Sick singing Brett’s praises early in the new year. It’s wildly unappreciated how good the third line was this season.
- Worth revisiting Pat’s enthusiastic preview based on Connolly’s contract. It’s like crystal ball stuff.
- Not much #Eddie #Turks #CoupleDucks. Got it.
Your Turn
What do you think about Connolly’s season? Did the playoffs change your opinion of him?
Read more: Japers’ Rink, Stars and Sticks
Headline photo: Amanda Bowen
