Sun Sentinel Palm Beach Edition
Brickley squarely in battle for roster spot
CORAL SPRINGS — Connor Brickley estimated he was unconscious for a couple minutes.
It came last November when the now Florida Panthers forward was on the Charlotte Checkers, the AHL affiliate of the Carolina Hurricanes. Brickley charged into the offensive zone against the Iowa Wild and delivered a check to Zach Palmquist against the boards. Iowa’s Nick Seeler didn’t like the hit and immediately dropped the gloves with Brickley.
The fight only lasted about four seconds. It ended when Seeler delivered a right hook that left Brickley motionless on the ice.
“It was a difficult time, difficult for my family obviously being able to watch that and see what happened,” Brickley said.
He missed more than two weeks with a concussion, he said, before scoring 14 goals in the remaining 52 games. Ten months after the fight, Brickley has shoved himself squarely into the conversation for a roster spot with the Panthers after scoring three goals in two preseason games.
Brickley scored twice in the preseason opener against Nashville before netting another Tuesday night against Tampa Bay. He also has an assist and has scored on all three of his shots on goal.
“I like to play north and south hockey, a style that the coaches are trying to preach here,” Brickley said. “It kind of fits my mold. Play fast and play physical, hound pucks and get to the dirty areas.”
Brickley survived the latest round of cuts during Florida’s training camp and remains a candidate to snag a spot among the Panthers’ bottom-six forwards. He’s battling Jared McCann and Denis Malgin, among others for a roster spot.
Panthers coach Bob Boughner admitted he didn’t know much about Brickley before camp began two weeks ago, but has since praised his effort level as the team approaches the final two preseason games. He envisions the 25-year-old as a potential penalty killer, as well.
“I think his compete is real strong, which is obviously the first thing that jumps out as a coach and seeing guys for the first time,” Boughner said. “Real good compete. I want to play fast and he fits that bill because he can skate. I know he’s got some grit to his game and I know he can score some goals. He’s got a little bit of everything.”
This is Brickley’s second time around with the Panthers after he was drafted by the team in 2010’s second round and made the club out of training camp two seasons ago. In the fall of 2015, Brickley yo-yoed between the NHL and AHL before he spent the second half of the season in the minors.
He played 23 games with the Panthers, scoring one goal and assisting on four more.
“That whole year was pretty fresh and just taught me that you need to be consistent every shift,” Brickley said. “It’s a hard league. This is my fourth-year pro, I’ve definitely developed and matured and I’m ready for that next step.”
Florida traded him to Carolina in Oct. 2016 and Brickley landed back in Sunrise after a circuitous summer. Scheduled to be an unrestricted free agent on July 1, Brickley was selected in June’s expansion draft by Vegas. But the Golden Knights let Brickley walk and he inked a one-year, two-way deal with the Panthers.
“It just felt like a comfortable situation,” Brickley said. “I just feel like they had a role to be filled and my style of play, I thought I just had the best advantage. If I played my game to the fullest potential, I’d have a good shot. Just felt like this would be the best fit for me.”
Brickley maintains that he won’t change his physical playing style, even after the fight last year.
“I play a physical game, so things are going to happen,” Brickley said. “I’m not the biggest guy but I play a physical style of hockey. Some people are going to step up and you got to answer the bell when it happens. … I play my style and I’m not going to change that for anyone.”