Connelly seeks to put past mistakes behind him after being selected 19th overall in NHL draft by Golden Knights

LAS VEGAS (AP) — It doesn’t matter to Trevor Connelly where he was selected in the NHL draft — in the first round or beyond — due to the regrettable decision he made in the past.

What ultimately mattered to the 18-year-old was the work he did through volunteering and diversity training to set him up for a future in hockey after being drafted. 19th overall by the draft host, the Vegas Golden Knights Friday night.

“I think I could go higher, if certain things didn’t happen. But, honestly, this is the happiest I could have been where I got drafted,” said Connelly, whose draft stock has fallen in the two years since he posted an image on Snapchat – before hastily deleting it – showing a friend posing in front of a collection of swastika-shaped building blocks.

He was also accused of uttering a racial slur during a game in 2021, though a suspension was lifted when an investigation could not corroborate what happened. Connelly apologized for posting the photo and denied uttering the racial slur.

“I made mistakes as a kid and I’m a completely different person now,” said Connelly, who is originally from Tustin, Calif., and has committed to Providence this year. “I think there’s a reason for what I’ve experienced over the last few years. I think everything will work out for the best for me and I will do everything for the organization, everything for the people and I’m very excited to get started. »

General manager Kelly McCrimmon said Vegas officials conducted what he called a “very thorough” background check on the player, while meeting with Connelly at the scouting pool in Buffalo, New York, and then again this week.

“I think he’s shown some growth and some recognition of some areas where he’s made mistakes and he’s owned up to that,” McCrimmon said. “He’s been very candid, transparent and hasn’t evaded any of the questions we’ve asked him.”

The abilities of the 1.83m, 70kg striker are beyond doubt.

Connelly is coming off a season with the Tri-City Storm in which he finished second in the USHL with 78 points (31 goals, 47 assists) in 52 games. He also represented the United States, most recently winning a silver medal at the 2024 World Under-18 Championship.

Hostile Cap

Washington Capitals general manager Brian MacLellan uses CapFriendly all the time to search for salary information and other NHL data. Soon, he and members of the organization will be the only ones to have access after The Capitals purchased the website this month.

Needless to say, his colleagues are not happy to see this tool taken away.

“I don’t think anyone is happy,” MacLellan said in a video call with reporters Thursday. “The whole industry is not very happy about it.”

CapFriendly is still available through the draft and the start of free agency next week before the public side goes dark sometime in July.

“Our biggest fear was that it would go away and we wouldn’t be able to use it anymore,” said MacLellan, who added that the front office considered creating its own site before realizing it was too expensive and time-consuming. “We can build off of that. We have the people who created it, so we can build off of that and hopefully become more efficient as an organization in terms of salary cap decisions, CBA decisions, and then use it on the analytics side as well: create a format that works for us that way.”

Firsts in Norway

Michael Brandsegg-Nygard, Detroit’s 15th overall pick, made history as the first Norwegian player drafted in the first round. Brandsegg-Nygard played in the Swedish Hockey League last season and heard his name called at the draft by that Scandinavian nation’s Hall of Famer, Nicklas Lidstrom.

Stian Stolberg became the second Norwegian player selected in the first round shortly afterward, when Anaheim traded him to select him 23rd overall. Goaltending coach Sudarshan “Sudsy” Maharaj, who recently beat cancer, announced the Ducks’ selection.

Crosby extension?

Sidney Crosby has just over a year left to become a free agent. But the three-time Stanley Cup-winning Pittsburgh Penguins captain and his entourage have been discussing a contract extension with general manager Kyle Dubas that could not be signed until Monday anyway.

“We’re talking,” Crosby said Friday during a video call with reporters to discuss the upcoming 4 Nations clash. “There’s been a little bit of discussion, I think with the draft and free agency and things like that. This is something I’ll keep between Kyle and I, but we’ve had a few conversations and I’ll leave it at that. …We’ll see what happens. »

The Penguins, with Dubas at the helm, remain in win-now mode. Center Evgeni Malkin is under contract until 2026 and defender Kris Letang until 28.

Crosby will be 37 before next season.

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AP Hockey Writer Stephen Whyno and AP freelance writer WG Ramirez contributed to this report.

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