Brock Christian Nelson (born October 15, 1991) is an American professional

ice hockey Ice hockey (or simply hockey) is a team sport played on ice skates, usually on an ice skating rink with lines and markings specific to the sport. It belongs to a family of sports called hockey. In ice hockey, two opposing teams use ice ...

player for the

New York Islanders The New York Islanders (colloquially known as the Isles) are a professional ice hockey team based in Elmont, New York. The Islanders compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Metropolitan Division in the Eastern Conferenc ...

of the

National Hockey League The National Hockey League (NHL; french: Ligue nationale de hockey—LNH, ) is a professional ice hockey sports league, league in North America comprising 32 teams—25 in the United States and 7 in Canada. It is considered to be the top ranke ...

(NHL). Nelson was drafted 30th overall in the first round of the

2010 NHL Entry Draft The 2010 NHL Entry Draft was the 48th NHL Entry Draft, held on June 25–26, 2010 at Staples Center in Los Angeles, California, home arena of the Los Angeles Kings. This was the first time Los Angeles hosted the NHL Entry Draft. An unofficial re ...

by the Islanders. Prior to playing professional hockey, Nelson played at the

University of North Dakota The University of North Dakota (also known as UND or North Dakota) is a public research university in Grand Forks, North Dakota. It was established by the Dakota Territorial Assembly in 1883, six years before the establishment of the state of N ...

. His first experience in professional hockey was at the

American Hockey League The American Hockey League (AHL) is a professional ice hockey league based in the United States and Canada that serves as the primary developmental league for the National Hockey League (NHL). Since the 2010–11 season, every team in the lea ...

(AHL) level with the Islanders' affiliate, the

Bridgeport Sound Tigers The Bridgeport Islanders (previously known as the Bridgeport Sound Tigers) are a professional ice hockey team playing in the American Hockey League (AHL). They are the AHL affiliate of the National Hockey League's New York Islanders, who own the f ...

Playing career

Early career

Nelson played hockey at

Warroad High School Warroad High School is a public high school in Warroad, Minnesota, United States. Despite the small size of the community, the school has produced several successful hockey players. Academics 21% of Warroad students participate in the school's Ad ...

, where he was a finalist for the Minnesota Mr. Hockey Award, given to the top Minnesota high school hockey player. He finished the 2009–10 season with 39 goals and 34 assists for 73 points in 25 games for Warroad. On September 24, 2009, Nelson committed to play Division 1 hockey for the

after considering Bemidji State and Nebraska-Omaha and later partook in the 2010 USA Hockey National Junior Evaluation Camp. Nelson was selected 30th overall by the

of the

(NHL) in the 2010 Entry Draft.

Collegiate

Nelson competed with the University of North Dakota Fighting Sioux for two seasons while majoring in pre-investments. He recorded his first collegiate goal on a power play to lift the Fighting Sioux 3–2 over Minnesota Duluth. Later in the season, he recorded his first two-goal game in a win over Robert Morris Colonials. He recorded a goal off an assist from

Joe Gleason Joseph Paul Gleason (July 9, 1895 – September 8, 1990) was a pitcher in Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed ...

to help lead the Fighting Sioux to the WCHA Final Five. Nelson ended the season with the Tom Hoghaug Memorial Scholarship as he led all Sioux freshmen in points and goals. He was also named to the All-WCHA Team and WCHA All-Tournament Team. In his sophomore season, Nelson played on a line with Corban Knight and

Danny Kristo Daniel Kristo (born June 18, 1990) is an American professional ice hockey forward who is currently playing for Sheffield Steelers in the UK EIHL. Kristo previously played with HK Dukla Michalovce of the Slovak Extraliga. Playing career Kristo ...

. By the conclusion of the 2011–12 season, Nelson was named to the All-WCHA Third Team after leading all WCHA players with 20 goals and becoming UND's youngest 20 goal scorer since Jonathan Toews. He was also named a Inside College Hockey All-American, to ''College Hockey News'' Second Team, and Inside College Hockey's WCHA Breakthrough Player of the Year. Nelson ended his collegiate career by signing an Entry Level Contract with the New York Islanders on April 3, 2012.

Professional career

Nelson began his professional career with the Islanders' minor league affiliate, the

's (AHL)

after the 2011–12 season, during the 2012 Calder Cup playoffs. He eventually made his NHL debut during the

2013 Stanley Cup playoffs The 2013 Stanley Cup playoffs of the National Hockey League (NHL) began on April 30, 2013, following the conclusion of the 2012–13 NHL regular season. The regular season was shortened to 48 games, and the playoffs pushed to a later date, due ...

with the Islanders after the 2012–13 regular season. He registered his first NHL point the following season on October 8, 2013, an assist on a goal by

Peter Regin Peter Regin Jensen (born 16 April 1986) is a Danish professional ice hockey player who plays for Eisbären Berlin of the Deutsche Eishockey Liga (DEL). He was drafted by the Ottawa Senators in the third round (87th overall) of the 2004 NHL Entry ...

in a 6–1 win against the

Phoenix Coyotes The Arizona Coyotes are a professional ice hockey team based in the Phoenix metropolitan area. The Coyotes compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Central Division in the Western Conference and currently play at the Mull ...

. His first NHL goal was scored on October 22, 2013 against

Roberto Luongo Roberto Luongo (, , ; born April 4, 1979) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey goaltender. He played 19 seasons in the National Hockey League (NHL) for the New York Islanders, Florida Panthers and the Vancouver Canucks. Luongo is a ...

of the

Vancouver Canucks The Vancouver Canucks are a professional ice hockey team based in Vancouver. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Pacific Division of the Western Conference, and play their home games at Rogers Arena. Bruce ...

. On October 9, 2017,

St. Louis Blues The St. Louis Blues are a professional ice hockey team based in St. Louis. The Blues compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Central Division in the Western Conference. The franchise was founded in 1967 as one of the ...

enforcer

Robert Bortuzzo Robert Bortuzzo (born March 18, 1989) is a Canadian professional ice hockey player for the St. Louis Blues of the National Hockey League (NHL). Bortuzzo was drafted 78th overall by the Pittsburgh Penguins during the 2007 NHL Entry Draft. Growi ...

cross-checked Nelson multiple times while he was down after Nelson collided with a teammate. Bortuzzo was later fined $3,091.40. On May 23, 2019, after a career year in the 2018–19 season with 53 points under

Barry Trotz Barry Trotz (born July 15, 1962) is a Canadian professional ice hockey coach who most recently was head coach of the New York Islanders of the National Hockey League (NHL). He is also the former head coach of the Nashville Predators and the Wash ...

, Nelson signed a six-year, $36 million contract to remain with the Islanders. On April 5, 2021, Nelson was named alternate captain of the Islanders in absence of the injured

Anders Lee Anders Mark Lee (born July 3, 1990) is an American professional ice hockey winger and captain of the New York Islanders of the National Hockey League (NHL). Lee attended the University of Notre Dame, where he played hockey for the Fighting Iris ...

. On November 23, 2021, it was announced that Nelson would be out 2-4 weeks with a lower body injury.

International play

Nelson plays internationally for the United States. At the 2011 World Junior Championships, Nelson helped the Americans to a bronze medal, recording one assist in 5 games. Nelson was selected as an alternate captain for Team USA in the

2017 IIHF World Championship The 2017 IIHF World Championship, the 2017 edition of the annual Ice Hockey World Championships, was held from 5 to 21 May 2017 in Cologne, Germany and Paris, France. The official tournament mascots were Asterix and Obelix, the main characters ...

Personal life

Nelson's uncle

Dave Christian David William Christian (born May 12, 1959) is an American former professional ice hockey forward. He played on the 1980 U.S. Olympic hockey team that won the gold medal during the 1980 Winter Olympics. Additionally he played for five National ...

was on the

1980 Events January * January 4 – U.S. President Jimmy Carter proclaims a grain embargo against the USSR with the support of the European Commission. * January 6 – Global Positioning System time epoch begins at 00:00 UTC. * January 9 – In ...

United States

Miracle on Ice The "Miracle on Ice" was an ice hockey game during the 1980 Winter Olympics in Lake Placid, New York. It was played between the hosting United States and the Soviet Union on February 22, 1980, during the medal round of the men's hockey tournam ...

gold medal team, and his grandfather,

Bill Christian William David Christian (born January 29, 1938) is an American former ice hockey player. He led the United States to a gold medal at the 1960 Winter Olympics. He was inducted into the United States Hockey Hall of Fame in 1984 and the Interna ...

, and great uncle, Roger Christian, were both on the

1960 It is also known as the "Year of Africa" because of major events—particularly the independence of seventeen African nations—that focused global attention on the continent and intensified feelings of Pan-Africanism. Events January * Ja ...

United States gold medal team and founded Christian Brothers, a company that made hockey sticks in

Warroad, Minnesota Warroad is a city in Roseau County, Minnesota, United States, at the southwest corner of Lake of the Woods, south of Canada. The population was 1,781 at the 2010 census. Warroad had its own newspaper before it was incorporated in 1901. Minne ...

from 1964 to 2003. Another great uncle,

Gordon Christian Gordon Eugene "Gordy" Christian (November 21, 1927 – June 2, 2017) was an American ice hockey player. He played with the University of North Dakota from 1947 to 1950, tying for scoring leader on the team in both the 1947–48 and 1948–49 seas ...

played for the United States at the

1956 Winter Olympics The 1956 Winter Olympics, officially known as the VII Olympic Winter Games ( it, VII Giochi Olimpici invernali) and commonly known as Cortina d'Ampezzo 1956 ( lld, Anpezo 1956 or ), was a multi-sport event held in Cortina d'Ampezzo, Italy, fro ...

, capturing a silver medal. While his mother did not partake in competitive hockey, she was a figure skater. Nelson's wife Karley Sylvester is a former Ms. Hockey and competed on the University of Wisconsin women’s hockey team. Together, they have three children.

Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs

International

Awards and honors

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Nelson, Brock 1991 births Living people American men's ice hockey centers Bridgeport Sound Tigers players Ice hockey people from Minneapolis National Hockey League first-round draft picks New York Islanders draft picks New York Islanders players North Dakota Fighting Hawks men's ice hockey players People from Warroad, Minnesota