Connor Clifton (born April 28, 1995) is an American professional

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

defenseman Defence or defense (in American English) in ice hockey is a player position that is primarily responsible for preventing the opposing team from scoring. They are often referred to as defencemen, D, D-men or blueliners (the latter a reference to ...

for the

Boston Bruins The Boston Bruins are a professional ice hockey team based in Boston. The Bruins compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Atlantic Division (NHL), Atlantic Division in the Eastern Conference (NHL), Eastern Conference. The ...

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). He played collegiate hockey with

Quinnipiac University Quinnipiac University () is a private university in Hamden, Connecticut. The university grants undergraduate, graduate, and professional degrees through its College of Arts and Sciences, School of Business, School of Engineering, School of ...

Playing career

Born in

Long Branch, New Jersey Long Branch is a beachside city in Monmouth County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2010 U.S. census, the city's population was 30,719,Matawan, New Jersey Matawan is a borough in Monmouth County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. A historic community located near the Raritan Bay in the much larger Raritan Valley region, the borough is a commuter town of New York City within the New York Metropol ...

, Clifton played prep hockey at Christian Brothers Academy together with his brother, Tim. Having played in his draft eligible year within the U.S. National Development Team Program where the team won silver in the 2013 IIHF World Under-18 Championship, Clifton was originally drafted by 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 Mu ...

in the fifth-round, 133rd overall, of the

2013 NHL Entry Draft The 2013 NHL Entry Draft was the 51st NHL Entry Draft. All seven rounds of the draft took place on June 30, 2013, at the Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey. The top three selections were Nathan MacKinnon going to the Colorado Avalanche, Al ...

. Clifton began his freshman season at

during the 2013–14 season. He was named to the ECAC Hockey All-Academic Team during all four seasons with the Quinnipiac Bobcats. In his junior season, Clifton was named captain of the Bobcats and at the conclusion of the season was named to the ECAC Hockey All-Tournament, NCAA East All-Frozen Four Team, and honored as Team ECAC Hockey Tournament Most Outstanding Player. Following his senior season and un-signed from the Coyotes, Clifton signed with 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 le ...

affiliate, the

Providence Bruins The Providence Bruins are a professional ice hockey team in the American Hockey League (AHL), and are the primary development team for the Boston Bruins of the National Hockey League (NHL). They play at the Amica Mutual Pavilion in Providence, R ...

Professional

In 2017 after failing to reach an agreement with the Arizona Coyotes, Clifton signed with the Providence Bruins where he played 54 games. He was signed to a two year NHL contract by the Boston Bruins on May 3, 2018. Clifton began the 2018-2019 season in Providence but made his NHL debut on November 16, 2018, against the

Dallas Stars The Dallas Stars are a professional ice hockey team based in Dallas. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Central Division (NHL), Central Division in the Western Conference (NHL), Western Conference, and were founde ...

after being recalled on an emergency basis. On March 23, 2019, Clifton registered his first NHL point with an assist on a

Noel Acciari Noel Acciari (born December 1, 1991) is an American professional ice hockey center for the St. Louis Blues of the National Hockey League (NHL). Playing career Amateur As a youth, Acciari played in the 2004 Quebec International Pee-Wee Hockey To ...

's goal, in a 7–3 win over the

Florida Panthers The Florida Panthers are a professional ice hockey team based in the Miami metropolitan area. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Atlantic Division in the Eastern Conference, and initially played their home game ...

. He scored his first NHL goal in Game 2 of the Eastern Conference Final against the

Carolina Hurricanes The Carolina Hurricanes (colloquially known as the Canes) are a professional ice hockey team based in Raleigh, North Carolina. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Metropolitan Division in the Eastern Conference ...

, as part of a 6–2 rout. The Bruins would later advance to the

Stanley Cup Final The Stanley Cup Finals in ice hockey (also known as the Stanley Cup Final among various media, french: Finale de la Coupe Stanley) is the National Hockey League's (NHL) championship series to determine the winner of the Stanley Cup, North Americ ...

, but would lose to the

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 ...

in seven games. On July 1, 2019, Clifton signed a 3-year, $3 million contract extension with the Bruins.

Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs

International

Awards and honors

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Clifton, Connor 1995 births Living people American men's ice hockey defensemen Arizona Coyotes draft picks Boston Bruins players Christian Brothers Academy (New Jersey) alumni Ice hockey players from New Jersey Sportspeople from Long Branch, New Jersey People from Matawan, New Jersey Quinnipiac Bobcats men's ice hockey players Sportspeople from Monmouth County, New Jersey Providence Bruins players USA Hockey National Team Development Program players