By Rich Chrampanis
Former Christian Brothers Academy hockey standout Connor Clifton learned that life in the NHL is lightning paced and that doesn’t only apply to the ice. After he filled in for an injury-depleted blue line with the Boston Bruins and shone in the Stanley Cup playoffs, the Bruins wasted little time in securing “Cliffy Hockey” to be a part of their future.
Clifton earned a three-year contract extension to return to Boston. He will make $725,000 in the 2019-20 season and then make an even $1 million for the following three seasons. Considering that he began the 2018-19 season in the minor leagues and ended with a goal in the Stanley Cup Final, Clifton’s new-found job security happened quickly.
“I’m always a guy that will take little steps at a time,” Clifton said in a conference call following his contract extension. “After college, I end up in the American League in Prov (Providence), and I was thrilled about that. And I’ve come pretty far in the past year and a half or two years since that happened. So, it’s been a good ride so far, but hopefully it’s just the beginning.”
From his time at CBA to a four-year career at Quinnipiac, Clifton was able to fill the void created by a slew of injuries for the Bruins and got better in his truncated rookie campaign.
“This year I think was a huge step in my career,” Clifton said. “Having a game like in Dallas in my NHL debut was pretty crazy. It happened so fast, and then I’m playing in the NHL. I was also playing with (Jakub) Zboril, who was playing his debut, too. Just how it happened was pretty crazy. It was a huge step this year in my career, but I want to continue to make strides and be the best player I can be.”
Clifton scored a pair of goals in the postseason starting with a Game 2 tally against the Carolina Hurricanes in the Eastern Conference Final, followed by a goal in the Bruins’ Game 1 win in the Cup finals against the Saint Louis Blues. The loyal Bruins fan base quickly embraced the rookie defenseman, but his new-found fame is not going to his head.
“I don’t think a couple compliments make you want to stop being the player you are,” Clifton said. “I still want to make every aspect of my game better… I think just a little bit of everything. The play after that, I guess, is come to camp and make the team. Obviously we’ve got – I don’t even know how many defensemen, great defensemen who can play in the NHL. I think I have to take that upon myself and be ready for September and try to make the Boston Bruins.”
For a while, it looked like Clifton would be bringing Lord Stanley’s Cup back to New Jersey as every player on the winning team gets the Cup for a day. Instead, the Bruins lost to Saint Louis in seven games, giving the Bruins defenseman plenty of motivation coming into his second NHL season.
“The experience I feel like I got from playing in the NHL alone, never mind the whole playoff push we had, when you look back on it, it was an incredible journey.” said Clifton. “Obviously, got that taste in our mouth, making it to Game 7 and not coming up with the Stanley Cup. You can put that in your pocket and save it for this coming season.”
