Knights take controversial forward Trevor Connelly with 19th pick of NHL draft
Published in Hockey
LAS VEGAS — The Golden Knights selected Tri-City left wing Trevor Connelly with the 19th overall pick in the first round of the NHL Draft at Sphere on Friday.
Connelly, a strong winger with playmaking ability, had 78 points in 52 games with the Storm last season.
“You draft in the first round you really want to walk away with some talent,” general manager Kelly McCrimmon said during an interview on ESPN. “I really feel that Trevor is a great skater, a great playmaker, really high skill level. That was the motivation for us.”
Connelly does come with questions off the ice. He posted a picture to Snapchat in 2022 of a teammate sitting in a children’s area of a library with building blocks assembled in the shape of a swastika.
In 2021, Connelly was accused of directing a racial slur toward an opponent. Discipline was not upheld by the California Amateur Hockey Association because the allegation could not be corroborated.
“We certainly did our due diligence,” McCrimmon said. “We interviewed Trevor on two different occasions as recently as a couple of days ago and feel that he’s going to represent our organization the way that we would expect.”
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