Connolly, 25, registered 23 points (15g, 8a) in 66 games with the Capitals during the 2016-17 season, posting career highs in goals and plus/minus (+20). The 6'3", 194-pound left wing scored 15 goals on 81 shots last season, ranking eighth in the NHL in shooting percentage (18.5%). In addition, Connolly tied his career long with a six-game point streak (2/1-2/11: 4g, 4a) and Washington posted a 16-1-2 record in 2016-17 in games when Connolly recorded a point. He was drafted by Tampa Bay in the first round, sixth overall, in the 2010 NHL Draft and has earned 82 points (42 goals, 40 assists) in 276 career NHL games with Tampa Bay, Boston and Washington.
The Campbell River, B.C., native has represented Canada at two World Junior Championships (2011, 2012), the 2009 Ivan Hlinka Memorial Tournament and the 2008 World U18 Championship. Connolly won a gold medal with Canada at the 2009 Ivan Hlinka Memorial Tournament, a silver medal at the 2011 World Junior Championship and a bronze medal at the 2012 World Junior Championship.
