For Trevor Connelly, the opportunity has always been there – the next step was simply walking through it.
“We’ll bring him to the door and open it,” his father, Scott Connelly, said. “But he’s the one that has to go through it himself.”
Connelly is in the middle of a breakout season and stretch, recording 17 points (three goals, 14 assists) during a 12-game point streak and tallying 27 points (eight goals, 19 assists) in his last 18 games.
Related: Henderson Silver Knights Prospect Notebook: Connelly, Bowman and Cormier
The 20-year-old is up to 37 points in 35 games this season in his first full year in the American Hockey League (AHL), playing a vital role in the team’s surge.
Since the All-Star break, the Henderson Silver Knights have been one of the league’s hottest teams, going 13-3-0-2.
Connelly Thriving With Silver Knights
Despite the success and momentum in Henderson, the AHL hasn’t been a walk in the park for Connelly – it’s been an adjustment to a league with bigger and better players.
“It’s like another level from college and juniors,” Connelly said. “All the players are so talented and skilled. I just think the toughness and kind of that side of stuff, guys are super physical, and everyone finishes their checks.”
That jump, from junior and college hockey to the professionals, is often where prospects are forced to redefine their games.
The adjustment for Connelly has allowed refining for the details that will allow his game to translate to the next level.
“I think (I’m) starting to get better defensively,” Connelly said. “I think just being reliable 200-feet, and finding different ways to have an effect on the offensive side of the game. Just kind of finding a way to have an impact every night.”
That ability to impact the game in multiple ways has become increasingly evident as the season has progressed.
While the offensive production stands out, it has been paired with a growing awareness away from the puck – something coaches have emphasized as a key step in his development.
Silver Knights head coach Ryan Craig has seen that progression firsthand.
“His skills with the puck are a huge asset to our organization,” Craig said via Twitter. “He makes people better around him. He’s a driver with the puck. The details of the game that need to be translated to hopefully achieve his goal of playing in the National Hockey League (NHL).
He’s young, probably one of the youngest players in the AHL this year. Yet he’s probably a player that other teams circle on their board and know that they have to be aware of each and every night.”
That combination of skill and awareness is what has allowed Connelly to thrive during his current stretch, but it has also been shaped by adversity.
Injuries earlier in the season disrupted his rhythm, forcing him to find consistency in a different way.
“It sucks to be hurt, but I think it kind of makes you want to play even more and just love the game so much,” Connelly said. “Every time I’m hurt, I get back, I’m so fired up to play and just excited to be around the guys again and be in that environment.”
That mindset has been shaped just as much off the ice as it has on it. For Connelly, that starts with his father, Scott.
“(I) Talk to my dad before every game and after every game,” Connelly said. “So he’s helped me a ton through the injuries, just checking up on me and talking to me about stuff, or just different little things like that.”
Scott knows those conversations are less about instruction and more about perspective.
“I think my goal now is to keep him positive in the right frame of mind,” Scott said. “It’s hard to stay up. It’s such a physical game, mentally and physically draining.”
Scott recalled a time when former professional hockey player, author and mental skills coach Danielle McDonough offered advice that stuck with him to this day.
“She assisted me on my teams,” Scott said. “One time she told me, ‘Scott, don’t say anything once you leave the rink. As soon as you get to the door, stay quiet on the car ride home – just try it for 30 days and see what happens.’
And honestly, he shut down for a while at the beginning and wouldn’t talk to me at all. Then after about 30 days, he started asking, ‘What do you think of this? What do you think of that?’”
That change wasn’t just about communication – it reflected a growing curiosity and internal drive, something that had been present in Connelly long before his rise.
“He was a big tennis player when he was younger, which really facilitated hand-eye coordination,” Scott said. “But whatever he kind of touched, I called it sports sense.”
Where that drive comes from, Scott couldn’t quite put a finger on it, but believes he was born with.
“I think you’re born with it,” Scott said. “It’s just an internal drive that you want something so bad that you want to get that or reach it, but you never can because you’re never satisfied.”
That internal drive has carried Connelly through each stage of his development, but it has also been reinforced by the environment around him – one built on support, consistency and accountability.
The confidence that’s shown up in his production has followed a stretch where, by his own admission, things have started to settle.
“I think kind of since the All-Star break, I’ve found my game,” Connelly said. “It’s been hard not kind of being able to get into a groove and kind of just focus on playing. So I think this stretch has been awesome.
But give a lot of credit to the guys that I’m playing with, too. Playing with those type of players brings your confidence up as well and just trying to focus on having an impact every night, and even if it’s not scoring points, just trying to get energy or have an impact on the defensive side of the game.”
Connelly’s confidence hasn’t just been evident in Henderson – it’s also been recognized by Vegas Golden Knights Director of Player Development Will Nichol.
Nichol isn’t surprised at the surge he’s having, though.
“I’m not surprised,” Nichol said via Twitter. “This kid’s gonna have it because he’s got that combination of high end skill, sense, all those things that you can’t teach. He’s got character, and he’s got a walk and a desire to get better.”
That blend of skill and mindset has been reinforced by the people closest to him, forming a support system that has followed Connelly through each stage of his development.
Whether it’s conversations with his father or time spent back home with family, the foundation around him has remained steady even as the level of competition has changed.
It’s a structure that extends beyond guidance alone, showing up in the day-to-day interactions that keep hockey from feeling isolated, even during a long season in a new league.
“Every little kid, whether it’s hockey, soccer, baseball, they all dream of being a professional athlete, or competing in the Olympics,” Scott said. “Trevor, he’s living it. Sometimes I pinch myself to see if it’s real or not.”
