On Monday, February 3, Freshman forward Conor Kelly of Saint Anselm’s Men’s Ice Hockey Team from Braintree, Massachusetts was named Northeast-10 Rookie of the Week. “ I am honored to receive this award”, said Kelly. This is the first time this season a Hawk has earned the Rookie of the Week award and the first in Kelly’s career.
Kelly played hockey at Archbishop Williams High School in Braintree, Massachusetts. He furthered his hockey career at Tilton in his post graduate year. Kelly joined the New Hampshire Avalanche, Cape Cod Whalers, and South Shore Kings. He was also named All-Scholastic Team for the Boston Herald, Patriot Ledger, and Boston Globe before attending Saint Anselm.
Receiving the honor of Rookie of the Week is only the beginning for Kelly. Kelly’s efforts against Post University on January 31, led the Hawks to a 4-2 win against the Eagles. Kelly dominated and made his presence known on the ice and was able to score twice in the first period, making it Kelly’s first multi-goal game in his career aiding the team to the number 1 seed in playoffs.
The speed and intensity of college hockey can be a tough adjustment for freshmen, but Kelly has adapted to the team’s systems and takes the ice with confidence. The start of the 2024-2025 season in the first three games Kelly was able to bring in 3 points with one goal and two assists. The freshman has five goals and ten assists for a total of 15 points and 67 shots on net this season, putting him at the top of the scoreboard for the freshmen Hawks.
Kelly does not take full credit for all his accomplishments this season. “My coaches and teammates played a key role in my success,” Kelly said. “Playing with talented teammates has made me a better player,” Kelly added. Winning Rookie of the Week has pushed Kelly to work even harder and get better every day. For the next three seasons as a Hawk, Kelly hopes to improve his game every season and help bring the team to as many championships as possible. Kelly for now, remains entirely focused on the rest of the season.
Kelly has been working on all aspects of his game, but as a part of the special teams units, working on the penalty kill and powerplay has been most important for the freshman. “Our power play has been clicking pretty well so being part of that group has been great” Kelly mentioned.
The Hawks finished the regular season with an overall record of 17-9-2 and a conference record of 16-3-1 clinching the number one seed in the NE-10 Men’s Ice Hockey Championship. The Hawks have won eleven straight NE-10 contests with the last championship win in 2023. “Hopefully we can continue the momentum throughout the playoffs and win the championship,” Kelly said. “The Captains and all of the seniors have been great leaders and it would be cool for them to finish their Saint A’s career as champs,” Kelly added.
The Hawks will host the winner of the Assumption University Greyhounds and Post University Eagles who are currently in the number 4 and number 5 spots on Saturday, February 22 to kickoff the semifinals for the Hawks! Congratulations Conor and wish the Hawks good luck in the playoffs!