ANOTHER ROAD WARRIOR HEADING UP NORTH 

WHALE SIGN FORWARD BRENDAN CONNOLLY TO PTO

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Leads Greenville ECHL Club in Goals

Connecticut Whale general manager Jim Schoenfeld announced today that the Whale has signed forward Brendan Connolly to a Professional Tryout (PTO) agreement.

Connolly comes to the Whale from its ECHL affiliate, the Greenville Road Warriors.  In 20 games with the Road Warriors, Connolly, a third-year pro out of Ferris State University, leads the team, and is tied for fourth overall in the ECHL, in goals with 14 and is tied for tops on the team, and tied for ninth in the league, in points with 27.  The 26-year-old Canmore, Alberta native has also registered 58 penalty minutes and a +7.

Last year with Greenville, the 5-8, 175-pound Connolly tied for the ECHL plus/minus lead with a +28, while notching 22 goals and 28 assists for 50 points, along with 76 PIM, in only 45 games.  That ranked him tied for second on the Road Warriors club in goals and fifth on the team in points.  Connolly, 26, also got into his first career AHL action last season, going scoreless with two penalty minutes in three games with the Adirondack Phantoms.

In 132 career ECHL games with the Road Warriors and Elmira Jackals, Connolly has totaled 55 goals and 61 assists for 116 points, with 225 PIM. The Whale return to action tomorrow night, Friday, December 16, hosting the Bridgeport Sound Tigers at the XL Center in a GEICO Connecticut Cup game.  Faceoff is 7:00 PM.  The Whale are also home this Saturday, December 17, as they take on the Providence Bruins at 7:00.

Tickets to all 2011-12 Whale home games, are on sale now at the Public Power Ticket Office at the XL Center, as well as on-line at www.ctwhale.com and through TicketMaster Charge-by-phone at 1-800-745-3000.

Save on your tickets, and get the best seats, with a ticket plan for the Whale’s 2011-12 AHL campaign, which are on sale now. For information on season seats and mini plans, visit www.ctwhale.com, or call the CT Whale ticket office at (860) 728-3366 to talk with an account executive today.

The AHL’s Connecticut Whale is operated by Whalers Sports and Entertainment, a Hartford-based sports marketing and event firm founded by Howard Baldwin and Howard Baldwin, Jr..  The team is the top player-development affiliate of the NHL’s New York Rangers.

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