Brandon Bollig
Bollig with the Calgary Flames during the 2014-15 NHL season in December 2014
Born (1987-01-31) January 31, 1987
St. Charles, Missouri, U.S.
Height 6 ft 2 in (188 cm)
Weight 223 lb (101 kg; 15 st 13 lb)
Position Left wing
Shot Left
Played for Chicago Blackhawks
Calgary Flames
NHL Draft Undrafted
Playing career 2010–2018

Brandon D. Bollig (born January 31, 1987) is an American former professional ice hockey player. An undrafted player, Bollig signed with the Chicago Blackhawks organization in 2010 after playing college hockey for St. Lawrence University. He made his NHL debut in 2012 and was a member of Chicago's Stanley Cup championship team in 2013. The Calgary Flames acquired Bollig in a draft-day trade on June 28, 2014.

Playing career

As a youth, Bollig played in the 2001 Quebec International Pee-Wee Hockey Tournament with the St. Louis Blues minor ice hockey team.[1]

Bollig played high school hockey for Francis Howell North High School in St. Charles, Missouri, where he graduated in 2005 with a 3.4 grade point average. During his junior year of high school, he also tried out for the St. Louis Jr. Blues Tier III Junior B team, but was cut. Bollig tried out again the following year and made the team for the 2004-05 season. After spending one season with the Jr. Blues and graduating from high school, Bollig moved up to the United States Hockey League (USHL) to join the Lincoln Stars.[2][3]

Bollig played three seasons of tier I junior ice hockey with the Lincoln Stars of the USHL between 2005 and 2008. He appeared in 173 games for the Stars and recorded 37 goals and 36 assists in that time, as well as 593 penalty minutes (PIM).[4] He finished second in the USHL in penalties in both 2006–07 and 2007–08 with 207 and 211 PIM respectively.[5] He then attended St. Lawrence University where he played two seasons of NCAA Division I college hockey with the Saints.[6] After recording 13 points as a freshman in 2008–09, Bollig finished fourth in team scoring with 25 points and led the team with 83 PIM.[5]

Bollig with the Rockford IceHogs in December 2011.

The Chicago Blackhawks lured Bollig out of university following his sophomore season and signed him to a professional contract in 2010.[7] The Blackhawks assigned him to their American Hockey League (AHL) affiliate, the Rockford IceHogs to complete the 2009–10 season; Bollig made his professional debut on April 6, 2010, and scored his first professional goal four nights later against the San Antonio Rampage.[5] He played the entire 2010–11 AHL season with the IceHogs, and remained in Rockford for the majority of the following campaign.[8]

Chicago recalled Bollig late in the 2011–12 NHL season to serve as a replacement for enforcer John Scott, who was traded to the New York Rangers.[9] Bollig made his NHL debut on February 29, 2012, against the Toronto Maple Leafs; he also recorded his first fight, against Luke Schenn.[10] He appeared in 18 regular season games with the Blackhawks. He was held pointless, but recorded 58 PIM.[5] In the 2012 Stanley Cup Playoffs, Bollig appeared in four games in the team's first round match-up against the Phoenix Coyotes and scored his first NHL goal on April 14, a game-tying marker against goaltender Mike Smith in the second game of the series.[11]

Bollig returned to Rockford to begin the 2012–13 AHL season. He appeared in 35 games and recorded 9 points for the IceHogs before returning to Chicago once the 2012-13 NHL lockout ended in January 2013, and his 157 PIM was second in the AHL at that time. In his first full NHL season, he played 25 games with Chicago during the 48 game shortened season, again held pointless, and led the team with 51 PIM.[5] Bollig appeared in five post-season games out of 23 total in the 2013 Stanley Cup Playoffs (3 games in round 1, none in rounds 2 or 3 and 2 games in the Finals),[8] and the team went on to defeat the Boston Bruins in the Finals in 6 games to claim the 2013 Stanley Cup championship.[12] He was the first native of the St. Louis region to win the Cup as a player.[13]

The first regular season goal of Bollig's career came in Chicago's opening game of the 2013–14 season, October 1, 2013, against Braden Holtby of the Washington Capitals.[14] Bollig appeared in all 82 games for Chicago, scored 7 goals and added 7 assists for 14 points and led the team in penalty minutes again with 92 PIM.[8] The season was a transitional one for Bollig as he expanded on his a role as a pure enforcer and placed added focus on becoming a defensive forward on Chicago's fourth line.[15] Chicago signed Bollig to a three-year contract extension worth $1.25 million per year late in the season,[16] however the Blackhawks were forced to make deals to remain compliant with the NHL salary cap in the off-season.[15] On June 28, 2014, Chicago sent Bollig to the Calgary Flames in exchange for a third round selection at the 2014 NHL Entry Draft.[6]

On July 4, 2017, Bollig signed as a free agent to a one-year, two-way contract worth $650,000 with the San Jose Sharks.[17] He was assigned to play with AHL affiliate, the San Jose Barracuda to begin the 2017–18 season. After appearing in 45 games with the Barracuda, on February 25, 2018, Bollig was traded by the Sharks alongside Troy Grosenick to the Nashville Predators in exchange for a sixth round draft pick in 2018.[18]

As a free agent over the summer and into the mid-point of the 2018–19 season, Bollig announced his retirement from his 8-year professional career on January 16, 2019.[19]

Personal

Bollig married Dannah Lakin on August 4, 2018 in Chicago, IL. Bollig was cast as Will Cross, age 12, in the 2002 film Defiance, notable for also including former St. Louis Blues enforcer Tony Twist in the cast.[20][21]

Career statistics

    Regular season   Playoffs
Season Team League GP G A Pts PIM GP G A Pts PIM
2005–06 Lincoln Stars USHL 58 8 8 16 175 9 1 2 3 12
2006–07 Lincoln Stars USHL 57 14 12 26 207 9 1 2 3 12
2007–08 Lincoln Stars USHL 58 15 16 31 211 8 2 4 6 40
2008–09 St. Lawrence University ECAC 36 6 7 13 51 — — — — —
2009–10 St. Lawrence University ECAC 42 7 18 25 83 — — — — —
2009–10 Rockford IceHogs AHL 3 1 1 2 7 — — — — —
2010–11 Rockford IceHogs AHL 55 4 0 4 115 — — — — —
2011–12 Rockford IceHogs AHL 53 3 6 9 163 — — — — —
2011–12 Chicago Blackhawks NHL 18 0 0 0 58 4 1 0 1 19
2012–13 Rockford IceHogs AHL 35 5 4 9 157 — — — — —
2012–13 Chicago Blackhawks NHL 25 0 0 0 51 5 0 0 0 2
2013–14 Chicago Blackhawks NHL 82 7 7 14 92 15 0 1 1 16
2014–15 Calgary Flames NHL 62 1 4 5 88 11 2 0 2 38
2015–16 Calgary Flames NHL 54 2 2 4 103 — — — — —
2016–17 Stockton Heat AHL 60 11 11 22 136 5 1 0 1 2
2017–18 San Jose Barracuda AHL 45 8 2 10 68 — — — — —
2017–18 Milwaukee Admirals AHL 21 3 1 4 30 — — — — —
AHL totals 272 35 25 60 676 5 1 0 1 2
NHL totals 241 10 13 23 392 35 3 1 4 75

References

  1. ↑ "Pee-Wee players who have reached NHL or WHA" (PDF). Quebec International Pee-Wee Hockey Tournament. 2018. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2019-03-06. Retrieved 2019-02-15.
  2. ↑ "Blackhawk's Bollig, Living the Dream | Hockey Stop News". Archived from the original on 2015-03-21. Retrieved 2015-03-27.
  3. ↑ "Bollig can be first player from St. Louis area to play in NHL". Stltoday. 2013-04-05. Retrieved 2013-04-05.
  4. ↑ "Brandon Bollig biography". Hockey Hall of Fame. Retrieved 2014-09-29.
  5. 1 2 3 4 5 Faber, Brandon; et al., eds. (2013). 2013–14 Chicago Blackhawks Media Guide. Chicago Blackhawks Hockey Club. pp. 62–63.
  6. 1 2 Odland, Kristen (2014-06-30). "Funnyman Bollig en route to Calgary". Calgary Herald. p. D5.
  7. ↑ "Chicago Blackhawks Build for Future With USHL Talent". United States Hockey League. 2014-07-17. Archived from the original on 2014-09-29. Retrieved 2014-09-29.
  8. 1 2 3 "Brandon Bollig player card". National Hockey League. Retrieved 2014-09-29.
  9. ↑ "Call-up surprised rookie Bollig". Chicago Sun-Times. 2012-04-13. Archived from the original on 2015-03-23. Retrieved 2014-09-29 – via Highbeam.
  10. ↑ "Hawks add to Maple Leafs' woes as Marian Hossa fuels rally". ESPN. 2012-02-29. Retrieved 2014-09-29.
  11. ↑ Kuc, Chris (2012-04-15). "Blackhawks even series with 4–3 victory in OT". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved 2012-04-15.
  12. ↑ Faber, Brandon; et al., eds. (2013). 2013–14 Chicago Blackhawks Media Guide. Chicago Blackhawks Hockey Club. pp. 12–13.
  13. ↑ "Bollig returns to roots with Stanley Cup in St. Louis". National Hockey League. 2013-08-02. Retrieved 2013-12-22.
  14. ↑ Rosen, Dan (2013-10-01). "Blackhawks raise banner, top Capitals in opener". National Hockey League. Retrieved 2013-10-02.
  15. 1 2 Lazerus, Mark (2014-06-29). "Bollig dealt to Flames to clear cap space". Chicago Sun-Times. p. 59.
  16. ↑ Lazerus, Mark (2014-03-01). "Bollig gets three more years". Chicago Sun-Times. Archived from the original on 2015-03-23. Retrieved 2014-09-29 – via Higbeam.
  17. ↑ "Sharks add 'Grit and Physicality' by signing Bollig". NBC Sports. 2017-07-04. Retrieved 2017-07-04.
  18. ↑ "Predators acquire Bollig, Grosenick from Sharks for draft pick". Nashville Predators. 2018-02-25. Retrieved 2018-02-25.
  19. ↑ "Bollig announces his retirement". Instagram. 2019-01-16. Retrieved 2018-01-16.
  20. ↑ Odland, Kristen (April 21, 2015). "Bollig's Defiance one of his grittiest performances". Calgary Herald. Retrieved June 3, 2018.
  21. ↑ Defiance (2002) IMDb.com
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