British defenceman Ben O’Connor joins the Devils after 6 seasons with the Sheffield Steelers.
British defenceman Ben O’Connor joins the Devils after 6 seasons with the Sheffield Steelers.
During his time in Sheffield, O’Connor lifted 2 League Titles, a Playoff Championship and most recently the 2020 Challenge Cup over the Devils in the last game before the 2019-20 season was put on ice.
Along the way he was also selected to the EIHL First All-Star Team twice, selected Best British Defenceman twice and Best British Player once.
O’Connor has also been a mainstay with Team GB for the last 12 years, winning back to back Gold Medals in Division 1B, then 1A. He won Best Defenceman at 4 consecutive World Championships, three at the 1B level, then again at Division 1A on route to Team GB’s historic promotion to the top tier of the World Championships, where they remain today.
He has been the top scoring defenceman for the Steelers in 5 of his 6 seasons with the club and in 2017-18, he led his team in scoring with 21 goals and 49 assists for 70 points in 75 games played.
Head Coach Jarrod Skalde spoke about the signing of O’Connor:
“Ben is a very talented player and has huge offensive upside. I started seriously watching him at the World Championships and was impressed with his overall game.
“He skates so well, has great hands, he plays with poise and makes simple plays everywhere on the ice.
“I have spoken to him a ton over the last few weeks, and he is very motivated this season to show us that he can be a dominant player in this league again. I believe he can as well.”
Photo Credit: Dean Woolley
