Brett Connolly has been loaned to Team Canada by the Tampa Bay Lightning. This will provide Connolly with the chance to represent his country in the upcoming 2012 IIHF world junior hockey championship. Connolly has four goals and eight points in 28 games in his rookie season. "It's important for these young guys to play in these big events and in pressure games," Lightning GM Steve Yzerman said. "They make you better. We still want him here, but what's best for Brett Connolly in the long run is best for us all. I'm confident this is the right thing for him."

Left wing Brett Connolly scored at 2:30 of overtime to lift the Tampa Bay Lightning to a 2-1, come-from-behind victory over the visiting Philadelphia Flyers Wednesday night. It was Connolly's third goal of the season. The Lightning's Marc-Andre Bergeron also scored his third goal of the season, on a power-play, to tie the game 1-1 at 7:41 of the second period. Assisting on Bergeron's goal were Tampa stars Steven Stamkos and Vincent Lecavalier. For both players, they were the sixth assists of the season. Also grabbing points on assists for the Lightning were Dominic Moore and Pavel Kubina.

As expected, Brett Connolly played in his 10th NHL game on Thursday, which means that 2011-12 will count as the first season of his entry-level contract. The 10-game mark is usually seen as a big step for a rookie, as many get demoted before reaching that milestone. However, Lightning GM Steve Yzerman already stated that his team has no plans to send down Connolly in the near future. Connolly registered a power-play assist on Thursday, but he also had a minus-two rating in Tampa Bay's 5-3 loss to Nashville.

Tampa Bay GM Steve Yzerman was quick to say that rookie Brett Connolly will have to work hard to keep his spot on the roster. Connolly will play in his 10th game in the NHL on Thursday night in Nashville, but he shouldn't start taking it easy. "I can still send him back if I want, and there are ramifications for his next game and game 11, so I can still send him back if he is not performing, if he is not doing the things we expect," Yzerman said. "And I had a chance to speak briefly with Brett (Tuesday night) and it gets harder now, it doesn't get easier and over the course of a long season it's important to stay focused on playing and everything for him as a young guy is to get rest, train properly and continue to get better. He can't go backwards, I want to win, I want to have a good team and in order to do that we have to get better as the season goes on and get strong."

The Tampa Bay will keep Brett Connolly on their roster beyond the 10-game trial period. He will presumably stay with the team for the remainder of the season after GM Steve Yzerman texted the Tampa Tribune with the message: "FYI, we're keeping Brett". The sixth overall pick in the 2010 draft is slated to play his 10th game of the season on Thursday in Nashville, which will begin his three-year entry-level contract. Connolly has two assists and a plus-5 rating in nine games for the Lightning, but is starting to get more opportunities to bust out offensively. He has played a top-six forward role for the past week and has been receiving first unit power-play time for the last three games. Snatch him up in keeper leagues and keep an eye on his progress for other formats.

Rookie Brett Connolly will skate in his ninth game with Tampa Bay on Tuesday night in Buffalo. The Lightning will soon be faced with the decision to keep him on their roster or return him to junior before the first year of his entry-level contract kicks in. "Every day we pile on the pluses and the minuses concerning his future and concerning our future and there has to be somewhere in there, something that tells us that both can be combined for this year for us to keep him," coach Guy Boucher said. "Up to now he has shown us enough stuff that he can play with the better offensive players on our team." Connolly has two assists, 17 shots and a plus-4 rating in eight games this season.

Tampa rookie Brett Connolly played on the team's second power play and took a couple of shifts on the Bolt's top line in both games to date. Although he has yet to hit the scoresheet, he has offensive talents and should be watched closely.

Brett Connolly has earned a spot on Tampa Bay's roster to start the season. The sixth overall pick in the 2010 draft knows that he will have to prove himself to stay at the NHL level though, as he still has junior eligibility. He will begin his nine-game trial with the Lightning in Friday's regular season opener in Carolina. Connolly scored three goals in preseason and played alongside Steve Stamkos and Martin St. Louis for the final three games.

Tampa Bay rookie Brett Connolly impressed the Lightning coaching staff Saturday evening. He scored a momentum shifting goal and seemingly has a legitimate shot to break camp with the Lightning after putting on muscle and showing up to camp in excellent shape. Keep an eye on Connolly.

Brett Connolly has put on muscle and seems to be in terrific shape. He impressed Tampa's coaching staff during developmental camp this week. "The one thing that I was impressed with, and this is only the first day, is his physical appearance,'' said Jon Cooper, head coach of Tampa Bay's top minor-league affiliate. "Last year at this time, he kind of looked like a frail little boy, but this time he was looking like a man, and that means he has dedicated himself in the weight room this past year and that was pretty impressive. So I think he's taken all the right steps to figure out where he needs to be.'' Connolly has a tremendous amount of offensive upside and if he is now over injuries and physically ready for the NHL, he could make a fantasy impact.