It might stand in stark contrast to the bombastic way in which he carries himself out on the ice, but Connor Clifton has been rather laid-back over the last couple of days — even with his first foray into the NHL postseason right around the corner.
At one point during Wednesday’s morning skate over at Warrior Ice Arena, Clifton said that B’s captain Zdeno Chara even had to snap the rest of the club out of a “little mellow” mood with some well-expressed sentiments.
With just 19 games of NHL action under his belt, one wouldn’t fault Clifton at all if the 23-year-old defensemen acknowledged any lingering nerves that come on the eve of playoff action.
But the Matawan, New Jersey native isn’t getting too caught up in the raised stakes or the hostile environments that await up north.
Once an intriguing, but slept-on prospect down in Providence, Clifton has already shattered most of the expectations placed upon him in 2018-19. So what makes the next couple of games any different?
“I think your first game, you’re really nervous,” Clifton said. “You’ve got a lot going on mentally, then you go out and see what it’s like. Then in Game 2, you know what to expect and you can relax a little bit. Obviously, you play 19 games — you’re feeling good. I know what I’ve got to do to play, so that’s what I’m going to try to do tomorrow night.
“You don’t want to think too much. Obviously I play my best hockey when I’m not thinking. I’m just playing and making reads out there.”
While Clifton is not guaranteed to start in Game 1 against Toronto on Thursday, the Quinnipiac product earned the first look next to Matt Grzelcyk on Boston’s third D pairing during Wednesday’s practice, while Steven Kampfer occasionally slotting in.
With Kevan Miller (lower-body) and John Moore (upper-body) still sidelined for the start of the postseason, one of Clifton or Kampfer will get the call on Thursday. So far, it looks as though the former has the inside edge.
“We’ll announce our whole lineup tomorrow,” Bruce Cassidy said. “But I don’t think there will be a lot of surprises.”
While Kampfer has slotted in for 35 games this season and has performed admirably as a depth option, it’s hard to overlook what Clifton has provided this blue line — even with a smaller sample size.
Even though Clifton has only notched one assist during his time up with Boston this season, Cassidy has leaned on the young defensemen quite a bit — logging over 17 minutes of ice time in 11 of his 19 appearances this season. In 35 games, Kampfer has only surpassed the 17-minute mark on three occasions.
Among Bruins defensemen who have logged at least 200 minutes of 5v5 TOI this season, Kampfer ranks 10th overall with 2.65 goals allowed per 60 minutes of play. Clifton? A microscopic 0.95 GA/60 — good for first among D-men and second overall on the club.
For as much as Clifton has earned praised for his ability to activate off the blue line when necessary and drop an opposing skater with a hard, heavy check, the young defenseman has rarely been a liability in his own end — with his quick thinking and ability to read plays allowing him to get the puck out of danger in short order.
“Competitive, physical. He’s been a good defender for us,” Cassidy said. “Reliable guy, hasn't been scored on much. He moves the puck well when he’s engaged in the game and moves his feet.”
Clifton’s ability to move the puck up to Boston’s skilled forwards — while also eliminating time and space for the opposition with his heavy hits — makes him a strong compliment on a pairing with Grzelcyk.
While they’ve only logged about 42 minutes of 5v5 TOI together, both Grzelcyk and Clifton have been possession monsters for Boston — with the Bruins holding a commanding 45-24 edge in shot attempts and a 22-9 advantage in scoring chances generated when both D-men are out on the ice together.
When matching up against a quick-strike, high-powered offense like Toronto, rolling out a pairing with shifty, puck-moving defenseman can do wonders when it comes to limiting 0dd-man chances breaking into Boston’s zone.
“He’s so elusive and he’s such a good skater,” Clifton said of Grzelcyk. “I think it’s great for breakouts especially. I know he’s going to get back on pucks fast and I’m going to try to do the same exact thing. Hopefully, we’re going to talk a lot, get out of our zone and play in the O zone."
His instincts with the puck might be a bit underrated off of the basic eye test, but Clifton’s physicality is hard to miss. So far in his NHL career, Clifton has failed to find an opposing skater that he hasn’t wanted to truck out on open ice.
Cliffy Hockey. pic.twitter.com/Se5GR3wJel
— Conor Ryan (@ConorRyan_93) March 26, 2019
Mathieu Joseph is introduced to Cliffy Hockey. pic.twitter.com/c8JHywSQUG
— Conor Ryan (@ConorRyan_93) April 6, 2019