Andrew Nielsen (ice hockey)

Andrew Jeffrey Nielsen (born November 13, 1996) is a Canadian professional ice hockey defenceman who is currently playing for the Trois-Rivières Lions in the ECHL. Nielsen was selected by the Toronto Maple Leafs in the third round, 65th overall, in the 2015 NHL Entry Draft.

For persons of a similar name, see Andrew Nielsen (disambiguation).

Andrew Nielsen
Nielsen with the Toronto Marlies in 2018
Born (1996-11-13) November 13, 1996
Red Deer, Alberta, Canada
Height 6 ft 3 in (191 cm)
Weight 220 lb (100 kg; 15 st 10 lb)
Position Defence
Shoots Left
ECHL team
Former teams		 Trois-Rivières Lions
Toronto Marlies
Stockton Heat
Black Wings 1992
Hershey Bears
Tucson Roadrunners
San Diego Gulls
WBS Penguins
Cleveland Monsters
NHL Draft 65th overall, 2015
Toronto Maple Leafs
Playing career 2016–present

Playing career

Nielsen started playing with the Lethbridge Hurricanes of the Western Hockey League (WHL) near the end of the 2013–14 season. On November 24, 2015, Nielsen was signed to a three-year entry-level contract with the Toronto Maple Leafs.[1]

During the 2018–19 season, on November 27, 2018, Nielsen was traded by the Maple Leafs to the Calgary Flames in exchange for Morgan Klimchuk.[2]

After five season and 226 regular season games in the AHL with the Toronto Marlies and Stockton Heat, Nielsen as an impending restricted free agent from the Calgary Flames, embarked on his first professional venture abroad in agreeing to a one-year deal with Austrian club, Black Wings 1992 of the ICE Hockey League, on August 27, 2020.[3] Nielsen made 15 appearances for the Black Wings, posting 1 goal and 3 points before opting to return to North America.

Nielsen returned to the AHL, initially joining the Tucson Roadrunners training camp for the pandemic delayed 2020–21 season. Remaining on the roster to open the season, Nielsen was later released without featuring for the Roadrunners. On March 5, 2021, Nielsen was signed to a PTO with the Hershey Bears, affiliate to the Washington Capitals.[4] He featured in 6 games with the Bears going scoreless to end the season.

As a free agent over the summer, Nielsen opted to continue in the AHL as a free agent, securing a one-year contract with the Colorado Eagles on September 16, 2021.[5] After attending the Eagles training camp, Nielsen was assigned to ECHL affiliate, the Utah Grizzlies, to begin the 2021–22 season.[6] Nielsen established himself on the top pairing with the Grizzlies, finding an offensive touch in recording 8 goals and 27 points through 36 games. Unable to feature in a game with the Eagles, Nielsen was released from his AHL contract with Colorado and was later signed to a professional try-out deal with the Ontario Reign on February 12, 2022.[7] Nielsen was later released from Ontario's roster without featuring for the club and joined his third AHL club, the Tucson Roadrunners on a PTO, on February 23, 2022.[8] He continued with the Roadrunners for the remainder of the season, adding 6 points through 16 games.

On October 9, 2022, Nielsen as a free agent opted to return with the Utah Grizzlies of the ECHL, signing a one-year contract for the 2022–23 season.[9] While leading the Grizzlies in scoring with 18 points through 15 games, Nielsen was signed to a PTO with the San Diego Gulls on November 29, 2022.[10] He made his Gulls debut against the Colorado Eagles on November 30, 2022, before he was released from his PTO and returned to the Grizzlies on December 2, 2022. Nielsen later made professional tryout appearances with the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins and Cleveland Monsters, with his ECHL rights traded during his loan to the AHL, from the Grizzlies to the Cincinnati Cyclones on March 17, 2023.[11] He later joined the Cyclones in the playoffs, contributing with 6 points through 11 appearances.

As a free agent Nielsen continued his minor league career in the ECHL, agreeing to a contract with Trois-Rivières Lions, an affiliate within the Montreal Canadiens organization on July 13, 2023.[12]

Career statistics
Regular season Playoffs
Season Team League GP G A Pts PIM GP G A Pts PIM
2013–14 Red Deer Chiefs AMHL 353151834 —————
2013–14 Lethbridge Hurricanes WHL 10000 —————
2014–15 Lethbridge Hurricanes WHL 5971724101 —————
2015–16 Lethbridge Hurricanes WHL 71185270122 51236
2015–16 Toronto Marlies AHL 50220 —————
2016–17 Toronto Marlies AHL 7414253982 1113424
2017–18 Toronto Marlies AHL 6562026143 80112
2018–19 Toronto Marlies AHL 803312 —————
2018–19 Stockton Heat AHL 2904456 —————
2019–20 Stockton Heat AHL 4505554 —————
2020–21 Black Wings 1992 ICEHL 1512339 —————
2020–21 Hershey Bears AHL 600010 —————
2021–22 Utah Grizzlies ECHL 3681927114 —————
2021–22 Tucson Roadrunners AHL 1615614 —————
2022–23 Utah Grizzlies ECHL 4793241166 —————
2022–23 San Diego Gulls AHL 10002 —————
2022–23 Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins AHL 50005 —————
2022–23 Cleveland Monsters AHL 40000 —————
2022–23 Cincinnati Cyclones ECHL ————— 1124658
AHL totals 258216485378 1914526

Awards and honours
Honours Year
WHL
First All-Star Team (East) 2015–16 [13]
AHL
Calder Cup (Toronto Marlies) 2018 [14]

References
  1. "Maple Leafs sign Nielsen and Timashov". Toronto Maple Leafs. November 24, 2015. Retrieved November 24, 2015.
  2. "FLAMES ACQUIRE NIELSEN FROM TORONTO". NHL.com. November 27, 2018. Retrieved November 28, 2018.
  3. "23 year-old defenseman for the Wings" (in German). EHC Black Wings Linz. August 27, 2020. Retrieved August 27, 2020.
  4. "Bears sign defender Andrew Nielsen to PTO". Hershey Bears. March 5, 2021. Retrieved March 6, 2021.
  5. "Eagles sign trio to AHL two-way contracts". Colorado Eagles. September 16, 2021. Retrieved September 16, 2021.
  6. "Eagles send 11 players to ECHL's Utah Grizzlies". Colorado Eagles. October 11, 2021. Retrieved October 11, 2021.
  7. "Reign sign defenseman Nielsen to PTO". Twitter. February 12, 2022. Retrieved February 12, 2022.
  8. "Game 43: Ontario at Tucson". Tucson Roadrunners. February 23, 2022. Retrieved February 23, 2022.
  9. Utah Grizzlies (October 9, 2022). "Grizzlies announce player signing". Twitter. Retrieved October 9, 2022.
  10. "San Diego Gulls sign Andrew Nielsen to PTO". San Diego Gulls. November 29, 2022. Retrieved November 29, 2022.
  11. Cincinnati Cyclones (March 17, 2023). "Cyclones acquire Nielsen from Grizzlies". Twitter. Retrieved March 17, 2023.
  12. Trois-Rivières Lions (July 13, 2023). "Welcome to the team, Andrew Nielsen" (in French). Twitter. Retrieved July 13, 2023.
  13. "WHL Announces 2015–16 All-Star Teams". WHL. March 23, 2016. Retrieved March 23, 2016.
  14. "Marlies bring a hockey championship to Toronto, win Calder Cup". Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. June 15, 2018. Retrieved June 15, 2018.
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