Grant Besse

Grant Besse (born July 14, 1994) is an American professional ice hockey forward.[1] He is currently an unrestricted free agent who last played for Tölzer Löwen in the DEL2. Besse was selected in the 2013 NHL Entry Draft[2] by the Anaheim Ducks in the 5th round (147th overall).

Grant Besse
Born (1994-07-14) July 14, 1994
Plymouth, Minnesota, U.S.
Height 5 ft 10 in (178 cm)
Weight 187 lb (85 kg; 13 st 5 lb)
Position Forward
Shoots Left
team
Former teams		 Free Agent
Cleveland Monsters
Hershey Bears
Krefeld Pinguine
IF Björklöven
Vienna Capitals
NHL Draft 147th overall, 2013
Anaheim Ducks
Playing career 2017–present

Besse was named the 2013 Minnesota Mr. Hockey.[3]

Playing career

Amateur

Playing for the Red Knights of Benilde-St. Margaret's in Minnesota, in 2012 he had 51 goals, bringing his career totals to 115 goals in 85 games.[4] On March 11, 2012, Besse set a state tournament record[5] when he scored five goals, including three short-handed, to power the Benilde-St. Margaret's to a 5-1 win to capture the Minnesota State boys hockey championship.[6] As a result of the five goals, he scored 163 goals in his high school career, finishing fifth in Minnesota history, according to CBS Minnesota.[7]

Besse was named the 2013 Minnesota Mr. Hockey[3][8][9] as the top senior player from the state of Minnesota.[10] It was announced in March 2013 that he had also been named Associated Press Player of the Year for Minnesota high school hockey, an award voted on by a state panel of broadcasters and sports writers.[7]

Besse committed to attend the University of Wisconsin–Madison[11] to play NCAA college hockey with the Wisconsin Badgers men's ice hockey team.[12]

Besse scored in his first two career games with the Badgers. He had 14 points in his freshman season, which led all freshman on the team. In his sophomore season he led the entire team in points with 22. His junior season he was named assistant captain and lead the team again in points, but this time with 33.[13][14]

Following the conclusion of his senior year in the 2016–17 season, Besse completed his four-year collegiate career, posting 37 goals and 97 points in 138 games.

Professional

With the Anaheim Ducks opting not to offer Besse a contract, he signed as a free agent to his first professional contract with the Norfolk Admirals of the ECHL on October 3, 2017.[15] In the 2017–18 season, Besse completed the campaign as the top scoring rookie in the ECHL, compiling 30 goals and 62 points in 62 games with the Admirals. He led the team in goals and game-winning goals (4), and finished second on the club in assists and points. He was selected to play in the 2018 CCM/ECHL All-Star Classic, and earned a spot on the ECHL All-Rookie Team for his play. Besse, earned a professional tryout with the AHL's Cleveland Monsters at the tail end of the season, finishing with seven points in 11 games. He scored his first AHL goal on March 28, 2018, against the Stockton Heat, and registered three assists against the San Antonio Rampage on April 8.

As a free agent over the summer, Besse secured a one-year AHL contract with the Hershey Bears on August 23, 2018.[16] He began the 2018–19 season familiarly in the ECHL with affiliate, the South Carolina Stingrays. He matched his rookie season totals with the Stingrays, posting 30 goals and 62 points in 60 games. He played in just 7 games with the Hershey Bears, posting 2 goals in his various call-ups.

On April 25, 2019, Besse opted to pursue a European career, signing an initial one-year contract with German club, Krefeld Pinguine of the Deutsche Eishockey Liga (DEL).[17] In the following 2019-20 season, Besse co-led the team with 20 goals through 48 regular season games, before the playoffs were cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Leaving Krefeld after one season, Besse signed as a free agent with Swedish second division club, IF Björklöven of the HockeyAllsvenskan (Allsv) on December 3, 2020.[18] Besse was unable to make an impact with IF Björklöven, registering 2 assists in only 8 games before opting to mutually terminate his contract on February 9, 2021.[19]

Career statistics
Regular season Playoffs
Season Team League GP G A Pts PIM GP G A Pts PIM
2009–10 Benilde-St. Margaret's School USHS 27 30 20 50 12 2 3 1 4 0
2010–11 Benilde-St. Margaret's School USHS 27 33 20 53 18 2 4 1 5 2
2011–12 Benilde-St. Margaret's School USHS 31 52 41 93 33 6 12 6 18 2
2012–13 Benilde-St. Margaret's School USHS 28 48 28 76 16 3 4 3 7 2
2012–13 Omaha Lancers USHL 7 4 0 4 0 — — — — —
2013–14 University of Wisconsin B1G 36 8 6 14 12 — — — — —
2014–15 University of Wisconsin B1G 32 11 11 22 6 — — — — —
2015–16 University of Wisconsin B1G 35 11 22 33 10 — — — — —
2016–17 University of Wisconsin B1G 35 9 19 28 8 — — — — —
2017–18 Norfolk Admirals ECHL 62 30 32 62 26 — — — — —
2017–18 Cleveland Monsters AHL 11 1 6 7 0 — — — — —
2018–19 South Carolina Stingrays ECHL 60 30 32 62 33 5 2 0 2 0
2018–19 Hershey Bears AHL 7 2 0 2 2 — — — — —
2019–20 Krefeld Pinguine DEL 48 20 16 36 8 — — — — —
2020–21 IF Björklöven Allsv 8 0 2 2 0 — — — — —
2020–21 Vienna Capitals ICEHL 6 1 3 4 0 10 1 5 6 0
2021–22 Tölzer Löwen DEL2 17 5 9 14 4 — — — — —
AHL totals 18 3 6 9 2 — — — — —

Awards and honors
Award Year
USHS
Minnesota Mr. Hockey 2013 [20]
Boys Hockey AP Player Of Year 2013 [7]
ECHL
All-Rookie Team 2017–18 [21]

References
  1. Mason, Tyler (January 17, 2014). "Badgers, Besse get last laugh against Gophers". Fox Sports North - Wisconsin. Retrieved August 5, 2016.
  2. Baggot, Andy (December 5, 2014). "Badgers men's hockey: Grant Besse growing into leadership role". Madison.com. Retrieved August 5, 2016.
  3. "Grant Besse named 2013 Mr Hockey". USA Today High School Sports. March 11, 2013. Retrieved August 5, 2016.
  4. Bruce, Brothers (November 25, 2012). "Prep boys hockey: Benilde's Grant Besse 'special on and off the ice'". Twincities.com. Pioneer Press. Retrieved August 5, 2016.
  5. Grant Besse joins Minnesota hockey legends – MaxWire National Blog – MaxPreps
  6. Benilde-St. Margaret's Grant Besse's five goals lift hockey team from tragedy to the ultimate triumph - TwinCities.com
  7. "BSM's Grant Besse Is Boys Hockey AP Player Of Year". cbslocal.com. CBS Minnesota. March 12, 2013. Retrieved August 5, 2016.
  8. "Besse wins Minnesota's Mr. Hockey Award".
  9. "Wisconsin Recruit Grant Besse Claims Minnesota Mr. Hockey Award". Bucky's 5th Quarter. March 10, 2013. Retrieved March 10, 2013.
  10. Mr. Hockey Award goes to Grant Besse of Benilde-St. Margaret's - TwinCities.com
  11. Badgers men’s hockey: UW recruit Grant Besse named Mr. Hockey in Minnesota : Sports
  12. Mr. Hockey Finalists Announced: Wisconsin Recruit Grant Besse the Favorite - Bucky's 5th Quarter
  13. "Men's Hockey - Wisconsin Athletics". www.uwbadgers.com. Retrieved April 10, 2016.
  14. Ehrlich, Bobby (February 28, 2016). "Badgers disappoint in weekend series in Columbus". The Daily Cardinal. Retrieved August 5, 2016.
  15. "Admirals ink Besse, Melancon". Norfolk Admirals. October 3, 2017. Retrieved October 3, 2017.
  16. "Bears sign forward Grant Besse to an AHL contract". Hershey Bears. August 23, 2018. Retrieved August 23, 2018.
  17. "Pinguine sign Grant Besse" (in German). Krefeld Pinguine. April 25, 2019. Retrieved April 25, 2019.
  18. "Welcome Grant Besse" (in Swedish). IF Björklöven. December 3, 2020. Retrieved December 3, 2020.
  19. "Besse leaves Björklöven" (in Swedish). IF Björklöven. February 9, 2021. Retrieved February 9, 2021.
  20. Besse named Mr. Hockey | Minnesota Hockey Hub | MN Boys High School Hockey
  21. "ECHL Announces 2017-18 All-Rookie Team". ECHL. April 4, 2018. Archived from the original on April 6, 2018. Retrieved April 5, 2018.
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