GRIT & GF
Connor Clifton

Boston Bruins, Defence

Connor Clifton

  • Heavy
  • Steady
Points, 2026–27
1
0 G, 1 A in 6 GP
Individual xG
0.3
0 goals from it
Ice time per game
20:38
6 shots on goal
xGF% at 5v5
51.7
share of chances while he's on

Connor Clifton has 0 goals and 1 assist (1 point) in 6 games for the Boston Bruins in 2026–27, with 6 shots on goal and 20:38 of ice time a game. His Grit & GF rating for 2026–27 is 46.2 out of 100, provisional until he has 15 to 20 games.

6 games in. The methodology requires 15 to 20 games to be accurate, so this season's rating still leans on the league average for his position and will move.

GRIT & GF

46.2050100
Rated above 83% of defencemen
Goals above average
−0.2
Wins
−0.04
Physicality80thGF29thIntimidation76thChemistry51thClutch4th

Where the rating comes from

Weight × score in standard deviations. They sum to −0.11, which the normal curve turns into the rating.

Your weights

Under these weights he ranks above 82.5% of 223 rated players

The default weights are our call. Set your own; they get rescaled to add up to 100%.

Physicality

+0.55 SD · 80th percentile · weight 38% · −0.2 goals

What he does with his body: hits, blocks and takeaways (scaled toward per-game totals by his ice time), penalties drawn, and penalties taken against him.

  • Hitsper 60All situations, pulled toward average when the sample is small.4.586th pct
  • Blocked shotsper 60All situations.3.623th pct
  • Takeawaysper 60As recorded by the arena scorer, which varies by building.1.1284th pct
  • Penalties drawnper 60How often he gets under someone's skin enough to put his team on the power play.0.2919th pct
  • Penalties takenper 60Counts against him, at half the weight of penalties drawn.0.8935th pct
  • Ice time× position averagePer-game ice time against his position's average. Physical rates are scaled by this to the power 0.75.1.0067th pct

Percentiles are against 223 rated defencemen in 2026-27, on 108 minutes of his 5-on-5 time. Hits, blocks and takeaways count toward the rating and are worth zero goals until a study shows otherwise. Model grit-0.5.

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Game notes

Written the morning after from the night's stats, for games where he did something worth a sentence.

  1. vs WSH

    Saturday, April 11

    Ice time

    Connor Clifton played 24:10, about 8 minutes more than his average this season. He has 6 points in 49 games this season. The Penguins fell 6-3 to the Capitals.

  2. vs WPG

    Saturday, March 21

    Physical

    Connor Clifton finished 7 checks. He has 5 points in 38 games this season. He played 16:30 and had one shot on goal. The Penguins beat the Jets 5-4 in a shootout.

  3. vs NJD

    Thursday, February 26

    Physical

    Connor Clifton finished 7 checks. His goal stood up as the winner. He has 2 goals this season. He played 18:15 and had two shots on goal. It finished 4-1 for the Penguins.

  4. vs CBJ

    Saturday, January 17

    Drought over

    Connor Clifton scored for the first time in 20 games. That was his first goal of the season. The Penguins lost 4-3 to the Blue Jackets in a shootout.

  5. at ANA

    Tuesday, October 14

    Physical

    Connor Clifton threw 8 hits, the most in the league that night. It was his first game of the season. The Penguins lost 4-3 to the Ducks.

Player card

Percentile among 194 defencemen with enough games this season. 50 is the median.

Scoring

  • Ice time per game20:38
    63
  • Points per 600.48
    27
  • Goals per 600.00
    30
  • Individual xG per 600.14
    37
  • Shots per 602.9
    43

5-on-5 play

  • xG for per 60, on ice2.45
    47
  • xG against per 60, on ice2.29
    65
  • xGF%51.7%
    56

Physical

  • Hits per 606.3
    88
  • Blocks per 602.9
    21
  • Penalty minutes per 601.9
    36

Skating and shooting

NHL EDGE puck and player tracking, 2026–27. Percentiles are the league's, against all skaters.

Skating

  • Top speed20.4 mph
    24
  • Bursts over 20 mph6
    71
  • Distance skated18 mi
    42

Shooting

  • Hardest shot80.3 mph
    27
  • Shots on goal6
    48
  • Shooting %0.0%
    43

Zone time

  • Offensive zone time40.7%
    40
  • Offensive zone time, even strength41.9%
    49

Who he plays with

His most-used defence partners at 5-on-5 this season, with what happened while they were out together.

PartnerGamesTOIShot attemptsxGGoalsxG share
Nikita Zadorov694:0588–754.2–3.74–453%
Mason Lohrei65:004–30.1–0.10–032%
Hampus Lindholm63:064–40.2–0.20–038%
Will Borgen62:140–00.0–0.00–0–

Where he shoots from

His unblocked shots this season, attacking right. 0 goals from 10 attempts.

GoalShot or miss

Last 20 games

Columns are his individual expected goals, the quality of his own chances. Dots are goals he scored.

ixGGoal
0.000.100.20
03-2410-10

By season

SeasonGPGAPSOGixGTOI/GPHitsBlkxGF% 5v5
2026–27601160.320:3813651.7
2025–2650246351.916:471808655.1
2024–257311516633.416:0320811745.9
2023–247941418774.916:3320411846.9

Last 20 games

DateTOIGASOGixGHitsBlkPIM
2026-10-1022:480010.06412
2026-10-0821:370000.00310
2026-10-0519:170010.03110
2026-10-0318:060100.00012
2026-10-0218:350020.15200
2026-09-2923:230020.05320
2026-04-229:330010.01100
2026-04-2011:340000.03410
2026-04-1814:220000.19310
2026-04-1418:540010.04110
2026-04-1124:100010.00440
2026-04-0916:540010.02010
2026-04-0517:310000.00344
2026-04-0417:580000.13215
2026-04-0216:530020.07232
2026-03-3117:100100.00210
2026-03-3018:530010.16310
2026-03-2816:420000.00110
2026-03-2616:120030.07410
2026-03-2416:360020.05510