Brady Skjei

Brady Skjei
Skjei with the Carolina Hurricanes in 2022
Born (1994-03-26) March 26, 1994 (age 30)
Lakeville, Minnesota, U.S.
Height 6 ft 3 in (191 cm)
Weight 210 lb (95 kg; 15 st 0 lb)
Position Defense
Shoots Left
NHL team
Former teams		 Nashville Predators
New York Rangers
Carolina Hurricanes
National team  United States
NHL draft 28th overall, 2012
New York Rangers
Playing career 2015–present

Brady Skjei (English: /ˈʃeɪ/ SHAY; born March 26, 1994) is an American ice hockey defenseman for the Nashville Predators of the National Hockey League (NHL). He was selected by the New York Rangers in the first round, 28th overall, in the 2012 NHL Entry Draft.

Prior to joining the University of Minnesota, Skjei played for the USA Hockey National Team Development Program, based out of Michigan, and he represents the United States in international play.

Playing career

Amateur

Skjei played two seasons of high school hockey in Minnesota for the Lakeville North Panthers. In his first season with the team, he was named Rookie of the Year, and in his second he was named the team's Most Valuable Player.[1] For his final two years of high school, Skjei played with the USA Hockey National Team Development Program, based out of Michigan. He spent one season with the Under-17 team, and one with the Under-18 team.[2] After his final season with the National Team Development Program, Skjei was selected by the New York Rangers in the first round of the 2012 NHL Entry Draft.[3] During his freshman season at the University of Minnesota, Skjei played in 36 games, recording one goal and two assists.[1]

Professional

New York Rangers

Skjei at a fan meetup in 2019

Skjei signed a contract with the New York Rangers on April 1, 2015. He reported to the Hartford Wolf Pack of the AHL on an amateur tryout to finish the 2014–15 season.[4] Skjei scored his first professional goal (and point) in a Calder Cup playoff game against the Providence Bruins on April 26, 2015.[5]

He was promoted to the Rangers from Hartford on December 15, 2015 after recording 2 goals and 9 assists in 27 games for the Wolf Pack to start the 2015–16 season.[6] Injuries to various New York Rangers' defenseman increased Skjei's ice time, but he failed to score any points in the 7 regular season games he played for the team. In the playoffs, Skjei recorded two assists as the Rangers were eliminated in the first round in 5 games by the Pittsburgh Penguins. On December 11, 2016 Skjei scored his first NHL goal against the New Jersey Devils. On April 16, 2017 he scored his first career playoff goal against the Montreal Canadiens. On April 29, 2017, Skjei had his first multiple-goal game, when he scored two goals against the Ottawa Senators in the 2017 Stanley Cup playoffs. However, he and teammate Brendan Smith were benched during the final 2 minutes of regulation in place of Nick Holden and Marc Staal as the Rangers would go on to lose the game in overtime despite leading 5-3.[7] On June 21, 2017, Skjei was named to the NHL's 2017 All-Rookie team.

Returning for his sophomore 2017–18 season, the Rangers struggled as a team, announcing a team rebuild in February. Skjei would see his points total dip to 25, but also a significant increase in ice time following the trade of team captain Ryan McDonagh. After his second season, Skjei signed a six-year deal with the Rangers on July 28, 2018.[8]

Carolina Hurricanes

On February 24, 2020, Skjei was traded to the Carolina Hurricanes in exchange for a 2020 first-round pick.[9]

Nashville Predators

Following five seasons with the Hurricanes, having established himself as a top-pairing two-way defenseman, Skjei left Carolina as a free agent and was signed to a seven-year, $49 million contract with the Nashville Predators on July 1, 2024.[10]

International play

Skjei represents the United States in international play. His first taste of international hockey was at the 2011 World U-17 Hockey Challenge, where he recorded one goal and three assists in 6 games, while helping the USA to a second-place finish.[2] In 2012, Skjei played in several tournaments with the American Under-18 team, including the 2012 IIHF World U18 Championships, capturing a gold medal in the first International Ice Hockey Federation sanctioned tournament he played in. He attended the American evaluation camp in preparation for the 2013 World Junior Championship, but was not selected for the final team.[2] Skjei was selected to the American team for the 2014 World Junior Tournament.[2]

Personal life

Skjei is of Norwegian descent.[11] While attending Lakeville North High School in Minnesota, Skjei played quarterback on the varsity football team and was also a member of the golf team.[2] His grandfather played football at the University of Minnesota.[1]

In early August 2021, Skjei married his longtime girlfriend, Gracia Bonesho.[12]

Skjei was portrayed by Alex Moffat in the November 18, 2017, episode of Saturday Night Live, hosted by Chance the Rapper.[13] Skjei was reported to have enjoyed the sketch, which poked fun at the pronunciation of his surname.[14]

Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs

Regular season Playoffs
Season Team League GP G A Pts PIM GP G A Pts PIM
2008–09 Lakeville North High School HS-MN 25 2 12 14 6 — — — — —
2009–10 Lakeville North High School HS-MN 25 7 16 23 24 5 4 2 6 6
2010–11 U.S. NTDP Juniors USHL 36 1 5 6 14 2 0 0 0 0
2010–11 U.S. NTDP U17 USDP 55 5 14 19 24 — — — — —
2011–12 U.S. NTDP Juniors USHL 24 3 9 12 12 — — — — —
2011–12 U.S. NTDP U18 USDP 60 4 19 23 36 — — — — —
2012–13 University of Minnesota WCHA 36 1 2 3 14 — — — — —
2013–14 University of Minnesota B1G 40 6 8 14 30 — — — — —
2014–15 University of Minnesota B1G 33 1 9 10 32 — — — — —
2014–15 Hartford Wolf Pack AHL 8 0 0 0 0 15 1 2 3 16
2015–16 Hartford Wolf Pack AHL 68 4 24 28 36 — — — — —
2015–16 New York Rangers NHL 7 0 0 0 4 5 0 2 2 2
2016–17 New York Rangers NHL 80 5 34 39 42 12 4 1 5 10
2017–18 New York Rangers NHL 82 4 21 25 39 — — — — —
2018–19 New York Rangers NHL 78 8 17 25 44 — — — — —
2019–20 New York Rangers NHL 60 8 15 23 41 — — — — —
2019–20 Carolina Hurricanes NHL 7 0 1 1 4 8 0 2 2 4
2020–21 Carolina Hurricanes NHL 52 3 7 10 30 11 0 0 0 8
2021–22 Carolina Hurricanes NHL 82 9 30 39 48 14 1 2 3 8
2022–23 Carolina Hurricanes NHL 81 18 20 38 40 15 1 3 4 12
2023–24 Carolina Hurricanes NHL 80 13 34 47 40 11 1 8 9 6
NHL totals 609 68 179 247 332 76 7 18 25 50

International

Year Team Event Result GP G A Pts PIM
2011 United States U17 2nd place, silver medalist(s) 5 1 2 3 0
2012 United States U18 1st place, gold medalist(s) 6 0 1 1 4
2014 United States WJC 5th 5 0 1 1 0
2016 United States WC 4th 10 1 0 1 2
2017 United States WC 5th 3 0 1 1 0
2019 United States WC 7th 8 2 0 2 2
Junior totals 16 1 4 5 4
Senior totals 21 3 1 4 4

References

  1. ^ a b c "Brady Skjei Bio". University of Minnesota. Archived from the original on December 31, 2013. Retrieved December 29, 2013.
  2. ^ a b c d e "Brady Skjei". USA Hockey. Archived from the original on December 31, 2013. Retrieved December 29, 2013.
  3. ^ Leonard, Pat (June 23, 2012). "NY Rangers take defenseman Brady Skjei with 28th overall pick in NHL draft". New York Daily News. Archived from the original on December 31, 2013. Retrieved December 29, 2013.
  4. ^ Leonard, Pat (April 2, 2015). "Rangers' 2012 first-round pick Brady Skjei signs entry-level contract to begin 2015-16; joins Hartford Wolf Pack on ATO". New York Daily News. Archived from the original on April 5, 2015. Retrieved April 5, 2015.
  5. ^ "Bruins Outlast Pack on OT Marathon". Hartford Wolf Pack. April 26, 2015. Archived from the original on September 7, 2015. Retrieved April 29, 2015.
  6. ^ "Rangers Recall Brady Skjei From Hartford". New York Rangers. December 15, 2015. Archived from the original on December 22, 2015. Retrieved December 15, 2015.
  7. ^ Dianora, Tom (May 1, 2017). "Vigneault's Questionable Decisions Have Rangers in Hole". The Hockey Writers.
  8. ^ "Skjei agrees to six-year contract with Rangers". NHL.com. July 28, 2018. Archived from the original on July 28, 2018. Retrieved July 28, 2018.
  9. ^ "Canes Acquire Brady Skjei From Rangers". Carolina Hurricanes. Archived from the original on February 25, 2020. Retrieved February 24, 2020.
  10. ^ "Predators agree to terms with Brady Skjei". Nashville Predators. July 1, 2024. Retrieved July 1, 2024.
  11. ^ American, The Norwegian (October 30, 2017). "Spotlight on Brady Skjei". The Norwegian American.
  12. ^ "Carolina Hurricanes Twitter Status". Archived from the original on August 9, 2021.
  13. ^ "Brady Skjei enjoyed SNL skit featuring his jersey". NY Daily News. Archived from the original on November 20, 2017. Retrieved November 21, 2017.
  14. ^ "Brady Skjei: 'Pretty cool' my jersey showed up on 'Saturday Night Live'". New York Post. November 20, 2017. Archived from the original on November 25, 2017. Retrieved November 21, 2017.
Awards and achievements
Preceded by New York Rangers first round draft pick
2012 		Succeeded by