Brian M. Eklund (born May 24, 1980) is an American former professional

ice hockey Ice hockey (or simply hockey) is a team sport played on ice skates, usually on an ice skating rink with lines and markings specific to the sport. It belongs to a family of sports called hockey. In ice hockey, two opposing teams use ice ...

goaltender In ice hockey, the goaltender (commonly referred to as the goalie) is the player responsible for preventing the hockey puck from entering their team's net, thus preventing the opposing team from scoring. The goaltender mostly plays in or near ...

who played in one

National Hockey League The National Hockey League (NHL; french: Ligue nationale de hockey—LNH, ) is a professional ice hockey sports league, league in North America comprising 32 teams—25 in the United States and 7 in Canada. It is considered to be the top ranke ...

(NHL) game with the

Tampa Bay Lightning The Tampa Bay Lightning (colloquially known as the Bolts) are a professional ice hockey team based in Tampa, Florida. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Atlantic Division in the Eastern Conference. They play ...

during the 2005–06 season. He currently runs his own goalie school, Massachusetts Crease Goaltending School,MassCrease Staff
/ref> as well as being an assistant and goalie coach for the

Brown Bears men's ice hockey The Brown Bears men's ice hockey team is a National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I college ice hockey program that represents Brown University. The Bears are a member of ECAC Hockey. They play at the Meehan Auditorium in Pr ...

team.

Playing career

As a youth, Eklund played in the 1994

Quebec International Pee-Wee Hockey Tournament The Quebec International Pee-Wee Hockey Tournament (french: Tournoi international de hockey pee-wee de Québec) is an annual minor ice hockey event in Quebec City. The tournament was founded in 1960 to coincide with the Quebec Winter Carnival ...

with a

minor ice hockey Minor hockey is an umbrella term for amateur ice hockey which is played below the junior age level. Players are classified by age, with each age group playing in its own league. The rules, especially as it relates to body contact, vary from ...

team from Hobomock in

Pembroke, Massachusetts Pembroke is a small historic town in Plymouth County, Massachusetts, United States. Pembroke is a South Shore suburb of the Boston metropolitan area. The town is located about halfway between Boston and Cape Cod. The town is considered rural wi ...

. After four seasons at

Brown University Brown University is a private research university in Providence, Rhode Island. Brown is the seventh-oldest institution of higher education in the United States, founded in 1764 as the College in the English Colony of Rhode Island and Providenc ...

, Eklund signed a two-year rookie contract with the

. He was then assigned by the Lightning to the

Pensacola Ice Pilots The Pensacola Ice Pilots were a professional ice hockey team located in Pensacola, Florida. The team was previously affiliated with the Tampa Bay Lightning, Toronto Maple Leafs, New York Islanders (2006–07), and the Chicago Blackhawks. They h ...

of the

ECHL The ECHL (formerly the East Coast Hockey League) is a mid-level professional ice hockey league based in Shrewsbury, New Jersey, with teams scattered across the United States and Canada. It is a tier below the American Hockey League (AHL). The ...

. In his first season with the Ice Pilots (2002–03), he was the back up to Maxime Gingras. He played in 19 games and posted a 10–6–0 record with a 3.66 goals-against average and a .896 save percentage. When the Ice Pilots concluded their season after being eliminated in the playoffs, he was called up to the

Springfield Falcons The Springfield Falcons were a former ice hockey team in the American Hockey League (AHL) and played in Springfield, Massachusetts, at the MassMutual Center. In 2016, the Falcons' franchise was purchased by the National Hockey League (NHL)'s Ariz ...

of the AHL. He appeared in one game allowing only one goal and getting the win. In the 2003–04 campaign, Gingras did not return to Pensacola leaving the #1 goalie slot open for contest. Eklund battled fellow Lightning prospect Evgeny Konstantinov for the #1 slot. He easily won the job. He appeared in all but 10 of the Ice Pilots' 72 regular-season games. This feat ranks second overall in the ECHL for games played in a season.PDF showing ECHL Individual Regular Season Records
As the top goalie, he shone even though the team lacked defense at times. He finished the season with a 38–17–7 record with a 3.01 GAA and a .921 SV%. In 2004–05, Eklund spent the whole season with the Falcons, after signing a new one-year deal with the Lightning. He played 43 games going 14–23–0 with a 3.01 GAA and a .911 SV%. The team struggled that year notching only 24 wins in 80 games for a record of 24–53–3. Despite the teams struggles Brian was named team MVP. In 2005–06, Eklund was the backup goalie behind both

Jonathan Boutin Jonathan Boutin (born March 28, 1985) is a Canadian-German professional ice hockey goaltender. He is currently playing for German DEL2 club, EC Bad Nauheim. He was originally drafted in the third round, 96th overall, by the Tampa Bay Lightning ...

and Gerald Coleman at different times of the season. He also played two games for the

Johnstown Chiefs The Johnstown Chiefs were a minor league ice hockey team located in Johnstown, Pennsylvania, that played in the ECHL. The team was founded in 1987 in the All-American Hockey League, and moved to the East Coast Hockey League (now "ECHL") when th ...

of the ECHL. This was, however, the season he was called up to the NHL to play his first and only NHL game. He allowed 3 goals and made 16 saves in 58 minutes of play. However, he lost the game. He was traded to the

Boston Bruins The Boston Bruins are a professional ice hockey team based in Boston. The Bruins compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Atlantic Division in the Eastern Conference. The team has been in existence since 1924, making ...

of the NHL who then assigned him to their AHL team, the

Providence Bruins The Providence Bruins are a professional ice hockey team in the American Hockey League (AHL), and are the primary development team for the Boston Bruins of the National Hockey League (NHL). They play at the Amica Mutual Pavilion in Providence, R ...

where he played 12 games going 3–6–1 with a 3.52 GAA and a .870 SV%.

Post-playing career

Eklund is currently the director of Newton Youth Hockey's Goaltending Focus with Brian Eklund.Goaltending a Focus - Brian Eklund
/ref> He has also started his own goaltending school, known as the Massachusetts Crease Goalie School. He also served as an assistant coach for his alma mater, Brown University.

Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs

References

External links

*
MassCrease.com
A Massachusetts-based goaltending school taught by former NHL goalie Brian Eklund {{DEFAULTSORT:Eklund, Brian 1980 births Living people American men's ice hockey goaltenders Brown Bears men's ice hockey players Ice hockey players from Massachusetts Johnstown Chiefs players Pensacola Ice Pilots players Providence Bruins players Springfield Falcons players Sportspeople from Braintree, Massachusetts Tampa Bay Lightning draft picks Tampa Bay Lightning players