Kyle Connor Named NHL’s Second Star of the Month

The Winnipeg Jets, along with the National Hockey League, have revealed that forward Kyle Connor has been selected as the NHL’s Second Star of October.

Connor, who is 27 years old, earned a point in each of Winnipeg’s 10 games in October, contributing to the Jets’ impressive 9-1-0 start to the NHL season. The Shelby Township, Mich. native has scored a goal in eight of Winnipeg’s games, making history as the first NHL player to score in seven straight season-opening games.

Connor is currently tied for first place in the league for game winning goals with 3, as well as power play goals with 4, and his total of nine goals ranks third overall in the NHL.

He has achieved a franchise record for the longest point streak to start a season, going for 10 games, making him one of only four American-born players with a 10-plus game point streak at the beginning of a season.

Connor, who won the Lady Byng Memorial Trophy in 2022, is currently leading the Jets and is in a tie for fifth place in the NHL with 17 points (9 goals, 8 assists). He scored his 500th career point on Oct. 30 against Detroit and ended the month with multi-point performances in each of Winnipeg’s final four games.

Connor is the only player on the Jets to score a shorthanded goal in the 2024-25 season and is among just five players in the league to have scored both a shorthanded and a power play goal.

Connor has never been chosen as part of the NHL’s Three Stars of the Month until now. He becomes only the second Jets player chosen for the honor since 2018-19, alongside Connor Hellebuyck (December 2023), and the third Winnipeg player selected since the team moved to Manitoba.

Is it possible for Connor to achieve 50 goals in one season for the first time?

The 27-year-old has achieved over 30 goals in six seasons and over 60 points in five seasons, reaching career bests of 47 goals and 93 points in the 2021-22 NHL season. Since the 2017-18 NHL season, his first complete one, he ranks eighth in goals and is tied for 25th in points in the League.

Red Wings center J.T. Compher expressed his enjoyment of watching him play. I can always tell when he’s on the ice during our games, and I’m aware that he can score easily without needing much room. He is definitely a skilled hockey player, and it appears that he is constantly improving.

Connor’s performance in front of loved ones was appropriate for this occasion. He spent his childhood in the Detroit suburbs, shooting a minimum of 100 pucks daily in the garage, resulting in marks on the concrete and cinderblocks.

In 2015-16, he was at the University of Michigan for a season, where he topped NCAA Division I in both goals (35) and points (71).

Connor stated that there is no mystery. His stick has an 80 flex rating, leaning towards the more flexible side, while his blade features a relatively common curve. Every time he attempts to make adjustments, he reverts to the familiar statistics he has always maintained. Connor has a total of 502 points, with 252 goals and 250 assists, throughout 541 games. There are no limits in the sky.

Image Credit: Tim Fuller-Imagn Images