Welcome to the web's first page dedicated to Brandon Convery!! I'm sure you either have no clue who he is, or have heard of him, but don't know anything about him. Well, to get started, here is some basic info on him: (and if you actually do know who he is, and you are a fan of his, this page is also dedicated to you!)
Update 02-03-21:Thanks to the numerous Swedish hockey fans who have kindly let me know what the heck happened to Brandon, I have found that Brandon spent the bulk of this season playing for the Linköpings Hockey Club of the Swedish Elite League. Apparently he left the team, for injury or personal reasons or both I'm not quite sure...If anyone has any updates, please e-mail me. :) As for where he's been all this time, he was out for the entire 1999-2000 season with a back injury (that would explain why I thought he disappeared off the face of the earth), and spent part of the 2000-01 season in Switzerland. Anyhoo, look for an overhaul on this site when I find out where or if (*crosses fingers*) he's playing next season! Thank so much to the great people who have sent me info, if you have any more info, please e-mail me (e-mail address at the bottom of the page). Thanks a bunch!!!
Team: Currently in limbo (again).
Position: Centre
Shoots: Right
Height: 6'1
Weight: 195 lbs.
Birthdate: 74-2-4
Birthplace: Kingston, Ontario
Drafted: Toronto's 1st choice, 8th overall, in 1992
Junior Teams: Sudbury Wolves, Niagra Falls Thunder, Belleville Bulls
Notes:
Well, because of Mike Keenan's destructive coaching ways, as well as some impatience from management, Brandon is in limbo right now. This is excerted from LCS Hockey Magazine: "Solid play from rookie Josh Holden left the Canucks with one too many centres on the roster. The victim of the Canucks first glut of depth down the middle since the days of Igor Larionov was young Brandon Convery. Convery had looked impressive in the 11 games he played, netting nine points. He was put on waivers and picked up by Los Angeles after two days in limbo. Many wondered why the Canucks would let Convery, one of their few scoring threats lately, leave for nothing, and the answer may be his inability to work under Mike Keenan's rigid coaching style. When asked if personal conflicts with Keenan influenced his departure, Convery answered, "You'd have to talk to him". But really folks, Mike Keenan running a player out of town? I can't see it." I assure you that if Brandon stayed around the organization until Marc Crawford came around, he would have played a lot more, and well too. And I have to point out that when Marc was working as a commentator on Hockey Night In Canada earlier in the season, he had a lot of good things to say about Convery.
Okay, well, about Brandon's career. To say that he's had a rough career so far would be a understatement. He was drafted in the first round by the Maple Leafs, which put immense pressure on him. He was touted as a top prospect with great offensive skills as well as being a great skater. But he seemed to fall apart under the pressure. And maybe he didn't work as hard as he should have. So anyway, he had lots of problems in Toronto, and he kept getting sent to the Baby Leafs in St. John's, where he was tearing it up by the way (see career stats and check out his AHL stats!). So he managed to hang around in Toronto for six years, and basically nothing happened, until he dedmanded a trade. They Leafs didn't trade him right away, but later in the year, on March 7, 1998, he was traded to, guess who, the Canucks! For Lonny Bohonos. I had heard of Brandon a couple of times before on the show AHL Rinkside because he was an AHL star, and I read about him in hockey yearbooks and stuff too. I first heard about the trade on the Hockey Night in Canada pre game show, which was a rarity. Usually I hear about trades before game time. Somehow I vaguely recall Don Cherry knocking Brandon. (You know, Don, Brandon is from Kingston) Anyway, my first reaction was "Oh, Lonny Bohonos...I like him...Dumb Keenan and his stupid compulsive trading!! But I guess this Convery guy is good..."
Brandon played his first game as a Canuck on March 11, 1998 in Montréal. His first point as a Canuck was on April 1, 1998 v.s. Edmonton. I remember very well. Actually I just remember the announcement for some reason. "And the assist goes to, with his first point as a Vancouver Canuck, number 26, Brandon Convery!" So, he went on to play seven games for the Canucks, (with limited ice time), and recorded two assists. Mike Keenan, being the VERY impatient guy that he is, sent Brandon down to Syracuse, where he had a goal and 2 assists in 2 games.
That's Brandon, on the right, with Alexander Selivanov formerly of the Lightning.
It is hard liking a player that everyone (Leafs fans! They are BRUTAL!) seems to hate or not know of. Well anyway, during training camp, I noticed a trend. In the newspaper, they always have the three stars of the day's scrimmage, and Brandon was often on there, and he would score hat tricks and stuff. All through the preseason, the announcers were talking about how hard Brandon worked in the summer. I remember one game in particular, where the Canucks were playing the Flames, and Mattias Ohlund tied the game in the third, but Brandon got the play of the game for his beautiful breakaway goal. Too bad it was only on radio!
So, the season started, and Brandon made the team, beating top prospects Josh Holden and Peter Schaefer. But still Keenan chose to scratch for the first four games of the season. He finally got to play, and of course, he impressed everyone by his highly improved play. I still vividly remember his beautiful braekaway goal Nov. 1 v.s. Olie Kolzig and the Caps. His only other goal of the season came on the next night against the Oilers, and it was also a breakaway goal. (He's a very fast skater, if you hadn't noticed.) Keenan put Convery on a great line with Bill Muckalt and Markus Naslund, and they a had few great games together. Then they had a sub-par performnace, and guess what? Keenan broke up the line! Did I mention that Keenan is impatient?
Then, slowly but surely, Brandon's season begun to fall apart. On November 12 against the Calgary Flames, Brandon picked up an assist in a 4-3 Canucks win. The next night, I had to play a hockey game, so I missed half of the game v.s. Anahiem. On the way home, I asked my ride if Convery had scored. He said "I don't know, I haven't heard his name all night." I thought that was weird. Then Jim Hughson had that he had been SCRATCHED! What kind of a coach scratches a player after a good game? I watched the next game, Sunday Nov. 15 v.s. Colorado, very mad at Keenan. But I thought, "At least Brandon's playing in this game." Even though he only played 4 minutes. I had NO idea that this would be Brandon's last game as a Canuck.
Okay, I've bored you enough (if you even read that). In a nutshell, for the rest of the season he played: for 3 games in LA, for the Kings IHL affiliate the Long Beach Ice Dogs, and the Springfield Falcons, the Kings AHL affiliate, because he was too good for the IHL!!! I must say that if Marc Crawford had coached the team from the begining of the season, Brandon would still be on the Canucks. Why I say that is because one the first things Marc said when Josh Holden and Peter Schaefer got called up was something about how young OFFENSIVE TYPE players should not be forced to play in a minimal role on the third or fourth line, but should play on the first or second line, because that's what they're used to playing on in junior and the minors. You can not except an offensive star in junior to come into the NHL and make an impact playing on the checking line. Obviously, Mike Keenan is not that smart, so he put Brandon, Josh and Peter on the checking lines and complained when "the youngsters aren't performing the way should be." Well that long summary of Brandon Convery's career probably didn't explain why I like him so much.
