The ECHL Department of Player’s Safety has suspended Allen Americans defenseman Andrew Nielsen one game and fined him an undisclosed amount for his actions during Friday Night’s game vs. Utah Grizzlies. Nielsen cross-checked Utah’s Nick Messner in the face at the 12:18 mark of the first period and was assessed a minor penalty for interference. He will miss tonight’s game vs Utah.
Nielsen spent last year playing overseas in Norway and Slovakia, where he put up one goal and 14 assists for 15 points, along with 94 penalty minutes in 31 total games; this was his second time playing overseas, as he played 15 games in Austria during the 2020-21 season. He has two assists in five games this season. The former third-round pick of the Toronto Maple Leafs in 2015 spent eight years in the AHL, where he scored 21 goals and added 64 assists for 85 points, along with 378 penalty minutes in 258 games. He played for the Toronto Marlies, Stockton Heat, Hershey Bears, Tucson Roadrunners, San Diego Gulls, Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins, and Cleveland Monsters, including winning a Calder Cup Championship with the Stockton Heat in 2018.
The 27-year-old has also spent three seasons in the ECHL, where he’s scored 17 goals and 53 assists for 70 points, along with 286 minutes in penalties in 88 games, while playing for the Utah Grizzlies, Cincinnati Cyclones, and Allen Americans. Nielsen would be named to the ECHL All-Star game in 2023 in a year where he put career numbers, having nine goals and 32 assists for 41 points, along with 166 penalty minutes in 36 games.
