Brad Malone

Brad Malone (born Bradley Malone on May 20, 1989) is a Canadian professional ice hockey forward currently playing for the Colorado Avalanche of the National Hockey League (NHL).

Playing Career
Brad was born in Chatham, New Brunswick, where he played hockey as a youth. Malone left home when he was 15 to begin his hockey career at Cushing Academy, a small prep school located in Ashburnham, Massachusetts.

At the age of seventeen, Brad joined the USHL and played with the Sioux Falls Stampede, scoring 33 points in 57 games, after which he was drafted 105th overall by the Colorado Avalanche in the 2007 NHL Entry Draft.

Brad then attended the University of North Dakota, where he had 85 points in his 4 years in the WCHA. In completing his collegiate career, he was signed by the Avalanche to a two-year entry level contract on April 12, 2011.

Brad's entry into pro hockey immediately began in the 2010–11 season when he was then signed to an amateur try-out with the Lake Erie Monsters of the American Hockey League during their playoff run. Malone had 1 point in 3 games.

After attending his first Avalanche training camp he was re-assigned and returned to AHL affiliate, Lake Erie, for the beginning of the 2011–12 season, Brad established himself within the Monsters in a physical checking role on the third line.

In contributing offensively with 13 points in 24 games, Brad was recalled by the Avalanche upon a suspension to depth Avalanche forward Kevin Porter. On December 9, 2011, he made his NHL debut with the Avalanche the following day in a 4-1 defeat against the Edmonton Oilers.

On December 19, 2011, Brad recorded his first NHL point, an assist, in his fifth career game in a 3-2 shoot-out victory over the Philadelphia Flyers before playing his first professional game against his cousin Ryan Malone and the Tampa Bay Lightning on Christman Eve.

Ryan contributed with 2 assists in 9 games before he was returned to Lake Erie for the duration of the year to finish second on the team and first as a rookie in scoring with 36 points in 67 games.

Personal Life
Brad comes from a long line of hockey players. His father Jim Malone was a first round pick of the New York Rangers. His uncle Greg Malone played 12 seasons in the NHL. Brad's first cousin Ryan Malone is a forward with the Tampa Bay Lightning and his younger brother Brett Malone is a forward with the Saint John Sea Dogs of the QMJHL.