Wellwood, O’Brien Unable to Attend All-Star Festivities

ST. JOHN’S, NL – The Newfoundland Growlers, ECHL affiliate of the Toronto Maple Leafs, announced today that due to travel delays and cancellations, Head Coach Eric Wellwood and forward Zach O’Brien will not be able to attend the Warrior Hockey 2022 ECHL All-Star Classic set to take place tonight, Monday, January 17, in Jacksonville, Florida. 

Wellwood, 31, was set to share coaching duties with Toledo’s Dan Watson as the head coaches of the teams with the top winning percentages in the ECHL. The Oldcastle, Ontario native has helped guide the Growlers to a 15-5-2-0 record through 22 games played this season, good for an ECHL-best .727 points percentage.

O’Brien, a 29-year-old St. John’s, NL native, leads the Growlers in al major statistical categories including goals (10) assists (18) and points (28) in just 21 games played. The third-year Growler has earned several significant ECHL awards, including the ECHL’s Sportsmanship Award, a berth on the ECHL’s Second All-Star Team, the June M. Kelly Award as playoff MVP and the Kelly Cup, all in 2018-19. 

The Growlers return to action on Friday, January 21 as they kick off a seven-game road trip with a stop in Kansas City to take on the Mavericks.