Ben Holmstrom

Benjamin Scott Holmstrom (born April 9, 1987) is an American former professional ice hockey center. He played 7 National Hockey League (NHL) games with the Philadelphia Flyers. He previously captained the Adirondack Phantoms and Bridgeport Sound Tigers in the American Hockey League (AHL).

Playing career Undrafted, Holmstrom signed a two-year entry-level contract with the Philadelphia Flyers on March 17, 2010, after playing four seasons of collegiate hockey with UMass Lowell. Holmstrom was called up on March 3, 2011, and made his NHL debut against the Toronto Maple Leafs.

On July 3, 2014, Holmstrom left the Flyers organization after four years to sign a free agent contract with the Carolina Hurricanes. Holmstrom was assigned to AHL affiliate, the Charlotte Checkers for the duration of the 2014–15 season, contributing with 20 points in 62 games, as the Checkers missed the post-season.

On July 2, 2015, Holmstrom signed as a free agent to a one-year, two-way contract with the New York Islanders. After two seasons under contract with the Islanders, Holmstrom opted to continue within the organization in signing for his third season with the Bridgeport Sound Tigers on an AHL deal on October 4, 2017.

After leading the Sound Tigers for four seasons, Holmstrom left the club as a free agent at the conclusion of the 2018–19 season. On August 27, 2019, Holmstrom agreed to continue his career, signing a one-year contract with the Norfolk Admirals of the ECHL. During the 2019–20 season after collecting 19 points in 42 games, Holmstrom was traded by the Admirals to the Cincinnati Cyclones.

As a free agent in the off-season, Holmstrom approaching his 12th professional season opted to sign abroad by agreeing to a one-year contract with Norwegian club, Lillehammer IK of the Eliteserien on June 16, 2020. In his lone season in Norway in 2020–21, Holmstrom added a scoring presence to the Lillehammer forward group, adding 6 goals and 19 points in 23 regular season games.

Holmstrom opted to return to North America following the season, agreeing to continue his career in the ECHL with the South Carolina Stingrays on August 13, 2021. After 38 games with the Stingrays, Holmstrom was signed to a professional tryout contract in a return to the AHL with the Rochester Americans. On April 6, 2022, Holmstrom was given an 8-game suspension for using a homophobic slur against another player in a game against the Utica Comets on March 30.

In July 2022, Holmstrom joined the Orlando Solar Bears of the ECHL as an assistant coach, effectively ending his playing career.

Personal Holmstrom's brother, Josh, was a teammate with the Sound Tigers.

Career statistics Regular season Playoffs Season Team League GP G A Pts PIM GP G A Pts PIM 2003–04 Sioux Falls Stampede USHL 54 3 5 8 53 — — — — — 2004–05 Sioux Falls Stampede USHL 15 1 0 1 10 — — — — — 2005–06 Sioux Falls Stampede USHL 56 10 9 19 115 14 3 3 6 22 2006–07 UMass Lowell River Hawks HE 30 4 9 13 18 — — — — — 2007–08 UMass Lowell River Hawks HE 37 7 20 27 62 — — — — — 2008–09 UMass Lowell River Hawks HE 38 6 15 21 52 — — — — — 2009–10 UMass Lowell River Hawks HE 39 9 14 23 69 — — — — — 2009–10 Adirondack Phantoms AHL 13 3 0 3 9 — — — — — 2010–11 Adirondack Phantoms AHL 79 16 22 38 75 — — — — — 2010–11 Philadelphia Flyers NHL 2 0 0 0 5 — — — — — 2011–12 Adirondack Phantoms AHL 67 15 26 41 134 — — — — — 2011–12 Philadelphia Flyers NHL 5 0 0 0 2 — — — — — 2012–13 Adirondack Phantoms AHL 22 2 6 8 29 — — — — — 2013–14 Adirondack Phantoms AHL 75 13 19 32 146 — — — — — 2014–15 Charlotte Checkers AHL 62 5 15 20 92 — — — — — 2015–16 Bridgeport Sound Tigers AHL 76 4 20 24 138 3 0 0 0 0 2016–17 Bridgeport Sound Tigers AHL 76 7 9 16 91 — — — — — 2017–18 Bridgeport Sound Tigers AHL 76 11 10 21 101 — — — — — 2018–19 Bridgeport Sound Tigers AHL 40 3 5 8 25 — — — — — 2019–20 Norfolk Admirals ECHL 42 9 10 19 61 — — — — — 2019–20 Cincinnati Cyclones ECHL 9 0 4 4 2 — — — — — 2020–21 Lillehammer IK NOR 23 6 13 19 24 — — — — — 2021–22 South Carolina Stingrays ECHL 38 5 14 19 49 — — — — — 2021–22 Rochester Americans AHL 25 0 6 6 19 2 0 0 0 16 NHL totals 7 0 0 0 7 — — — — —

Awards and honors Award Year College HE Best Defensive Forward 2009–10