2026 DANBURY ALUMNI NIGHT - STEVE BROWN - NUMBERS TO THE RAFTERS
2026 DANBURY RING OF HONOR
DANBURY - The Danbury Hat Tricks are excited to announce AS PART OF ALUMNI NIGHT - FORMER DANBURY WHALER, DANBURY TITAN AND DANBURY hAT TRICK STEVE BROWN WILL HAVE HIS NUMBERS IN THE RAFTERS
By Patrick Grudberg
DANBURY - The Danbury Hat Tricks are excited to announce the final member of the 2026 Danbury Ring of Honor class – former Danbury Whalers, Titans, and Hat Tricks defenseman/coach Steve Brown.
On Saturday, April 4th, the Hat Tricks will host the 6th annual Alumni Night. Former players, staff, and contributors from Danbury professional hockey teams past and present will be in attendance for another reunion and celebration of Danbury hockey.
As part of the festivities, three former players will be honored and Dave MacIssac will be playing as a Celebrity Player. We continue with our spotlights of each inductee, in this installment, we are highlighting former Danbury Whalers, Titans, and Hat Tricks defenseman Steve Brown.
Brown, originally from Spring Lake, North Carolina, will be the first player to be inducted, celebrated, and honored in two separate Ring of Honor classes, as he was part of the group enshrined three years ago in 2023. A player with such a lengthy, decorated, lasting relationship with this city’s hockey community deserves another round of recognition and honor.
On this night’s the Hat Tricks will put Steve Brown’s #16 / 44 into the rafters.
Steve described how he first arrived in Danbury back in 2013. “When I first came to Danbury, I was playing for a team in Cape Cod. And they were in the same league, but the team just really wasn’t effective, so we were in last place. We ended up having a dispersal draft…[and] Danbury actually picked me up 1st in the draft.”
Even before joining the Whalers, Brown had vivid memories of the Danbury Ice Arena as an opposing player. “I had played against Danbury numerous times. It was always a place that I hated to play. The fans that sit behind the visiting bench are always brutal. It's just one of those things where you hate coming to Danbury because you know that it’s gonna be a tough night. So I always told myself, ‘if I could play for any other team in the league, I would love to play for Danbury.’”
By the spring of 2013, Steve Brown saw that wish come true. Joining the team halfway through the 2012-2013 season, he anchored the blue line and helped the Whalers win a FHL championship.
The defenseman went on to have the longest collective career in Danbury hockey history. Playing for seven more seasons, and staying with the city through team changes from the Whalers to the Titans to the Hat Tricks, Brown played in 257 games, which entering this season, was the most of any Danbury hockey player ever.
Looking back at his career, Steve said, “At the end of the day, I think hard work just pays off. Anybody that you talk to that got a chance to play with me or practice with me, I think my work ethic always spoke for itself, so I think that’s one of the reasons why I was able to stay in Danbury so long and be welcomed to stay so long.”
A hard worker and a beloved teammate, what makes Brown’s story even more improbable was that he picked up the sport rather late. “I didn’t start playing hockey till I was eleven. So never in my imagination did I think that I would achieve the accolades that I did at this level.”
In the world of minor league hockey, players don’t often remain in one city for almost a full decade. Because of his work ethic and dedication, Steve Brown bucked that trend and built a lasting legacy for himself. “Me having my number retired and things like that, I never expected that. It’s always something as a young kid you dream about having your jersey hung up in the rafters…I never saw it panning out the way that it is now.”
With Saturday’s ceremony, getting to honor Steve again for all he’s done for Danbury hockey, his legacy will be preserved in the collective memory of our entire hockey community for years to come.
Looking ahead to Saturday, Brown said, “It feels amazing, I think as a player, leaving your legacy somewhere that you helped build is something that is just very special because like you said I was there for the Whalers, I was there for the Titans, I was there for the Hat Tricks. I’ve been there through all of Danbury’s transformations. It's coming full circle to the point where I’m getting recognized for all the work, blood, sweat, and tears that I had to put in, it’s so satisfying.”
That rounds out our week-long spotlight of the 2026 Ring of Honor Class. We encourage all alumni to register for the event through the team website HERE. We look forward to hosting!
The Danbury Hat Tricks continue their sixth season in the Federal Prospects Hockey League Single-game tickets and partial season ticket packages are on sale and can be purchased in person at the Hat Tricks office located inside the Danbury Ice Arena at 1 Independence Way in Danbury, by calling (973-713-7547) or emailing (herm@danburyhattricks.com) the office, or online through Tixr. For the latest Hat Tricks news, visit www.danburyhattricks.com, follow the team on Facebook (www.facebook.com/danburyhattricks), Instagram (@danburyhattricks), X (@DanburyHatTrick), TikTok (@danburyhattricks), and YouTube (@DanburyHatTricks), and subscribe to the Hat Tricks' newsletter.
The Danbury Hat Tricks are a professional hockey team based in Danbury, CT, and compete in the Federal Prospects Hockey League (FPHL). Since their founding in 2019, the 2023 Commissioner's Cup Champions have brought thrilling, fast-paced, and hard-hitting hockey to the Danbury Ice Arena, earning a reputation for their competitive spirit, electric atmosphere, and strong community ties. The team is dedicated to providing an unforgettable game-day experience for fans of all ages while proudly representing the city of Danbury.