Connor James

Connor James (born August 25, 1982) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey centre. He most recently played with the Straubing Tigers of the German Deutsche Eishockey Liga (DEL).

Playing career James was drafted in the ninth round, 279th overall, by the Los Angeles Kings in the 2002 NHL entry draft. James played for 4 years for the University of Denver and won one NCAA National Championship with the Pioneers. He appeared in two National Hockey League games with the Kings in the 2005–06 season.

James then signed with the Pittsburgh Penguins organization prior to the 2006–07 season. The following season while called up to the Penguins on February 16, 2008, Conner scored his first NHL goal against Rick DiPietro of the New York Islanders. In September 2008, the Penguins cut James from the active roster for the 2008–09 season, returning to affiliate the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins. On March 25, 2009, James was named the 14th captain in team history.

On July 31, 2009, James signed for Augsburger Panther of the DEL. After a season with the Panthers and two following seasons with the DEG Metro Stars, James signed for his third DEL team, with a one-year contract with the Thomas Sabo Ice Tigers on May 7, 2012. He spent three seasons with the Ice Tigers, before moving to fellow DEL side Straubing Tigers for the 2015–16 campaign.

Career statistics Regular Season Playoffs Season Team League GP G A Pts PIM GP G A Pts PIM 1999–2000 Calgary Royals AJHL 64 36 57 93 41 — — — — — 2000–01 University of Denver WCHA 38 8 19 27 14 — — — — — 2001–02 University of Denver WCHA 41 16 26 42 18 — — — — — 2002–03 University of Denver WCHA 41 20 23 43 12 — — — — — 2003–04 University of Denver WCHA 40 13 25 38 16 — — — — — 2004–05 Bakersfield Condors ECHL 51 21 25 46 34 5 3 1 4 0 2004–05 Manchester Monarchs AHL 14 2 1 3 10 3 0 0 0 0 2005–06 Manchester Monarchs AHL 77 17 25 42 43 7 0 0 0 2 2005–06 Los Angeles Kings NHL 2 0 0 0 0 — — — — — 2006–07 Wilkes–Barre/Scranton Penguins AHL 70 12 20 32 29 11 4 4 8 8 2007–08 Wilkes–Barre/Scranton Penguins AHL 64 9 28 37 30 22 8 5 13 6 2007–08 Pittsburgh Penguins NHL 13 1 0 1 2 — — — — — 2008–09 Wilkes–Barre/Scranton Penguins AHL 76 19 30 49 24 9 0 2 2 2 2008–09 Pittsburgh Penguins NHL 1 0 0 0 0 — — — — — 2009–10 Augsburger Panther DEL 55 15 38 53 28 14 4 8 12 6 2010–11 DEG Metro Stars DEL 52 10 32 42 20 9 2 1 3 2 2011–12 DEG Metro Stars DEL 52 15 30 45 20 7 0 7 7 4 2012–13 Thomas Sabo Ice Tigers DEL 52 17 23 40 24 3 1 1 2 0 2013–14 Thomas Sabo Ice Tigers DEL 52 13 27 40 20 6 1 3 4 0 2014–15 Thomas Sabo Ice Tigers DEL 51 6 17 23 20 8 0 4 4 4 2015–16 Straubing Tigers DEL 50 12 19 31 20 7 0 1 1 0 AHL totals 301 59 104 163 136 52 12 11 23 18 NHL totals 16 1 0 1 2 — — — — — DEL totals 364 88 186 274 152 54 8 25 33 16

Awards and honors Award Year All-WCHA Third Team 2001–02 All-NCAA All-Tournament Team 2004