C. J. Smith (ice hockey)

Connor Jeffrey Smith (born December 1, 1994) is an American professional ice hockey forward who is an unrestricted free agent. He most recently played with the Hartford Wolf Pack in the American Hockey League (AHL) while under contract to the New York Rangers of the National Hockey League (NHL).

C. J. Smith
Smith at the 2018 AHL All-Star Game
Born (1994-12-01) December 1, 1994
Des Moines, Iowa, U.S.
Height 5 ft 11 in (180 cm)
Weight 185 lb (84 kg; 13 st 3 lb)
Position Forward
Shoots Left
team
Former teams		 Free agent
Buffalo Sabres
Carolina Hurricanes
NHL Draft Undrafted
Playing career 2017–present

Playing career

Amateur

Smith grew up playing hockey in Des Moines before moving with his family to Minnesota when he was 14.[1] He played college hockey for UMass Lowell of Hockey East for three seasons while majoring in chemistry.[2] In his freshman season at UMass, Smith was named to the All Hockey East Rookie Team after he led the team with 16 goals, 19 assists for a total of 35 points. He also became the first River Hawk rookie since Scott Wilson in 2011 to score 30 points in a season.[3] On April 21, Smith and Zack Kamrass were awarded the UMass Lowell Hockey Most Valuable Player Award. Smith was also awarded the River Hawks Rookie of the Year.[4]

In his sophomore year, Smith was named to the Hockey East All-Tournament Team and won the River Hawks leading scorer award.[2] He recorded his first career hat trick in an 8–1 win over Arizona State on January 30, 2016.[5] In the 2016 Hockey East Men's Ice Hockey Tournament, Smith helped Massachusetts–Lowell beat Boston University in the Quarterfinals to advance to the Semifinals and eventually the Championship.[2] UMass lost in the Championship match against Northeastern 3–2.[6]

In his junior year, Smith was named a semi-finalist for the Walter Brown Award as the best American-born college hockey player in New England.[7] The River Hawks won the 2017 Hockey East Men's Ice Hockey Tournament and Smith was named to the All Tournament Team and Tournament MVP.[8] On March 29, 2017, Smith chose to forgo his senior year at UMass and signed as an undrafted free agent by the National Hockey League's Buffalo Sabres.[9]

Professional
C. J. Smith during the 2022 Calder Cup Finals

Smith made his Sabres debut on April 2, 2017 in a 4–2 loss to the New York Islanders, in which he also got his first NHL point with an assist on a goal by Evander Kane.[10] When Smith made his debut, he became one of only two players in league history to have been born in the state of Iowa, joining goaltender Scott Clemmensen.[11]

Smith played the 2017–18 season with the Sabres American Hockey League (AHL) affiliate, the Rochester Americans. In his rookie season with the Americans, Smith was named to the 2018 AHL All-Star Classic on January 4, 2018.[12] On July 16, 2018, Smith signed a one-year, two way contract with the Sabres worth $874,125.[13]

Smith began the following season with the Rochester Americans after being cut from the Sabres training camp.[14] On January 8, 2019, Smith scored his first NHL goal in the second period against the New Jersey Devils.[15]

As a free agent after five seasons within the Sabres organization, Smith was signed to a one-year, two-way contract with the Carolina Hurricanes on July 28, 2021.[16]

On August 2, 2022, Smith was signed as a free agent to a one-year, two-way contract with the New York Rangers.[17]

Career statistics
Regular season Playoffs
Season Team League GP G A Pts PIM GP G A Pts PIM
2010–11 Academy of Holy Angels USHS 25 17 20 37 18 1 0 0 0 10
2011–12 Austin Bruins NAHL 53 13 14 27 20 — — — — —
2012–13 Austin Bruins NAHL 60 30 29 59 22 8 4 1 5 4
2013–14 Muskegon Lumberjacks USHL 13 4 1 5 6 — — — — —
2013–14 Chicago Steel USHL 46 23 17 40 10 — — — — —
2014–15 UMass-Lowell HE 39 16 19 35 28 — — — — —
2015–16 UMass-Lowell HE 40 17 22 39 50 — — — — —
2016–17 UMass-Lowell HE 41 23 28 51 46 — — — — —
2016–17 Buffalo Sabres NHL 2 0 1 1 0 — — — — —
2017–18 Rochester Americans AHL 57 17 27 44 16 3 0 2 2 0
2018–19 Rochester Americans AHL 62 28 30 58 26 3 1 1 2 0
2018–19 Buffalo Sabres NHL 11 2 0 2 0 — — — — —
2019–20 Rochester Americans AHL 50 12 15 27 18 — — — — —
2020–21 Rochester Americans AHL 15 4 9 13 6 — — — — —
2020–21 Buffalo Sabres NHL 1 0 0 0 0 — — — — —
2021–22 Chicago Wolves AHL 60 24 34 58 18 16 3 6 9 4
2021–22 Carolina Hurricanes NHL 1 0 0 0 0 — — — — —
2022–23 Hartford Wolf Pack AHL 21 4 2 6 6 — — — — —
NHL totals 15 2 1 3 0 — — — — —

Awards and honors
Award Year
College
HE All-Rookie Team 2015
HE All-Tournament Team 2016, 2017
HE Honorable Mention All-Star Team 2017
HE Tournament MVP 2017
AHL
All-Star Game 2017–18 [12]
Calder Cup champion 2022 [18]

References
  1. "C.J. Smith, central Iowa's first NHL goal-scorer, hopes to take his pro game another step further".
  2. "C.J. SMITH". goriverhawks.com. Retrieved January 9, 2019.
  3. "C.J. SMITH NAMED TO HOCKEY EAST ALL-ROOKIE TEAM". goriverhawks.com. March 28, 2015. Retrieved January 9, 2019.
  4. "RIVER HAWKS NAME ZACK KAMRASS AND C.J. SMITH TEAM MVP'S". goriverhawks.com. April 21, 2015. Retrieved January 9, 2019.
  5. "C.J. Smith's hat trick propels Lowell to sweep of Arizona State". uscho.com. January 30, 2016. Retrieved January 9, 2019.
  6. Kyle Gaudette (March 20, 2016). "Scalding Northeastern wins Hockey East Championship over UMass Lowell". The UMass-Lowell Connector. Retrieved January 9, 2019.
  7. "THREE RIVER HAWKS NAMED SEMIFINALISTS FOR THE WALTER BROWN AWARD". goriverhawks.com. February 6, 2017. Retrieved January 9, 2019.
  8. "WEEKLY RELEASE: UMASS LOWELL CLAIMS THIRD HOCKEY EAST TOURNAMENT TITLE". hockeyeastonline.com. March 20, 2017. Retrieved January 9, 2019.
  9. "C.J. SMITH SIGNS WITH THE BUFFALO SABRES". goriverhawks.com. March 29, 2017. Retrieved January 9, 2019.
  10. "Smith earns point in debut as Sabres fall to Isles". Buffalo Sabres. April 2, 2017. Retrieved April 2, 2017.
  11. @PR_NHL (April 2, 2017). "Per @EliasSports: C.J. Smith is the second Iowa-born player to appear in an NHL game, joining goaltender Scott Clemmensen (191 GP)" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  12. "SMITH, ULLMARK NAMED TO AHL ALL-STAR ROSTER". amerks.com. Archived from the original on November 9, 2020. Retrieved January 9, 2019.
  13. "Sabres, C.J. Smith agree to one-year contract". sportsnet.ca. July 16, 2018. Retrieved January 9, 2019.
  14. Harrington, Mike (September 26, 2018). "Oglevie, Smith among latest cuts to Sabres' roster". Buffalo News. Retrieved January 9, 2019.
  15. Jourdon LaBarber (January 8, 2019). "Pilut, Smith help fuel 5-goal 2nd period in win over Devils". NHL.com. Retrieved January 9, 2019.
  16. "Canes agree to terms with C.J. Smith". Carolina Hurricanes. July 28, 2021. Retrieved July 28, 2021.
  17. "Rangers agree to terms with C.J. Smith". New York Rangers. August 2, 2022. Retrieved August 2, 2022.
  18. "Chicago is Calder City again". American Hockey League. June 25, 2022. Retrieved June 25, 2022.
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