Chris Conner

{{Infobox ice hockey player

| alt =

| image = Chris Conner 2011-03-20 (1).JPG

| caption = Conner with the Penguins in 2011.

| image_size = 230px

| played_for = Dallas Stars
Pittsburgh Penguins
Detroit Red Wings
Phoenix Coyotes
Washington Capitals

| position = Winger

| shoots = Left

| height_ft = 5

| height_in = 8

| weight_lb = 180

| birth_date = {{birth date and age|1983|12|23}}

| birth_place = Westland, Michigan, U.S.

| draft = Undrafted

| career_start = 2006

| career_end = 2020

}}

Christopher Ryan Conner (born December 23, 1983) is an American former professional ice hockey winger who played in the National Hockey League (NHL).

Early life

Conner grew up in Westland, Michigan and attended Churchill High School in Livonia, Michigan.{{citation needed|date=February 2019}} He lived in the same neighbourhood as current Anaheim Ducks forward Ryan Kesler, and the two grew up together playing hockey since childhood.{{citation needed|date=February 2019}} As a youth, he played in the 1997 Quebec International Pee-Wee Hockey Tournament with the Detroit Little Caesars minor ice hockey team.{{cite web|url=https://www.publicationsports.com/ressources/files/439/Joueurs_Pro.pdf|title=Pee-Wee players who have reached NHL or WHA|year=2018|website=Quebec International Pee-Wee Hockey Tournament|access-date=2019-02-11|archive-date=March 6, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190306085544/https://www.publicationsports.com/ressources/files/439/Joueurs_Pro.pdf|url-status=dead}}

Playing career

Undrafted, Chris Conner played four seasons of collegiate hockey for Michigan Tech of the WCHA from 2002 to 2006. One of his teammates there was John Scott, who would also play in the NHL.{{cite news |last=Branch |first=John |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2016/04/05/sports/hockey/john-scott-unlikely-nhl-all-star-montreal-canadiens.html?_r=0 |title=Coming In From the Cold: John Scott Is Joining the Canadiens |work=The New York Times |date=2016-04-04 |accessdate=2016-08-09 }} After his senior year, Conner made his professional debut with the Iowa Stars of the AHL at the end of the 2005–06 season.{{citation needed|date=February 2019}}

File:Chris Conner.JPG.]]

On July 13, 2006, Conner signed as a free agent to a two-year contract with the Dallas Stars.{{cite web|url=http://stars.nhl.com/team/app?articleid=315871&page=NewsPage&service=page|title=Stars sign LW Chris Conner|publisher=Dallas Stars|date=2006-07-13|accessdate=2009-03-09|url-status=dead|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20110726193712/http://stars.nhl.com/team/app?articleid=315871&page=NewsPage&service=page|archivedate=July 26, 2011|df=mdy-all}} Conner was then assigned to affiliate Iowa for the start of the 2006–07 season, but upon being recalled, scored his first NHL goal during a game against the Colorado Avalanche on December 27, 2006. Conner was re-signed by the Stars at the end of the 2007–08 season to a one-year deal on March 12, 2008.{{cite web |url=http://stars.nhl.com/team/app?articleid=356734&page=NewsPage&service=page |title=Stars sign three players to contracts |publisher=Dallas Stars |date=2008-03-12 |accessdate=2009-03-09 |url-status=dead |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20080515163025/http://stars.nhl.com/team/app/?service=page&page=NewsPage&articleid=356734 |archivedate=May 15, 2008 |df=mdy }}

After splitting the 2008–09 season between the Stars and the Peoria Rivermen, Conner signed a one-year deal with Pittsburgh Penguins on July 7, 2009.{{cite web |url=http://penguins.nhl.com/club/news.htm?id=497280|title=Penguins sign Conner, Lee | publisher =Pittsburgh Penguins | date = 2009-07-05 | accessdate = 2010-06-08}} Conner appeared in 60 games during the 2010–11 NHL season with Pittsburgh, scoring seven goals with nine assists. He scored the Penguins second goal in an 8–2 loss in Game 5 of Pittsburgh's first-round series against the Tampa Bay Lightning. Conner failed to convert on a penalty shot during the second period of the next game, losing the puck off his stick as he advanced towards Lightning goaltender Dwayne Roloson. Pittsburgh ultimately lost the series in seven games.{{citation needed|date=February 2019}}

On July 7, 2011, Conner signed a one-year, two-way contract with the Detroit Red Wings.{{cite web | url = http://www.dailytribune.com/articles/2011/07/07/sports/doc4e16456ef0968721939926.txt | title = Wings sign Penguin Chris Conner to one-year contract | website = dailytribune.com | date = 2011-07-07 | accessdate = 2011-07-07 | archive-date = March 18, 2012 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20120318224556/http://www.dailytribune.com/articles/2011/07/07/sports/doc4e16456ef0968721939926.txt | url-status = dead }}

In the following 2012–13 season, Conner signed with the Phoenix Coyotes on a one-year contract. With the lockout in effect, he was directly assigned to the AHL affiliate, the Portland Pirates. He was recalled by the Coyotes to help their playoff push, appearing in 12 games to score 2 points, before being returned to Portland before the end of their season.{{Cite web| url = http://coyotes.nhl.com/club/news.htm?id=668539 | title = Coyotes assign Bolduc, Conner and Stone to Pirates | publisher = Phoenix Coyotes | date = 2013-04-02 | accessdate = 2013-04-03}}

On July 5, 2013, Conner signed a one-year, two-way contract to return with the Pittsburgh Penguins that was to pay him $550,000 at the NHL level.{{cite web|url=http://penguins.nhl.com/club/news.htm?id=676929|title=Penguins Sign Forward Chris Conner|date=July 5, 2013|work=National Hockey League|publisher=Pittsburgh Penguins|accessdate=6 July 2013}}

On July 1, 2014, Conner continued his journeyman career in signing a one-year two-way contract with the Washington Capitals.{{cite news| url = https://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/capitals/capitals-sign-orpik-peters-to-free-agent-deals/2014/07/01/e2dcd98e-0146-11e4-9a6a-955ebcaa3334_story.html | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20140716065517/http://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/capitals/capitals-sign-orpik-peters-to-free-agent-deals/2014/07/01/e2dcd98e-0146-11e4-9a6a-955ebcaa3334_story.html | url-status = dead | archive-date = 2014-07-16 | title = Capitals add two Penguins defencemen in free agency | newspaper = The Washington Post | date = 2014-07-01 | accessdate = 2014-07-01}} A year later Conner signed a two-year, two-way contract with the Philadelphia Flyers.{{cite web |url=http://flyers.nhl.com/club/news.htm?id=773515 |title=Flyers sign C Tim Brent, RW Chris Connor, D Davis Drewiske |publisher=Philadelphia Flyers |date=July 1, 2015 |accessdate=July 1, 2015}} He led the scoring in the Flyers' AHL affiliate Lehigh Valley Phantoms during the 2015-16 season with 55 points.{{cite web| url =http://www.phantomshockey.com/player/chris-conner/ | title = Chris Conner Phantoms profile | publisher = Lehigh Valley Phantoms | date = 2017-07-06 | accessdate = 2017-07-06}}

As a free agent following the completion of his contract with the Flyers, Conner opted to continue his tenure with the Phantoms in agreeing to a two-year AHL deal on July 6, 2017.{{cite web| url = http://www.phantomshockey.com/phantoms-sign-5-players-ahl-contracts-f-chris-conner-inked-2-year-deal/ | title = Phantoms sign 5 players to AHL contracts | publisher = Lehigh Valley Phantoms | date = 2017-07-06 | accessdate = 2017-07-06}}

After four seasons with the Phantoms, Conner left the club as a free agent, continuing in the AHL in securing a one-year contract with the Binghamton Devils, affiliate to the New Jersey Devils, on July 17, 2019.{{cite web| url = http://binghamtondevils.com/news/?article_id=513 | title = Devils sign forward Chris Conner to AHL contract | publisher = Binghamton Devils | date = July 17, 2019 | accessdate = July 17, 2019}}