Valmore Curtis James (born February 14, 1957) is an American-born former

ice hockey Ice hockey (or simply hockey) is a team sport played on ice skates, usually on an ice skating rink with lines and markings specific to the sport. It belongs to a family of sports called hockey. In ice hockey, two opposing teams use ice hock ...

player who played 11 games in the

National Hockey League The National Hockey League (NHL; french: Ligue nationale de hockey—LNH, ) is a professional ice hockey league in North America comprising 32 teams—25 in the United States and 7 in Canada. It is considered to be the top ranked professional ...

(NHL) for the

Buffalo Sabres The Buffalo Sabres are a professional ice hockey team based in Buffalo, New York. The Sabres compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Atlantic Division in the Eastern Conference. The team was established in 1970, along w ...

and

Toronto Maple Leafs The Toronto Maple Leafs (officially the Toronto Maple Leaf Hockey Club and often referred to as the Leafs) are a professional ice hockey team based in Toronto. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Atlantic Div ...

between 1981 and 1986. The rest of his career, which lasted from 1978 to 1988, was spent in various minor leagues. James was the first

African American African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ens ...

to play in the NHL.

Early life

James was born in

Ocala, Florida Ocala ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Marion County within the northern region of Florida, United States. As of the 2020 United States Census, the city's population was 63,591, making it the 54th most populated city in Florida. Home to ...

and raised in

Hauppauge, New York Hauppauge ( ) is a Hamlet (New York), hamlet and census-designated place (CDP) in the Administrative divisions of New York#Town, towns of Islip, New York, Islip and Smithtown, New York, Smithtown in Suffolk County, New York on Long Island. The popu ...

. He was one of six children. James began skating and playing ice hockey in

Commack, New York Commack ( ) is a hamlet and census designated place (CDP) that roughly corresponds to the hamlet by the same name in the towns of Huntington and Smithtown in Suffolk County, on Long Island, in New York. The CDP's population was 36,124 at the 2 ...

where his father was employed as the manager of an ice rink.

Playing career

James was drafted by the

Detroit Red Wings The Detroit Red Wings (colloquially referred to as the Wings) are a professional ice hockey team based in Detroit. The Red Wings compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Atlantic Division (NHL), Atlantic Division in the East ...

in the 16th round, 184th overall in the 1977 NHL Entry Draft after playing two seasons in the

Quebec Major Junior Hockey League The Quebec Major Junior Hockey League (french: Ligue de hockey junior majeur du Québec; abbreviated ''QMJHL'' in English, ''LHJMQ'' in French) is one of the three major junior ice hockey leagues that constitute the Canadian Hockey League. The l ...

(QMJHL) for the

Quebec Remparts There have been two junior ice hockey franchises known as the Quebec Remparts (french: Remparts de Québec) that played in the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League (QMJHL). The first edition played from 1969 to 1985; the current franchise has pla ...

, although he never played in any regulation games for the Red Wings. He also played several seasons, in the late 1970s, for the

Erie Blades The Erie Blades name was used by two professional ice hockey teams in Erie, Pennsylvania. Both teams played their home games in the Erie County Field House. After the second Blades team folded, the void was filled by the Erie Golden Blades, a tea ...

, in the

Eastern Hockey League The Eastern Hockey League was a minor professional United States ice hockey league. Eastern Amateur Hockey League (1933–1953) The league was founded in 1933 as the Eastern Amateur Hockey League (EAHL). The league was founded by Tommy Lockhart, ...

(EHL). James's propensity for using hip checks garnered notoriety in the

Erie County Field House The Erie County Field House was a multipurpose arena in Erie, Pennsylvania, United States. It was home to the Erie Blades, a North American Hockey League and American Hockey League franchise. According to a 1976 promotional flyer for the facility," ...

, home of the Blades. He signed with the

on July 22, 1981. James made his NHL debut for the Sabres during the

1981–82 NHL season The 1981–82 NHL season was the 65th season of the National Hockey League. The William M. Jennings Trophy made its debut this year as the trophy for the goaltenders from the team with the fewest goals against, thus replacing the Vezina Trophy in ...

, playing seven games. James became the first Black American to play in the NHL when he debuted with the Sabres. He was not the first Black American to be exclusively trained in the country; that milestone did not occur until

1996 File:1996 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: A Centennial Olympic Park bombing, bomb explodes at Centennial Olympic Park in Atlanta, set off by a radical Anti-abortion violence, anti-abortionist; The center fuel tank explodes on TWA Flight 8 ...

, when

Mike Grier Michael James Grier (born January 5, 1975) is an American former professional ice hockey winger and current general manager of the San Jose Sharks in the National Hockey League (NHL). He played for the Edmonton Oilers, Washington Capitals, Buf ...

made his NHL debut. James was the first native-born Floridian to play in the NHL. In 1983, while playing in the

American Hockey League The American Hockey League (AHL) is a professional ice hockey league based in the United States and Canada that serves as the primary Minor league#Ice hockey, developmental league for the National Hockey League (NHL). Since the 2010–11 AHL se ...

(AHL), under the direction of rookie coach

Mike Keenan Michael Edward Keenan (born October 21, 1949) is a Canadian professional hockey coach who most recently coached the Kunlun Red Star of the Kontinental Hockey League. Previously, he served as head coach and/or general manager with several NHL team ...

, James scored the winning goal for the

Rochester Americans The Rochester Americans (colloquially known as the Amerks) are a professional ice hockey team in the American Hockey League; the team is an owned and operated affiliate of the Buffalo Sabres. The team plays its home games in Rochester, New York, a ...

in the

Calder Cup The Calder Cup is the trophy awarded annually to the playoff champions of the American Hockey League. It was first presented in 1937 to the Syracuse Stars. The cup is made of sterling silver mounted on a base of Brazilian mahogany. In its curr ...

. James' next NHL stint came in the

1986–87 NHL season The 1986–87 NHL season was the 70th season of the National Hockey League. The Edmonton Oilers won the Stanley Cup by beating the Philadelphia Flyers four games to three in the Cup finals. League business The Chicago-based club officially chang ...

with the

, playing four games. As an African-American, James often faced situations at all levels of his career where he was the victim of incidents of racial prejudice from opposing fans, and, sometimes, opposing players. On the ice, James became revered for his fighting ability. Spirited bouts and victories over noted enforcers

Terry O'Reilly Terence Joseph James O'Reilly (born June 7, 1951) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey right winger, who played for the NHL's Boston Bruins, and one of the most effective enforcers in NHL history. O'Reilly was born in Niagara Falls, Ontar ...

and

John Kordic John Nicholas Kordic (March 22, 1965 – August 8, 1992) was a Canadian ice hockey player in the National Hockey League. Hockey career Kordic played for the Montreal Canadiens, Toronto Maple Leafs, Washington Capitals and Quebec Nordiques, for a ...

were part of his record. One of the NHL's all-time top enforcers, Dave Brown, singled out James as one of the hardest punching players, and toughest opponents, he had ever fought. After 14 professional NHL hockey games, a shoulder injury forced James to retire from the sport in 1988. After retirement, he taught hockey for 10 years.

Post-hockey life

After retiring, James settled in the Niagara Region with his wife. His autobiography ''Black Ice: The Val James Story'' was released by

ECW Press ECW Press is a Canadian book publisher located in Toronto, Ontario. It was founded by Jack David and Robert Lecker in 1974 as a Canadian literary magazine named ''Essays on Canadian Writing''. They started publishing trade and scholarly book ...

for worldwide distribution in February 2015, coinciding with

Black History Month Black History Month is an annual observance originating in the United States, where it is also known as African-American History Month. It has received official recognition from governments in the United States and Canada, and more recently ...

. In January 2017 ECW Press re-released the book in paperback format, again coinciding with Black History Month.

Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:James, Val 1957 births Living people 20th-century African-American sportspeople 21st-century African-American people African-American ice hockey players American men's ice hockey left wingers Buffalo Sabres players Detroit Red Wings draft picks Erie Blades players Flint Spirits players Ice hockey people from Florida Ice hockey players from New York (state) Newmarket Saints players People from Long Island Quebec Remparts players St. Catharines Saints players Sportspeople from Ocala, Florida Toronto Maple Leafs players