The Allen Americans announced earlier this week that they have re-signed 5’11” forward James Hardie for the 2024-25 ECHL season.
Junior Career
James Hardie started his junior career in the OHL with the Mississauga Steelheads in the 2018-19 season. He did not play in any games in the 2020-21 season, as the OHL season was canceled due to COVID-19. Hardie spent five seasons with Mississauga, wearing an “A” in his fourth season and captaining the team in his final season. In 255 games played with the Steelheads, Hardie had 128 goals and 116 assists for 244 points. He had 88 penalty minutes and a plus/minus of +21. Hardie played in the postseason with Mississauga in three of the four seasons that he played in. He played in 20 playoff games, with 12 goals and five assists for 17 points. He had four penalty minutes and a plus/minus of -7.
Professional Career
After completing his junior career, Hardie signed with the Cincinnati Cyclones to finish off his 2022-23 season. He played in two games with the Cyclones, where he did not register any points or penalty minutes and had a plus/minus of -3. In the playoffs with Cincinnati, Hardie played in ten games where he had one goal and one assist for two points. He had two penalty minutes and a plus/minus of -2.
Hardie then re-signed with the Cyclones at the start of the 2023-24 season but was then traded to the Rapid City Rush and eventually traded again to the Allen Americans. In the 2023-24 season, Hardie played in 61 ECHL games, scoring 15 goals and adding 14 assists for 29 points. He had 12 penalty minutes and a plus/minus of -13.
With the Allen Americans, Hardie played in 12 games, registering four goals and six assists for ten points, along with two penalty minutes and a plus/minus of -1. Hardie played in five playoff games with Allen where he had two goals and one assist for three points. He had 15 penalty minutes and a plus/minus of +3.
