Chris Bala

Christopher B. Bala (born September 24, 1978) is an American former professional ice hockey player. He played minor hockey in Pennsylvania before being recruited by Harvard University to play college hockey. After four years with Harvard, Bala, who was drafted 58th overall by the Ottawa Senators of the National Hockey League (NHL) in the 1998 NHL entry draft, joined the Senators and appeared in six games. He then the following seasons playing for the minor league affiliates of the Senators, Minnesota Wild and Colorado Avalanche in the American Hockey League. He was named an AHL All-Star in his rookie season in the AHL. He finished his career playing for the Reading Royals of the ECHL.

Chris Bala
Bala with the Milwaukee Admirals in 2005
Born	(1978-09-24) September 24, 1978 (age 46) Alexandria, Virginia, U.S.
Height	6 ft 1 in (185 cm)
Weight	196 lb (89 kg; 14 st 0 lb)
Position	Left wing
Shot	Left
Played for	Ottawa Senators
NHL draft	58th overall, 1998 Ottawa Senators
Playing career	2001–2009

Playing career

Bala was born in Alexandria, Virginia,^[1] but grew up in Phoenixville, Pennsylvania,^[2] where he attended the Hill School.^[1] As a youth, he played in the 1992 Quebec International Pee-Wee Hockey Tournament with the Philadelphia Flyers minor ice hockey team.^[3] He played for four years with the Hill School before being recruited by Harvard University in 1997.^[4]

Bala was drafted 58th overall by the Ottawa Senators in the 1998 NHL entry draft and joined the Senators during the 2001–02 NHL season, playing six regular season games scoring one assist.^[1][5] While with Ottawa, he spent most of his time with their American Hockey League (AHL) affiliates, the Grand Rapids Griffins and Binghamton Senators.^[2] He was named to the AHL All-Star Game as a rookie in 2002.^[6] He was traded by the Senators in a three-team trade on June 26, 2003 that saw Bala go to the Minnesota Wild and defenseman Peter Smrek sent to Ottawa by the Nashville Predators.^[7] He played the majority of the following season in the AHL for the minor league affiliate of the Minnesota Wild, the Houston Aeros, before being traded to the Colorado Avalanche on March 9, 2004 for Jordan Krestanovich. He was immediately assigned to Colorado's AHL affiliate, the Hershey Bears.^[2] He then played for the Reading Royals of the ECHL.^[5]

He returned to his alma mater, the Hill School, as a varsity coach and admissions officer following his playing career.^[4]

Career statistics

				Regular season						Playoffs
Season	Team	League		GP	G	A	Pts	PIM		GP	G	A	Pts	PIM
1997–98	Harvard University	ECAC		33	16	14	30	23		—	—	—	—	—
1998–99	Harvard University	ECAC		28	5	10	15	16		—	—	—	—	—
1999–00	Harvard University	ECAC		30	10	14	24	18		—	—	—	—	—
2000–01	Harvard University	ECAC		32	14	16	30	24		—	—	—	—	—
2001–02	Grand Rapids Griffins	AHL		70	21	16	37	9		4	0	1	1	0
2001–02	Ottawa Senators	NHL		6	0	1	1	0		—	—	—	—	—
2002–03	Binghamton Senators	AHL		51	6	18	24	20		14	2	5	7	4
2003–04	Houston Aeros	AHL		61	11	7	18	18		—	—	—	—	—
2003–04	Hershey Bears	AHL		13	4	2	6	0		—	—	—	—	—
2004–05	Hershey Bears	AHL		58	9	5	14	17		—	—	—	—	—
2005–06	Milwaukee Admirals	AHL		5	1	0	1	0		—	—	—	—	—
2005–06	Hershey Bears	AHL		8	0	2	2	6		—	—	—	—	—
2005–06	Reading Royals	ECHL		46	17	26	43	27		4	3	1	4	0
2006–07	Reading Royals	ECHL		58	19	28	47	28		—	—	—	—	—
2007–08	Reading Royals	ECHL		4	0	1	1	2		—	—	—	—	—
2008–09	Reading Royals	ECHL		2	0	0	0	0		—	—	—	—	—
NHL totals				6	0	1	1	0		—	—	—	—	—

Awards and honors

Award	Year
College
All-ECAC Hockey Rookie Team	1998	[8]
AHL
All-Star Game	2002	[6]