David M. Hale (born June 18, 1981) is an

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

former professional

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. He played for the

New Jersey Devils The New Jersey Devils are a professional sports, professional ice hockey team based in Newark, New Jersey. The Devils compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Metropolitan Division in the Eastern Conference (NHL), Eastern ...

Calgary Flames The Calgary Flames are a professional ice hockey team based in Calgary. The Flames compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Pacific Division (NHL), Pacific Division in the Western Conference (NHL), Western Conference, and ...

Phoenix Coyotes The Arizona Coyotes are a professional ice hockey team based in the Phoenix metropolitan area. The Coyotes compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Central Division in the Western Conference and currently play at the Mull ...

Tampa Bay Lightning The Tampa Bay Lightning (colloquially known as the Bolts) are a professional ice hockey team based in Tampa, Florida. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Atlantic Division in the Eastern Conference. They play th ...

and

Ottawa Senators The Ottawa Senators (french: Sénateurs d'Ottawa), officially the Ottawa Senators Hockey Club and colloquially known as the Sens, are a professional ice hockey team based in Ottawa. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a membe ...

over an eight-year

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) career. Hale is noteworthy for holding the record for most games needed to score his first NHL goal, with it taking him 231 games, scoring it in his 6th professional season.

Playing career

Hale, a Colorado Springs native, played

high school A secondary school describes an institution that provides secondary education and also usually includes the building where this takes place. Some secondary schools provide both '' lower secondary education'' (ages 11 to 14) and ''upper seconda ...

hockey for Coronado High School before joining

Sioux City Musketeers The Sioux City Musketeers are a junior ice hockey team playing in the Western Conference of the United States Hockey League (USHL). The Musketeers' home ice is Tyson Events Center. The team was founded in 1972, and has won three Anderson Cups a ...

of the

USHL The United States Hockey League (USHL) is the top junior ice hockey league sanctioned by USA Hockey. The league consists of 16 active teams located in the midwestern United States, for players between the ages of 16 and 21. The USHL is strictly ...

. He was drafted from the Musketeers in the first round, 22nd overall by the

in the

2000 NHL Entry Draft The 2000 NHL Entry Draft was the 38th NHL Entry Draft. It was held on June 24 and 25, 2000 at the Pengrowth Saddledome in Calgary, Alberta, following the 2000 NHL Expansion Draft on June 23 for the Columbus Blue Jackets and Minnesota Wild. This ...

before joining the

University of North Dakota The University of North Dakota (also known as UND or North Dakota) is a public research university in Grand Forks, North Dakota. It was established by the Dakota Territorial Assembly in 1883, six years before the establishment of the state of ...

to play collegiate hockey in the

Western Collegiate Hockey Association The Western Collegiate Hockey Association (WCHA) is a college athletic conference which operates in the Midwestern United States. It participates in the NCAA's Division I as a women's ice hockey-only conference. From 1951 to 1999, it operated a ...

. Hale made his NHL debut on October 8, 2003. On February 27, 2007, Hale was traded by the Devils, along with a 2007 fifth-round draft pick, to the

for a 2007 third-round draft pick. On July 3, 2008, Hale, a free agent, signed with the Phoenix Coyotes on a two-year deal. During the 2008–09 season on November 26, 2008, Hale scored his first NHL goal in a 3-2 victory against the

Columbus Blue Jackets The Columbus Blue Jackets (often simply referred to as the Jackets) are a professional ice hockey team based in Columbus, Ohio. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Metropolitan Division in the Eastern Conference, ...

. Hale scored in his 231st game, setting a record for the longest start to a NHL career without a goal. On July 21, 2009, Hale was traded by the Coyotes, along with

Todd Fedoruk Todd Julian Fedoruk (born February 13, 1979) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey left winger who played nine seasons in the National Hockey League (NHL) for six different teams. Todd has Ukrainian origin. Playing career Fedoruk spent hi ...

, to the Tampa Bay Lightning for

Radim Vrbata Radim Vrbata (born 13 June 1981) is a Czech former professional ice hockey right winger. He had a 16-year career in the National Hockey League (NHL). Vrbata was originally drafted in 1999 by the Colorado Avalanche, with whom he has also played, al ...

. Used as a depth defenseman Hale played sparingly in 35 games, before he was reassigned to AHL affiliate, the

Norfolk Admirals Norfolk Admirals has been the name of two professional ice hockey franchises: * Norfolk Admirals (AHL), a team which played in the American Hockey League from 2000 to 2015 *Norfolk Admirals (ECHL) The Norfolk Admirals are a professional ice hock ...

, on a conditioning assignment. In his last game with the Admirals, Hale broke his foot and returned to Tampa to play in just 4 more games to end the 2009–10 season. On August 4, 2010, Hale signed a one-year contract with the Ottawa Senators. Hale split the season between Ottawa and their AHL team, the

Binghamton Senators The Binghamton Senators were a professional ice hockey team in the American Hockey League (AHL) that played from 2002 to 2017. Nicknamed the B-Sens, they played in Binghamton, New York, at the Floyd L. Maines Veterans Memorial Arena. The B-Sens w ...

. Hale finished the season with Ottawa, and did not take part in Binghamton's Calder Cup playoff run. On October 15, 2011, Hale officially announced his retirement from hockey. On June 26, 2013 Hale signed with

Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, an ethnic group or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance language *** Regional Ita ...

team HC Appiano, in the semi-pro

Inter-National League The Inter-National League was an international ice hockey league that was a partnership between the national federations of Austria and Slovenia. It was created as a solution to semi-professional hockey in both Austria and neighboring Slovenia. ...

Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs

International

Awards and honors

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Hale, David 1981 births Living people Albany River Rats players American men's ice hockey defensemen Binghamton Senators players Calgary Flames players Ice hockey players from Colorado Lowell Devils players National Hockey League first-round draft picks New Jersey Devils draft picks New Jersey Devils players Norfolk Admirals players Ottawa Senators players Phoenix Coyotes players Sioux City Musketeers players Sportspeople from Colorado Springs, Colorado Tampa Bay Lightning players North Dakota Fighting Hawks men's ice hockey players