Daniel Kristo (born June 18, 1990) is an American professional

ice hockey Ice hockey (or simply hockey in North America) is a team sport played on ice skates, usually on an Ice rink, ice skating rink with Ice hockey rink, lines and markings specific to the sport. It belongs to a family of sports called hockey. Tw ...

forward for the Coventry Blaze in the

Elite Ice Hockey League The Elite Ice Hockey League (EIHL), sometimes referred to internationally as the British Elite League, is an ice hockey league in the United Kingdom. Formed in 2003 following the demise of the Ice Hockey Superleague, it is the highest level ...

(EIHL). He was selected in the second round, 56th overall, by the

Montreal Canadiens The Montreal Canadiens (), officially ' ( Canadian Hockey Club) and colloquially known as the Habs, are a professional ice hockey team based in Montreal. The Canadiens compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Atlantic D ...

in the 2008 NHL Entry Draft.

Playing career

Kristo was drafted by the

, 56th overall in the 2008 NHL Entry Draft. He played college hockey with the

University of North Dakota The University of North Dakota (UND) is a Public university, public research university in Grand Forks, North Dakota, United States. It was established by the Dakota Territory, Dakota Territorial Assembly in 1883, six years before the establishm ...

in the NCAA Men's Division I WCHA conference. In his

senior Senior (shortened as Sr.) means "the elder" in Latin and is often used as a suffix for the elder of two or more people in the same family with the same given name, usually a parent or grandparent. It may also refer to: * Senior (name), a surname ...

year, Kristo's outstanding play was rewarded with a selection to the 2012–13 All- WCHA First Team. On July 2, 2013, Kristo was traded, by the Canadiens, to the

New York Rangers The New York Rangers are a professional ice hockey team based in New York City. The Rangers compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Metropolitan Division in the Eastern Conference (NHL), Eastern Conference. The team plays ...

for right winger Christian Thomas. On August 19, 2014, the Rangers announced that they had re-signed Kristo, who was a restricted free agent, to a one-year $826,875 contract. On July 2, 2015, Kristo left the Rangers as a free agent, signing a one-year, two-way contract with the St. Louis Blues. In the 2015–16 season, Kristo was assigned to play with the Blues AHL affiliate, the

Chicago Wolves The Chicago Wolves are a professional ice hockey team based in Rosemont, Illinois. They are the American Hockey League (AHL) affiliate of the Carolina Hurricanes of the National Hockey League (NHL). The Wolves play home games at the Allstate Arena ...

. In playing the entirety of the year with the Wolves, Kristo appeared in 71 games in compiling 25 goals and 48 points. On August 2, 2016, Kristo re-signed with the St. Louis Blues on a one-year, two-way contract. In the 2016–17 season, his second year with the Wolves, Kristo had 2 assists in 8 games before he was dealt by the Blues to the

Pittsburgh Penguins The Pittsburgh Penguins (colloquially known as the Pens) are a professional ice hockey team based in Pittsburgh. The Penguins compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Metropolitan Division in the Eastern Conference (NHL), E ...

in exchange for defenseman Reid McNeill on November 19, 2016. Remaining in the AHL with the

Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins The Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins (sometimes known as the WBS Penguins) are a professional ice hockey team based in Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania. They are the American Hockey League (AHL) affiliate of the National Hockey League's Pittsburgh Pengui ...

, Kristo added 6 goals and 11 points in 32 games before on February 23, 2017, he was dealt again by the Penguins to the

Carolina Hurricanes The Carolina Hurricanes (colloquially known as the Canes) are a professional ice hockey team based in Raleigh, North Carolina. The Hurricanes compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Metropolitan Division in the Eastern Con ...

along with a second round draft pick in exchange for Ron Hainsey. He played out the season with the Hurricanes AHL affiliate, the

Charlotte Checkers The Charlotte Checkers are a professional ice hockey team based in Charlotte, North Carolina. They are members of the Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference in the American Hockey League (AHL), and are the top minor league affiliate of the ...

, contributing with 10 points in 14 games. With dwindling NHL prospects going forward, Kristo opted to sign his first contract abroad in agreeing to a one-year deal with

Latvia Latvia, officially the Republic of Latvia, is a country in the Baltic region of Northern Europe. It is one of the three Baltic states, along with Estonia to the north and Lithuania to the south. It borders Russia to the east and Belarus to t ...

n based Dinamo Riga of the KHL on June 30, 2017. After a two-year stint in the Swiss

National League National League often refers to: *National League (baseball), one of the two baseball leagues constituting Major League Baseball in the United States and Canada *National League (division), the fifth division of the English football (soccer) system ...

with SC Rapperswil-Jona Lakers, Kristo left as a free agent to return to the KHL, agreeing to a one-year deal with Chinese club, HC Kunlun Red Star, on July 29, 2020. Kristo collected 4 goals in 14 contests with Kunlun before leaving to KHL to join German club,

Augsburger Panther The Augsburger Panther are a professional ice hockey team in the Deutsche Eishockey Liga, DEL. The team is based in Augsburg, Bavaria, Germany. They play their home games at the Curt Frenzel Stadion. Founded in 1878, the team's name was Augsburge ...

of the

Deutsche Eishockey Liga The Deutsche Eishockey Liga (for sponsorship reasons called Penny (supermarket), PENNY Deutsche Eishockey Liga) (; English: ''German Ice Hockey League'') or DEL, is a professional ice hockey league in Germany and the highest division in German i ...

(DEL) on January 8, 2021. As a free agent, following completing the season with the Augsburger Panther, Kristo moved to the Czech Republic in agreeing to a one-year contract with Rytíři Kladno of the ELH, on July 14, 2021. In October 2022, following a spell in Slovakia with

HK Dukla Michalovce HK Dukla Michalovce is a professional ice hockey team playing in the Tipsport Liga (hockey), Slovak Extraliga, the top level of ice hockey in the country. They play in the city of Michalovce, Slovakia at Michalovce Ice Stadium. History The club wa ...

, Kristo moved to the UK to sign for

(EIHL) side Sheffield Steelers. In July 2023, Kristo moved to fellow Elite League club Coventry Blaze.

Personal life

Kristo's second cousin Ben Blood was drafted by the

Ottawa Senators The Ottawa Senators (), officially the Ottawa Senators Hockey Club and colloquially known as the Sens, are a professional ice hockey team based in Ottawa. The Senators compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Atlantic Di ...

in the 2007 NHL Entry Draft. He currently plays for Tappara in the

Liiga The Liiga, colloquially called the Finnish Elite League in English or FM-ligan in Swedish, is the top professional ice hockey league in Finland. The league comprises 16 teams from all around Finland with relegation and promotion between the Mesti ...

Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs

International

Awards and achievements

References

External links