Robin Bawa

Robin N. Bawa (born March 26, 1966) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey player who spent parts of four seasons in the National Hockey League (NHL) between 1989 and 1994. Bawa is the first person of Indian descent to play in the NHL.

Playing career Bawa spent five productive seasons of junior hockey in the Western Hockey League with the Kamloops Blazers, but was passed over in the NHL entry draft. Finally, after a 57-goal performance in the 1986–87 season, Bawa earned a pro contract from the Washington Capitals.

Bawa turned pro the following season, spending the year in the International Hockey League (IHL) with the Fort Wayne Komets. While Bawa had been primarily a skill player in junior, he began to fight more often in pro hockey and developed into an enforcer. He averaged over 200 penalty minutes in his first three years in Washington's system, finally earning a five-game callup to the Capitals in 1989–90, during which he scored his first NHL goal, against Alain Chevrier and the Chicago Blackhawks.

Bawa played one more season in the Capitals' system, posting 381 penalty minutes in Fort Wayne but not seeing any more NHL action, before being dealt to the Vancouver Canucks in 1991. He played two games for the Canucks in 1991–92, and set a career high with 27 goals in the IHL. He also dressed up for one game in the 1992 Stanley Cup Playoffs for the Canucks, his only playoff appearance in the NHL.

Early in the 1992–93 season, Bawa was dealt to the San Jose Sharks, where he had his most prolonged NHL stint. He spent most of the rest of the season in the NHL, scoring 5 goals in 42 games and posting 47 penalty minutes.

Bawa was exposed in the 1993 NHL Expansion Draft and claimed by the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim. He played 12 more NHL games in 1993–94, registering his only career assist.

Following his release from the Ducks, Bawa continued to toil in the IHL for five more seasons, three of those back in Fort Wayne, before a concussion ended his career near the end of the 1998–99 season. He finished his IHL career with 147 goals and 175 assists in 565 career games along with 1,869 penalty minutes.

Bawa is the first person of Indian descent to play in the NHL, where he achieved six goals and one assist in 61 games, while collecting 60 penalty minutes.

Career statistics Regular season and playoffs Regular seasonPlayoffs Season Team League GP G A Pts PIM GP G A Pts PIM 1982–83 Kamloops Junior Oilers WHL 66 10 24 34 17 7 1 2 3 0 1983–84 Kamloops Junior Oilers WHL 64 16 28 44 40 13 4 2 6 4 1984–85 New Westminster Bruins WHL 26 4 6 10 20 — — — — — 1984–85 Kamloops Blazers WHL 26 2 13 15 25 15 4 9 13 14 1985–86 Kamloops Blazers WHL 63 29 43 72 78 16 5 13 18 4 1986–87 Kamloops Blazers WHL 62 57 56 113 91 13 6 7 13 22 1987–88 Fort Wayne Komets IHL 55 12 27 39 239 6 1 3 4 24 1988–89 Baltimore Skipjacks AHL 75 23 24 47 205 — — — — — 1989–90 Washington Capitals NHL 5 1 0 1 6 — — — — — 1989–90 Baltimore Skipjacks AHL 61 7 18 25 189 11 1 2 3 49 1990–91 Fort Wayne Komets IHL 72 21 26 47 381 18 4 4 8 87 1991–92 Vancouver Canucks NHL 2 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 1991–92 Milwaukee Admirals IHL 70 27 14 41 238 5 2 2 4 8 1992–93 San Jose Sharks NHL 42 5 0 5 47 — — — — — 1992–93 Hamilton Canucks AHL 23 3 4 7 58 — — — — — 1992–93 Kansas City Blades IHL 5 2 0 2 20 — — — — — 1993–94 Mighty Ducks of Anaheim NHL 12 0 1 1 7 — — — — — 1993–94 San Diego Gulls IHL 25 6 15 21 54 6 0 0 0 52 1994–95 Kalamazoo Wings IHL 71 22 12 34 184 — — — — — 1994–95 Milwaukee Admirals IHL 4 1 1 2 19 15 1 5 6 48 1995–96 San Francisco Spiders IHL 77 23 25 48 234 4 0 2 2 4 1996–97 Fort Wayne Komets IHL 54 10 23 33 181 — — — — — 1997–98 Fort Wayne Komets IHL 58 12 15 27 125 — — — — — 1998–99 Fort Wayne Komets IHL 74 11 17 28 194 — — — — — IHL totals 565 147 175 322 1869 54 8 16 24 223 AHL totals 159 33 46 79 452 11 1 2 3 49 NHL totals 61 6 1 7 60 1 0 0 0 0

Awards and achievements WHL West First All-Star Team (1986–87) BC Sports Hall of Fame (2020)