Viktor Vasilievich Tikhonov (russian: Виктор Васильевич Тихонов; born 12 May 1988) is a Russian 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 ...

forward. Tikhonov was originally selected 28th overall in the

2008 NHL Entry Draft The 2008 NHL Entry Draft was the 46th NHL Entry Draft. It was hosted by the Ottawa Senators at Scotiabank Place in the city of Ottawa, Ontario, on June 20–21, 2008. The Senators were originally awarded the 2005 NHL Entry Draft, but because of t ...

, by the

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 Mul ...

. After several years in the

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) with the Coyotes, Tikhonov moved to the

Kontinental Hockey League The Kontinental Hockey League (KHL; russian: Континентальная хоккейная лига (КХЛ), Kontinental'naya khokkeynaya liga) is an international professional ice hockey league founded in 2008. It comprises member clubs b ...

(KHL) in Russia, where he spent four years with SKA St. Petersburg. In 2015, he returned to the NHL, signing a contract with the Chicago Blackhawks, appearing in 11 games for them before he was claimed on waivers by the Coyotes. He was named after his grandfather, Viktor Vasilyevich Tikhonov, the late Soviet ice hockey player and coach. His father was Vasili Tikhonov, who was also an ice hockey coach. Born in Latvia while it was still a member of the

USSR The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen national ...

, Tikhonov has represented

Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and Northern Asia. It is the largest country in the world, with its internationally recognised territory covering , and encompassing one-eight ...

internationally, participating in several

World Championships A world championship is generally an international competition open to elite competitors from around the world, representing their nations, and winning such an event will be considered the highest or near highest achievement in the sport, game, ...

and the

2014 Winter Olympics , ''Zharkie. Zimnie. Tvoi'') , nations = 88 , events = 98 in 7 sports (15 disciplines) , athletes = 2,873 , opening = 7 February 2014 , closing = 23 February 2014 , opened_by = President Vladimir Putin , cauldron = , stadium = Fisht Olympi ...

Sochi, Russia Sochi ( rus, Со́чи, p=ˈsotɕɪ, a=Ru-Сочи.ogg) is the largest resort city in Russia. The city is situated on the Sochi River, along the Black Sea in Southern Russia, with a population of 466,078 residents, up to 600,000 residents in ...

Playing career

As a youth, Tikhonov played in the 1999

Quebec International Pee-Wee Hockey Tournament The Quebec International Pee-Wee Hockey Tournament (french: Tournoi international de hockey pee-wee de Québec) is an annual minor ice hockey event in Quebec City. The tournament was founded in 1960 to coincide with the Quebec Winter Carnival ...

with a

minor ice hockey Minor hockey is an umbrella term for amateur ice hockey which is played below the junior age level. Players are classified by age, with each age group playing in its own league. The rules, especially as it relates to body contact, vary from cl ...

team from Santa Clara. Tikhonov was drafted 28th overall by the

in the

from

n team

Severstal Cherepovets Hockey Club Severstal is a professional ice hockey team based in Cherepovets, Vologda Oblast, Russia. They are members of the Tarasov Division in the Kontinental Hockey League. History Founded in 1956, the club was originally known as Stroitel ( ...

. This was his third time entering the draft as he was passed over in his two previous years of eligibility. On 1 July 2008 he was signed by the Coyotes to a three-year entry-level contract. In the following 2008–09 season Tikhonov made the Coyotes' opening-night roster making his NHL debut on 12 October 2008, 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 (N ...

. He played in 61 games scoring 8 goals and 16 points before he was assigned to American Hockey League affiliate, the

San Antonio Rampage The San Antonio Rampage were a professional ice hockey team in the American Hockey League based in San Antonio, Texas. The Rampage was primarily owned by Spurs Sports & Entertainment throughout the team's existence. In 2020, the franchise was sold ...

. Tikhonov started the 2009–10 season in the AHL with the Rampage and played in 18 games before opting to take up a loan to regain form with

of the KHL for the remainder of the season on 27 November 2009. After scoring 14 goals in 25 games, tied for second among Severstal, Tikhonov was recalled by the Coyotes on 13 March 2010. He rejoined the Coyotes as a part of the practice squad as they reached the first round of the playoffs. In the

2010–11 1 (one, unit, unity) is a number representing a single or the only entity. 1 is also a numerical digit and represents a single unit of counting or measurement. For example, a line segment of ''unit length'' is a line segment of length 1. I ...

season, he failed to make the Coyotes' roster for opening night, spending the duration of the year again with the Rampage, posting a then professional high of 33 points in 60 contests. On 10 August 2011 the

re-signed Tikhonov to a one-year deal. Tikhonov returned to the KHL to play four seasons for

SKA Saint Petersburg The Hockey Club SKA (russian: Спортивный клуб СКА), often referred to as SKA Saint Petersburg and literally as the Sports Club of the Army, is a Russian professional ice hockey club based in Saint Petersburg. They are members o ...

, helping capture the

Gagarin Cup The Gagarin Cup (russian: Кубок Гагарина, Kubok Gagarina) is the trophy presented to the winner of the Kontinental Hockey League (KHL) playoffs, and is named after Soviet cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin, the first human in space. The Cup was ...

in his final season with Saint Petersburg in 2014–15 season. As a free agent, Tikhonov returned to play in North America, signing alongside SKA teammate

Artemi Panarin Artemi Sergeyevich Panarin (russian: Арте́мий Серге́евич Пана́рин; born 30 October 1991), nicknamed the "Breadman", or simply "Bread", is a Russian professional ice hockey winger and alternate captain for the New York ...

, a one-year contract with the defending

Stanley Cup The Stanley Cup (french: La Coupe Stanley) is the championship trophy awarded annually to the National Hockey League (NHL) Stanley Cup playoffs, playoff champion. It is the oldest existing trophy to be awarded to a professional sports franchis ...

Champions, the Chicago Blackhawks on 1 July 2015. He made the Blackhawks squad to open the 2015–16 season, playing his first game in the NHL since 2009 in a 3–2 overtime victory against the New York Islanders on 9 October 2015. Used in a depth role, Tikhonov went scoreless with the Blackhawks in 11 games before he was placed on waivers on 5 December 2015. The following day he was claimed off waivers by his former club, the Arizona Coyotes. Unable to reach his offensive upside in the NHL, Tikhonov was not tendered a new contract to remain in Arizona, and as a free agent he opted to return to his native Russia, for a second stint with SKA St. Petersburg on a one-year deal on July 17, 2016. During his eighth season with SKA Saint Petersburg in the 2019–20 season, Tikhonov was traded alongside Roman Rukavishnikov to

Ak Bars Kazan Hockey Club Ak Bars (russian: Ак Барс, tt-Cyrl, Ак Барс, en, Snow Leopard), also known as Ak Bars Kazan, is a Russian professional ice hockey team based in Kazan. They are members of the Kharlamov Division of the Kontinental Hockey ...

in exchange for Igor Ozhiganov on 7 November 2019. Following two seasons with Ak Bars, Tikhonov left as a free agent and was signed to a two-year contract with Salavat Yulaev Ufa on 2 May 2021. After 17 seasons, Tikonov announced his retirement from professional hockey due to injury on 4 July 2022.

International play

He won a bronze medal in the 2008 IIHF World Junior Championships with the Russian squad, in a game versus

Team USA The United States national team or Team USA may refer to any of a number of sports team representing the United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country ...

. He finished the tournament with five goals and two assists in seven games, and was named the Best Forward. In July 2013 he was named to the preliminary 35-man roster for the Russian 2014 Olympic team. Russia placed 5th with Tikhonov making one assist. He later won a gold medal in the

2014 IIHF World Championship The 2014 IIHF World Championship was hosted by Belarus in its capital, Minsk, held from 9–25 May 2014. Sixteen national teams were competing in two venues, the Minsk-Arena and Chizhovka-Arena. It was the first time Belarus hosted the tournam ...

with Russia and led the tournament in scoring.

Personal life

Tikhonov was born in

Riga Riga (; lv, Rīga , liv, Rīgõ) is the capital and largest city of Latvia and is home to 605,802 inhabitants which is a third of Latvia's population. The city lies on the Gulf of Riga at the mouth of the Daugava river where it meets the B ...

, and grew up in

Los Gatos, California Los Gatos (, ; ) is an incorporated town in Santa Clara County, California, United States. The population is 33,529 according to the 2020 census. It is located in the San Francisco Bay Area just southwest of San Jose in the foothills of the ...

and, in 1994, moved with his family to

Lexington, Kentucky Lexington is a city in Kentucky, United States that is the county seat of Fayette County, Kentucky, Fayette County. By population, it is the List of cities in Kentucky, second-largest city in Kentucky and List of United States cities by popul ...

. He is named after his grandfather, Viktor Tikhonov, who was the head coach of CSKA and the Soviet national team throughout the 1970s and 1980s. His father, Vasili, was the assistant coach for the

San Jose Sharks The San Jose Sharks are a professional ice hockey team based in San Jose, California. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Pacific Division in the Western Conference, and are owned by San Jose Sports & Entertain ...

' American Hockey League (AHL) affiliate, the

Kentucky Thoroughblades The Kentucky Thoroughblades were a minor professional ice hockey team in the American Hockey League, who existed from 1996 to 2001. The Thoroughblades were based in Lexington, Kentucky, playing home games at Rupp Arena. The Thoroughblades were an ...

. Viktor was heavily involved in the Santa Clara Valley Blackhawks youth hockey program.

Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs

International

Awards and honors

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Tikhonov, Viktor 1988 births Living people Ak Bars Kazan players Arizona Coyotes draft picks Arizona Coyotes players Chicago Blackhawks players Ice hockey players at the 2014 Winter Olympics National Hockey League first-round draft picks Olympic ice hockey players of Russia Phoenix Coyotes players Russian ice hockey right wingers Salavat Yulaev Ufa players San Antonio Rampage players Severstal Cherepovets players SKA Saint Petersburg players Ice hockey people from Riga