Viktor Nikolayevich Kozlov (russian: Виктор Николаевич Козлов; born 14 February 1975) 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 ...

center and coach. He is the current head coach of 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 ba ...

Salavat Yulaev Ufa Hockey Club Salavat Yulaev (russian: Хоккейный клуб «Салават Юлаев», Hokkejnyj klub «Salavat Julajev»; ba, «Салауат Юлаев» хоккей клубы, «Salawat Yulayev» xokkey klubı), commonly referred ...

Playing career

Kozlov was drafted by 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 ...

in the first round as the sixth overall selection in the

1993 NHL Entry Draft The 1993 NHL Entry Draft was the 31st NHL Entry Draft. It took place on June 26, 1993, at the Colisée de Québec in Quebec City, Quebec. First overall pick Alexandre Daigle is widely regarded today as one of the all-time greatest draft bust ...

. Kozlov scored his first career goal for the Sharks against Ed Belfour and the Chicago Blackhawks on 21 March 1995 in a 7–3 Sharks loss. He would play a few seasons in San Jose before being traded to the

Florida Panthers The Florida Panthers are a professional ice hockey team based in the Miami metropolitan area. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Atlantic Division in the Eastern Conference, and initially played their home g ...

on 13 November 1997. It would be in

Florida Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and ...

, playing with

Pavel Bure Pavel Vladimirovich Bure (russian: Па́вел Влади́мирович Буре́, ; born March 31, 1971) is a Russian former professional ice hockey player who played the right wing position. Nicknamed "the Russian Rocket" for his speed, Bu ...

, that Kozlov would have his best years. His best season was during the 1999–2000 season when he set career highs in assists and points. He played with the Panthers until 1 March 2004, when he was traded to the

New Jersey Devils The New Jersey Devils are a 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. The club was founded as the Kan ...

for

Christian Berglund Christian Jonas Berglund (born March 12, 1980) is a former professional Swedish ice hockey Left Wing who last played for BIK Karlskoga in Hockeyallsvenskan (Swedish 2nd highest division). He previously played in the National Hockey League (NHL) ...

and

Victor Uchevatov Victor Uchevatov (born February 10, 1983 in Angarsk, Russia) is a Russian former professional ice hockey player. He was drafted in the 2nd round of the 2001 NHL entry draft by the New Jersey Devils. Career After being drafted by New Jersey in 200 ...

. During the NHL lockout that wiped out the 2004–05 NHL season, Kozlov played for Lada Togliatti in the

Russian Superleague The Russian Superleague (russian: Чемпионат России Суперлига, ''Russian Championship Superleague''), commonly abbreviated as RSL, was the highest division of the main professional ice hockey league in Russia. It was cons ...

(RSL). However, he returned to the Devils when the NHL started up again. Kozlov was signed as a

free agent In professional sports, a free agent is a player who is eligible to sign with other clubs or franchises; i.e., not under contract to any specific team. The term is also used in reference to a player who is under contract at present but who i ...

by the

New York Islanders The New York Islanders (colloquially known as the Isles) are a professional ice hockey team based in Elmont, New York. The Islanders compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Metropolitan Division in the Eastern Conferenc ...

in 2006. On December 3, 2006, he recorded his second career

hat trick A hat is a head covering which is worn for various reasons, including protection against weather conditions, ceremonial reasons such as university graduation, religious reasons, safety, or as a fashion accessory. Hats which incorporate mecha ...

and first career four-goal game. Despite a hat trick of his own by

Brendan Shanahan Brendan Frederick Shanahan (born January 23, 1969) is a Canadian professional ice hockey executive and former player who currently serves as the president and alternate governor for the Toronto Maple Leafs, having previously served as the direct ...

, the Islanders defeated rival

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

7–4 at

Madison Square Garden Madison Square Garden, colloquially known as The Garden or by its initials MSG, is a multi-purpose indoor arena in New York City. It is located in Midtown Manhattan between Seventh and Eighth avenues from 31st to 33rd Street, above Pennsylv ...

. The four goals gave him a total of six in a 24-hour period — he had scored twice the previous night in

Pittsburgh Pittsburgh ( ) is a city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, United States, and the county seat of Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, Allegheny County. It is the most populous city in both Allegheny County and Wester ...

against the

Penguins Penguins (order Sphenisciformes , family Spheniscidae ) are a group of aquatic flightless birds. They live almost exclusively in the Southern Hemisphere: only one species, the Galápagos penguin, is found north of the Equator. Highly adapt ...

. On 1 July 2007, Kozlov signed a two-year contract with the

Washington Capitals The Washington Capitals (colloquially known as the Caps) are a professional ice hockey team based in Washington, D.C. The team competes in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Metropolitan Division in the Eastern Conference, a ...

. On 15 April 2009, after 15 NHL seasons Kozlov scored his first playoff goal as a member of the Capitals. On 9 June 2009,

signed Kozlov to a three-year contract, signifying the end of his successful NHL career. In each season with Salavat, Kozlov helped the club qualify for the post-season and was part of the leadership group, Captaining for one year. Kozlov opted to sign as a free agent on a two-year contract with Lokomotiv Yaroslavl from the 2012–13 season. In scoring just 1 goal in 21 games, Kozlov was traded to fellow KHL club,

HC CSKA Moscow HC CSKA Moscow (1946–present, russian: ЦСКА Москва, Центральный Спортивный Клуб Армии, ''Central Sports Club of the Army, Moscow'') is a Russian professional ice hockey club based in Moscow. The club ...

on January 9, 2013. Plagued by injury throughout his tenure with CSKA, Kozlov missed the entire 2013–14 campaign. On June 19, 2014, Kozlov signalled a return to health in signing a one-year contract to provide a veteran presence with

Avtomobilist Yekaterinburg HC Avtomobilist (russian: Автомобилист Екатеринбург) are a professional ice hockey team based in Yekaterinburg, Sverdlovsk Oblast, Russia. They replaced Khimik Voskresensk in the Kontinental Hockey League in 2009. Histo ...

. In September 2015, Kozlov retired from playing hockey, instead joining Metallurg Magnitogorsk as their assistant coach on October 19, 2015.

Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs

International

References

* 2005 NHL Official Guide & Record Book

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Kozlov, Viktor 1975 births Avtomobilist Yekaterinburg players Florida Panthers players HC CSKA Moscow players HC Dynamo Moscow players HC Lada Togliatti players Ice hockey players at the 2006 Winter Olympics Ice hockey players at the 2010 Winter Olympics Kansas City Blades players Living people Lokomotiv Yaroslavl players National Hockey League All-Stars National Hockey League first-round draft picks New Jersey Devils players New York Islanders players Olympic ice hockey players of Russia Sportspeople from Tolyatti Russian ice hockey centres Salavat Yulaev Ufa players San Jose Sharks draft picks San Jose Sharks players Washington Capitals players