Viktor Kozlov

Infobox Ice Hockey Player


image_size=
team=Washington Capitals
former_teams = San Jose Sharks
Florida Panthers
New Jersey Devils
New York Islanders
league = NHL
position = C/W
shoots = Right
height_ft = 6
height_in = 5
weight_lb = 235
nickname =
nationality = Russia
birth_date = Birth date and age|1975|2|14|mf=y
birth_place = Togliatti, U.S.S.R.
draft = 6th overall
draft_year = 1993
draft_team = San Jose Sharks
career_start = 1995

Viktor Nikolayevich Kozlov ( _ru. Виктор Николаевич Козлов; born 14 February, 1975 in Togliatti, U.S.S.R.) is a Russian ice hockey player with the Washington Capitals of the National Hockey League. He plays as a center.

Playing career

Kozlov was drafted by the San Jose Sharks in the 1st round as the 6th overall selection in the 1993 NHL Entry Draft. He would play a few seasons in San Jose before being traded to the Florida Panthers on 13 November 1997. It would be in Florida, playing with Pavel Bure, that Kozlov would have his best years. His best season was during the 1999–00 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 for Christian Berglund and Victor Uchevatov.

During the NHL lockout that wiped out the 2004–05 NHL season, Kozlov played for Lada Togliatti in the Russian League. However, he returned to the Devils when the NHL started up again.

Kozlov was signed as a free agent by the New York Islanders in 2006. On December 3, 2006, he recorded his second career hat trick and first career four-goal game [http://www.nhl.com/scores/htmlreports/20062007/GS020391.HTM] , as the Islanders defeated the rival Rangers 7–4 at Madison Square Garden. The four goals gave him a total of six in a twenty-four hour period; he had scored twice the previous night in Pittsburgh against the Penguins.

On July 1, 2007, Kozlov was part of the Free Agent frenzy, when he was signed by the Washington Capitals.

Career statistics

International play

Played for Russia in:
*1991 European Junior Championships
*1992 European Junior Championships
*1993 World Junior Championships
*1996 World Championships
*1998 World Championships
*2000 World Championships
*2004 World Cup of Hockey
*2005 World Championships
*2006 Winter Olympics

International statistics

ee also

*List of NHL players
*List of NHL seasons

References

*hockeydb|2808
* 2005 NHL Official Guide & Record Book ISBN 0-920445-91-8