Anton Volchenkov

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Anton Volchenkov
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Volchenkov during the 2013 Playoffs.
Born (1982-02-25) February 25, 1982 (age 42)
Moscow, Russian SFSR, Soviet Union
Height 6 ft 1 in (185 cm)
Weight 225 lb (102 kg; 16 st 1 lb)
Position Defence
Shoots Left
NHL team
Former teams		 Unrestricted Free Agent
CSKA Moscow
Krylya Sovetov Moscow
Ottawa Senators
New Jersey Devils
Nashville Predators
National team  Russia
NHL Draft 21st overall, 2000
Ottawa Senators
Playing career 1999–present

Anton Alexeyevich Volchenkov (Russian: Анто́н Алексе́евич Волченко́в; born February 25, 1982) is a Russian professional ice hockey defenceman who currently is a Free Agent of the National Hockey League (NHL).

Playing career

File:Anton Volchenkov.jpg
Volchenkov in HC Torpedo Nizhny Novgorod jersey.

Volchenkov grew up in Moscow and began attending the CSKA hockey school at the age of six. Around time when he was in fourth grade, his family moved to Kiev, Ukraine and he began attending the Sokil Kyiv hockey school, as his uncle became the director of that school. After a year in Kiev, Volchenkov returned to the CSKA program in Moscow.

Volchenkov was drafted by the Ottawa Senators in the first round as the 21st overall selection in the 2000 NHL Entry Draft. In the 2002–03 NHL season, he came to North America and played the entire season with the Senators. He is known for his fearless attitude towards other players and the puck, and is generally considered to be amongst the toughest players in the league.[1] In his early days playing in Europe, he played goaltender. However, his coach instructed him to play defence, which may help explain why he led the NHL in blocked shots in 2006–07 by a large margin. He is consistently amongst the top shot blockers and hitters.

After his first stint in Ottawa, he became a regular in the Senators' starting line-up. As a "stay-at-home" defenceman, he is known primarily for his blocked shots and massive hits. He also played in the 2006 Olympic Games for the Russian national ice hockey team and was considered to be among Ottawa's top two defenders, along with Chris Phillips.

On April 9, 2007, Volchenkov announced he would be staying with the Senators, signing a three-year deal. Ottawa's General Manager John Muckler said, "Anton has been one of our top defencemen all season."[2]

He was usually paired with fellow stay-at-home defenceman Chris Phillips. Volchenkov was voted as the fifth-best defensive defenceman by The Hockey News in June 2007. With the defensive help of Volchenkov and Phillips, the Senators made their 2007 Stanley Cup run to the finals, where they were defeated by the Anaheim Ducks in another five-game series. Volchenkov also led the league in shots blocked during the 2007 playoffs.

On July 1, 2010, Volchenkov signed a six-year, $25.5 million contract with the New Jersey Devils.

After four seasons played into his six-year contract, the Devils placed Volchenkov on unconditional waivers for purpose of a buyout, on June 30, 2014.[3] As a free agent on July 7, 2014, he was signed to a one-year $1 million contract by the Nashville Predators.[4]

International play

Medal record
Representing  Russia
Men's ice hockey
IIHF World U18 Championships
Gold medal – first place 2001 Finland
IIHF World Championship
Gold medal – first place 2009 Switzerland

In the early days of his hockey career, he captained the 2001 Russian World Junior Hockey team to a championship in which he scored the winning goal against Team Canada, catching the attention of many pro scouts. Throughout 2001-2003, he was mentored by James "JP" Kunda.

Volchenkov has also played for team Russia in the 2006 Winter Olympics, the 2010 Winter Olympics, and in the 2009 IIHF World Championship.

Injuries

In a game against the Boston Bruins, on December 8, 2003, he suffered a shoulder injury and took the majority of the 2003–04 season to recover.

In a regular season game against the Nashville Predators, on November 29, 2007, he suffered a broken finger in an attempt to block a shot. He would come back after missing 15 games.

In the 2008 playoffs against the Pittsburgh Penguins, Volchenkov fell in front of the net and was struck in the face by a puck, suffering a laceration. He returned the following game, and finished the series with one assist, one penalty, and one shot in four games.

Personal life

After playing as a goaltender when he began playing hockey as a child, Volchenkov was switched to defence by his coach. He has been among the NHL league leaders in blocked shots since the 2005–06 season.

Volchenkov has been married for five years. He and his wife have a son, Anton Jr. and on February 20, 2011, he and his wife welcomed twins, a boy and a girl.

Volchenkov's father Alexei was a defenceman on the Red Army hockey team during the 1975 Super Series.

Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs

Regular season Playoffs
Season Team League GP G A Pts PIM GP G A Pts PIM
1999–00 HK CSKA-2 Moscow RUS-3 6 0 1 1 10 — — — — —
1999–00 HK CSKA Moscow RUS-2 31 2 9 11 40 — — — — —
2000–01 Krylya Sovetov Moscow RUS-2 34 3 4 7 56 14 0 1 1 6
2001–02 Krylya Sovetov-2 Moscow RUS-3 1 0 0 0 0 — — — — —
2001–02 Krylya Sovetov Moscow RSL 47 4 15 19 48 3 0 0 0 29
2002–03 Ottawa Senators NHL 57 3 13 16 40 17 1 1 2 4
2003–04 Ottawa Senators NHL 19 1 2 3 8 5 0 0 0 6
2004–05 Binghamton Senators AHL 81 10 35 45 62 6 0 3 3 0
2005–06 Ottawa Senators NHL 75 4 13 17 53 9 0 4 4 8
2006–07 Ottawa Senators NHL 78 1 18 19 67 20 2 4 6 24
2007–08 Ottawa Senators NHL 67 1 14 15 55 4 0 1 1 2
2008–09 Ottawa Senators NHL 68 2 8 10 36 — — — — —
2009–10 Ottawa Senators NHL 64 4 10 14 38 6 0 2 2 4
2010–11 New Jersey Devils NHL 57 0 8 8 36 — — — — —
2011–12 New Jersey Devils NHL 72 2 9 11 34 24 1 1 2 10
2012–13 Torpedo Nizhny Novgorod KHL 11 0 1 1 16 — — — — —
2012–13 New Jersey Devils NHL 37 1 4 5 37 — — — — —
2013–14 New Jersey Devils NHL 56 0 8 8 20 — — — — —
2014–15 Nashville Predators NHL 46 0 7 7 14 1 0 0 0 2
NHL totals 696 19 114 133 438 86 4 13 17 60

International

Year Team Event Result GP G A Pts PIM
2000 Russia WJC18 2nd 6 1 0 1 6
2001 Russia WJC 7th 7 0 4 4 6
2002 Russia WJC 1st 7 1 3 4 6
2002 Russia WC 2nd 9 0 0 0 0
2004 Russia WCH QF 1 0 0 0 0
2006 Russia Oly 4th 8 0 0 0 2
2009 Russia WC 1st 1 0 1 1 0
2010 Russia Oly 6th 4 0 1 1 2
Junior totals 20 2 7 9 18
Senior totals 23 0 2 2 4

References

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External links

Preceded by Ottawa Senators first round draft pick
2000		 Succeeded by
Jason Spezza
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