Atlanta Thrasher's Vyacheslav Kozlov and His Hockey Career

Vyacheslav Kozlov is not a name that you hear very often in the United States, that is, unless you're an Atlanta Thrashers. Vyacheslav Kozlov was born in Voskresensk, Russia on May 3, 1972, making him thirty-seven years old. He is 5 feet 10 inches tall and weighs 190 pounds, which for a hockey player, puts him on the small side, but that didn't stop him from becoming known as the best scorer in shootouts in the league. Vyacheslav Kozlov started his hockey career in the RSL (Russian Super League) with the Khimik Moscow Oblast in 1987. Kozlov was drafted by the Detroit Red Wings, an NHL (National Hockey League) team in 1990, 45th overall. He remained with this team in the RSL until the end of the 1990-1991 season, and moved on to another RSL team, the HC CSKA Moscow, for part of the 1991-1992 season, but also spent some time playing for the Detroit Red Wings that season. For the 1992-1993 hockey season, Vyacheslav Kozlov played with the Detroit Red Wing's affiliate AHL (American Hockey League) team, the Adirondack Red Wings until he was called up by the Detroit Red Wings.

In the 1993-1994 hockey season, Vyacheslav Kozlov returned to the AHL team, the Adirondack Red Wings, but was called up to play with the Detroit Red Wings during that season as well. The following season, Kozlov actually went back to the RSL to play with his old team, the HC CSKA Moscow, but finished out the season with the Detroit Red Wings, where he became part of the permanent roster. Vyacheslav Kozlov played with the Detroit Red Wings from 1995 until 2001, and in between those years, the Detroit Red Wings won the Stanley Cups twice (1997 and 1998). He moved on to another NHL team for the 2001-2002 hockey season, the Buffalo Sabres, but only remained there for that season. In the 2002-2003 season, he became part of the Atlanta Thrashers. He played with them until the 2003-2004 season, but went back to play for another one of his old hockey teams during the 2004-2005 NHL lockout. During that season, Kozlov went to play for the Khimik Moscow Oblast, but returned to the Atlanta Thrashers the following season, and has been playing with them ever since.

Along with his notable pro hockey career, he has also represented Russia in many events. In 1991 and 1994 he played for Team Russia in the World Championships. He also played for Russia in the Canada Cup in 1991. He again played for Russia in the World Cup of Hockey in 1996. As mentioned before, he now has a reputation for being the best player when it come to scoring in shootouts. Vyacheslav Kozlov was also awarded the Dan Snyder Memorial Award in the 2006-2007 season. The Dan Snyder Memorial Award is given to the Thrasher player who puts in the most perseverance and dedication to help his teammates succeed.

ref-www.nhl.com