Ilya Kovalchuk

From Free net encyclopedia


Position:	Left Wing
Birthplace:	Tver, Russia
NHL Entry Draft:	2001, 1st round, 1st overall, Atlanta Thrashers
Shoots:	Right
Height:	6 ft 2 in
Weight:	220 lbs.

Ilya Kovalchuk (Russian: Илья Ковальчук, Il'ja Kovalčuk; born April 15, 1983, in Tver, USSR) is a professional ice hockey player.

1 Playing career
2 Awards
3 Career statistics
4 International play
5 External links

[edit]

Playing career

Drafted by Atlanta first overall in the 2001 NHL Entry Draft, Ilya Kovalchuk was the first Russian to be drafted first overall in NHL history. In the 2003-04 NHL season, on February 8th, Ilya played and scored in his first career all-star game.

In club-level competition, Ilya wears the number 17 as a tribute to the late Valeri Kharlamov, a Soviet superstar in the 1970s. But when Ilya plays for his national team he wears number 71, because number 17 is retired to Kharlamov. In 2006 he played in the Torino Olympics as a member of the Russian men's hockey team, and had a four-goal game on February 19 in a 9-2 rout of Latvia. Despite his strong playing ability, he tends to have a bad temper. In the bronze medal game, on February 25, against the Czech Republic, Kovalchuk blindsided Pavel Kubina and was ejected from the game. Kovalchuk also has ongoing bad blood with Canadian rookie sensation Sidney Crosby, and has drawn criticism from some hockey analysts, including Don Cherry.

During the 2004-05 NHL lockout, Ilya played with Aq Bars Kazan along with fellow NHL'ers Alexei Kovalev, Vincent Lecavalier, Brad Richards, Michael Nylander, Alexei Zhitnik, and Dany Heatley.

In early 2006, Ilya joined in the charity effort focusing on unfortunate children in Atlanta and also throughout the Philadelphia area. He was recognized for his good service by the National Hockey League and is currently involved in several hockey related charities including "The DiGiacobbe Household," and the "National Boraske Foundation of Economics (NBFE)" which are both stationed in Ridley Park, PA.

As of February 2006, Kovalchuk plays for the Atlanta Thrashers of the NHL. A fan favourite at Philips Arena, he is known as "Kovy".

[edit]

Awards

Played in NHL YoungStars Game - 2002
NHL YoungStars Game MVP - 2002
NHL All-Rookie Team - 2002
Played in 1 NHL All-Star Game - 2004
NHL Second All-Star Team - 2004
Maurice 'Rocket' Richard Trophy - 2004 (shared with Jarome Iginla and Rick Nash).

[edit]

Career statistics

			Regular Season					Playoffs
Season	Team	League	GP	G	A	Pts	PIM	GP	G	A	Pts	PIM
1999-00	Krylja Sovetov	Rus	51	14	6	20	89	-	-	-	-	-
2000-01	Krylja Sovetov	Rus	39	25	18	43	78	12	14	4	18	38
2001-02	Atlanta Thrashers	NHL	65	29	22	51	28	-	-	-	-	-
2002-03	Atlanta Thrashers	NHL	81	38	29	67	57	-	-	-	-	-
2003-04	Atlanta Thrashers	NHL	81	41	46	87	63	-	-	-	-	-
2004-05	Aq Bars Kazan	Rus	53	19	23	42	72	4	0	1	1	0
2005-06	Atlanta Thrashers	NHL	75	52	46	98	68	-	-	-	-	-
Rus Totals			143	58	47	105	239	16	14	5	19	38
NHL Totals			296	160	143	303	212	-	-	-	-	-