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Aq Bars Kazan (Russian: Ак Барс Казань) is a Russian ice hockey team playing in the Continental Hockey League.
The team's name, Aq Bars (usually transliterated as Ak Bars), is derived from the official symbol of Tatarstan, translated as the White Leopard or Snow Leopard, a traditional symbol which has its origins with the Barsil, one of the Tatar tribes.
- Founded: 1955
- Home arena: TatNeft Arena (capacity 10,000)
- Uniform colors: Green, red and white
- Logo design: The head of a hissing white snow leopard with the Cyrillic letters Ак Барс written in green and red.
- Main rivals: Lokomotiv Yaroslavl
- Russian Championships won: 2 (1998, 2006)
- Superleague West Championships won: 1 (1997)
- Superleague East Championships won: 1 (1998)
- European Champions Cup 2007 Winner
[edit] History
In the 2004-05 season, Kazan signed 11 NHL players, including Russian superstar Alexei Kovalev, in an attempt to win the Superleague title, hoping to mark the 1000th anniversary of the city's founding with this achievement. They did not succeed, however, finishing that season in fourth place and were upset in the first round of the playoffs by Lokomotiv Yaroslavl. The team, though, has had previous successes, winning the Superleague West in 1997 and the Superleague East in 1998, while being runner-up for three consecutive seasons between 2000 and 2002. In 2006 Kazan won the Russian Championship against Avangard Omsk thanks in large part to its first line, anchored by Playoff MVP Aleksey Morozov, which accounted for over 50 points during the teams championship run. During the 2007 IIHF European Championship Cup, Ak-Bars Kazan, led by tournament MVP Aleksey Morozov, represented the Russian Super League and won the championship cup reaffirming Russian dominance at the tournament.
[edit] Notable players
[edit] Current roster
As of April 23, 2008
|
Defensemen
|
| # |
|
Player |
Shoots |
Acquired |
Place of Birth |
| 3 |
 |
Mikhail Tyulyapkin |
L |
|
Nizhny Novgorod, Russia |
| 5 |
|
Ilya Nikulin |
L |
2005 |
Moscow, Russia |
| 7 |
|
Evgeni Ryasensky |
L |
2005 |
Tver, Russia |
| 9 |
|
Andrei Pervyshin |
L |
2004 |
Arkhangelsk, Russia |
| 33 |
|
Andrei Zubarev |
|
|
Ufa, Russia |
| 36 |
|
Yakov Seleznyev |
L |
2007 |
Perm, Russia |
| 59 |
|
Vyacheslav Buravchikov |
|
|
Moscow, Russia |
| 74 |
|
Aleksei Emelin |
|
2007 |
Togliatti, Russia |
| 75 |
|
Grigori Panin |
L |
2007 |
Togliatti, Russia |
| 82 |
|
Evgeni Medvedev |
|
2007 |
Chelyabinsk, Russia |
|
Forwards
|
| # |
|
Player |
Position |
Shoots |
Acquired |
Place of Birth |
| 9 |
 |
Tony Mårtensson |
C |
L |
2008 |
Märsta, Sweden |
| 14 |
|
Oleg Petrov |
C |
L |
2007 |
Moscow, Russia |
| 15 |
|
Grigori Shafigulin |
C |
L |
2007 |
Chelyabinsk, Russia |
| 16 |
 |
Petr Cajanek |
LW |
L |
2007 |
Zline, Czech Republic |
| 21 |
|
Mikhail Zhukov |
C |
L |
2005 |
Saint Petersburg, Russia |
| 25 |
|
Danis Zaripov |
LW |
L |
2001 |
Chelyabinsk, Russia |
| 30 |
|
Alexandr Stepanov |
RW |
L |
2005 |
Moscow, Russia |
| 34 |
|
Dmitri Obukhov |
|
L |
2005 |
Kazan, Russia |
| 39 |
 |
Niko Kapanen |
C |
L |
2008 |
Hattula, Finland |
| 42 |
|
Sergei Zinoviev |
C |
L |
2002 |
Novokuznetsk, Russia |
| 55 |
|
Jukka Hentunen |
RW |
R |
2007 |
Joroinen, Finland |
| 61 |
|
Maxim Mayorov |
? |
? |
2007 |
Ufa, Russia |
| 67 |
|
Dmitri Kazionov |
C |
L |
2006 |
Moscow, Russia |
| 73 |
|
Igor Musatov |
LW |
R |
|
Moscow, Russia |
| 81 |
|
Nikita Alexeev |
LW/RW |
L |
2007 |
Murmansk, Russia |
| 90 |
|
Kirill Petrov |
|
|
|
Kazan, Russia |
| 95 |
|
Aleksey Morozov |
RW |
L |
2004 |
Moscow, Russia |
[edit] Season-by-season record
Note: GP = Games played; W = Wins; L = Losses; T = Ties; Pts = Points; GF = Goals for; GA = Goals against; P = Playoff
| Season |
GP |
W |
L |
T |
Pts |
GF |
GA |
Finish |
Playoffs |
GP in P |
W in P |
L in P |
GF in P |
GA in P |
|
| 1995-96 |
52 |
26 |
13 |
13 |
69 |
136 |
110 |
3rd, Western 1 |
|
| 1996-97 |
44 |
31 |
8 |
5 |
67 |
143 |
88 |
1st, Super League West |
|
| 1997-98 |
46 |
36 |
7 |
3 |
75 |
158 |
79 |
Champion |
- |
| 1998-99 |
42 |
20 |
12 |
10 |
50 |
105 |
75 |
7th, Super League |
|
| 1999-00 |
38 |
26 |
8 |
3 |
75 |
158 |
79 |
2nd, Elite League |
|
| 2000-01 |
44 |
27 |
10 |
6 |
87 |
139 |
84 |
2nd, Elite League |
|
| 2001-02 |
51 |
31 |
11 |
7 |
101 |
151 |
88 |
2nd, Elite League |
|
| 2002-03 |
51 |
30 |
13 |
7 |
94 |
156 |
106 |
4th, Elite League |
|
| 2003-04 |
60 |
34 |
21 |
2 |
102 |
161 |
122 |
5th, Super League |
|
| 2004-05 |
60 |
37 |
17 |
5 |
114 |
174 |
113 |
4th, Super League |
Quarterfinal |
| 2005-06 |
51 |
30 |
9 |
12 |
98 |
150 |
109 |
2st, Super League |
Champion |
13 |
12 |
1 |
52 |
22 |
| 2006-07 |
54 |
38 |
7 |
9 |
119 |
214 |
111 |
1st, Super League |
Finalist |
16 |
11 |
5 |
56 |
36 |
| Totals |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
4th, Super League |
Super League totals |
[edit] External links
