Nik Antropov

Nik Antropov
Born	February 18, 1980 (1980-02-18) Ust-Kamenogorsk, Kazakh SSR, Soviet Union
Height	6 ft 6 in (1.98 m)
Weight	245 lb (111 kg; 17 st 7 lb)
Position	Centre
Shoots	Left
NHL team Former teams	Winnipeg Jets Toronto Maple Leafs New York Rangers Atlanta Thrashers
National team	Kazakhstan
NHL Draft	10th overall, 1998 Toronto Maple Leafs
Playing career	1998–present

Nikolai Aleksandrovich Antropov (Russian: Николай Александрович Антропов; born February 18, 1980) is a Kazakhstani-Canadian professional ice hockey forward for the Winnipeg Jets of the National Hockey League (NHL). He received Canadian citizenship in May, 2007.

Playing career

Antropov was expected to be drafted early in the second round, but following a dominant season with Kaztsink-Torpedo Ust-Kamenogorsk in the second-tier of the Russian Superleague (RSL), including an international match against Iceland, in which he scored 11 goals and 26 points, he was drafted tenth overall by the Toronto Maple Leafs in the 1998 NHL Entry Draft. Before going overseas to play hockey in North America, Antropov also played in the RSL with Dynamo Moscow.

When Owen Nolan joined the Maple Leafs in March 2003, Antropov changed his number from #11 (Nolan's number for the San Jose Sharks) to #80, the year of his birth. In 2003–04, Leaf coach Pat Quinn formed a line with Joe Nieuwendyk, Alexei Ponikarovsky, and Antropov. This line was dubbed the "Skyline" because of the players' height.

Antropov scores in the 2009 playoffs while a member of the New York Rangers.

During the NHL lock-out of the 2004–05 season, he returned to the Russian league and played 36 games split between Ak Bars Kazan and Lokomotiv Yaroslavl.

However, injuries felled the power forward, and he missed significant time during the 2005–06 season. Antropov managed to produce 12 goals and 19 assists for 31 points in 57 games.

Upon Antropov's return from injury, he added 15 points in the final ten regular-season games of the 2005–06 NHL season. Antropov finished third on the team in even-strength scoring and also led the Leafs in +/- with a +13 rating.

In 2006–07, Antropov typically played alongside team captain Mats Sundin and Ponikarovsky on the top line.

On June 6, 2007, the Maple Leafs announced they had signed Antropov to a two-year contract extension. During a game with the New York Rangers on 6 December 2007, Antropov scored his second career hat-trick and was named the game's first star. In December 2007, a campaign was launched to encourage fans to vote Antropov as a write-in Candidate the 56th National Hockey League All-Star Game in Atlanta.^{[citation needed]}

On February 9, 2008, Antropov set a new career high in goals with 19 when he scored in overtime to give the Leafs a 3–2 win, tipping in an Anton Strålman slapshot — he finished the season with 26 goals.

On March 4, 2009, Antopov was traded to the New York Rangers for a second round draft pick and conditional draft pick. During his tenure with the Leafs, he became a Canadian citizen.

On July 2, 2009, Antropov signed a four-year, $16.25 million deal with the Atlanta Thrashers as a free agent. He is expected to make $3.5 million the first year, $3.75 million the second, $4.25 million the third, and $4.75 million for the final year of the deal, for an average cap hit of $4.0625 million each year. His first year with the Atlanta Thrashers was his most successful scoring 24 goals and 43 assists.

The team relocated to Winnipeg in the summer of 2011. Antropov had the honor of scoring the first goal of the new Winnipeg Jets on October 9, 2011 against the Montreal Canadiens.

International play

Internationally, Antropov represented Kazakhstan in the 1999 World Junior Championships (earning eight points in six games) and in the recent 2006 Winter Olympics, where he scored one goal. Antropov captained the Kazakhstani squad on both occasions. He and Colorado Avalanche goaltender Vitaly Kolesnik were the lone NHL players on the team.

Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs

				Regular season						Playoffs
Season	Team	League		GP	G	A	Pts	PIM		GP	G	A	Pts	PIM
1998–99	Dynamo Moscow	RSL		30	5	9	14	30		11	0	1	1	4
1999–00	Toronto Maple Leafs	NHL		66	12	18	30	41		3	0	0	0	4
1999–00	St. John's Maple Leafs	AHL		2	0	0	0	4		—	—	—	—	—
2000–01	Toronto Maple Leafs	NHL		52	6	11	17	30		9	2	1	3	12
2001–02	Toronto Maple Leafs	NHL		11	1	1	2	4		—	—	—	—	—
2001–02	St. John's Maple Leafs	AHL		34	11	24	35	47		—	—	—	—	—
2002–03	Toronto Maple Leafs	NHL		72	16	29	45	124		3	0	0	0	0
2003–04	Toronto Maple Leafs	NHL		62	13	18	31	62		13	0	2	2	18
2004–05	Ak Bars Kazan	RSL		10	2	3	5	6		—	—	—	—	—
2004–05	Lokomotiv Yaroslavl	RSL		26	4	15	19	44		9	3	4	7	18
2005–06	Toronto Maple Leafs	NHL		57	12	19	31	56		—	—	—	—	—
2006–07	Toronto Maple Leafs	NHL		54	18	15	33	44		—	—	—	—	—
2007–08	Toronto Maple Leafs	NHL		72	26	30	56	92		—	—	—	—	—
2008–09	Toronto Maple Leafs	NHL		63	21	25	46	24		—	—	—	—	—
2008–09	New York Rangers	NHL		18	7	6	13	6		7	2	1	3	6
2009–10	Atlanta Thrashers	NHL		76	24	43	67	44		—	—	—	—	—
2010–11	Atlanta Thrashers	NHL		76	16	25	41	42		—	—	—	—	—
NHL totals				680	173	240	413	569		35	4	4	8	40

International

Year	Team	Event	GP	G	A	Pts	+/−	PIM
1999	Kazakhstan Jr.	WJC	6	3	5	8		14
2006	Kazakhstan	Oly	5	1	0	1	+2	4

External links

• Nik Antropov at TSN.ca
• Nik Antropov's NHL player profile
• Nik Antropov's career stats at The Internet Hockey Database
• Nik Antropov – player profile and career stats at European Hockey.Net

Preceded by Jeff Ware

Toronto Maple Leafs first round draft pick 1998

Succeeded by Luca Cereda