Kirill Leonidowitsch Knjasew

Kirill Knjasew
Date of birth	June 9, 1983
place of birth	Izhevsk , Russian SFSR
size	186 cm
Weight	89 kg
position	striker
number	# 83
Shot hand	Left
Career stations
until 2005	Ishstal Izhevsk
2005	Salawat Yulayev Ufa
2005-2006	HK Junost Minsk
2006-2007	Toros Neftekamsk
2007-2011	HK Spartak Moscow
2011–2012	Ak Bars Kazan Neftechimik Nizhnekamsk
2012-2013	HK Dynamo Moscow
2013-2014	HK Ugra Khanty-Mansiysk
2014-2014	Torpedo Nizhny Novgorod
2015-2016	Awtomobilist Ekaterinburg
since 2016	Ishstal Izhevsk

Kirill Leonidowitsch Knjasew ( Russian Кирилл Леонидович Князев ; born June 9, 1983 in Ischewsk , Russian SFSR ) is a Russian ice hockey player who has been under contract with Ischstal Ischewsk in the Wysschaja Hockey League since summer 2016 .

Career

Kirill Knjasew gained his first experience in ice hockey at his home club Ischstal Ischewsk and went through the youth department there. In the 2002/03 season he completed his first missions for Ischstal Izhevsk in the Wysschaja Liga , the second highest Russian division. In his first season, the striker scored 27 points from 52 encounters and took second place in the team's internal ranking. In the following two seasons, the Russian was one of the regular players and reached the playoffs twice with the team, in which Ischstal Izhevsk failed in the first round. Knjasew, who received a contract with Salawat Yulayev Ufa for the 2005/06 season , was initially used in their second team with play in the third-rate Pervaya League . In the same season, the attacker completed ten games for Salawat Yulayev Ufa in the Russian Super League and played 24 games for HK Junost Minsk from the Belarusian extra league , Knjasew scored 18 points for Minsk.

Kirill Knjasew (right), February 2008

In the 2006/07 season , the striker was on the ice for Toros Neftekamsk in the Vysschaya League. The Russian scored 28 goals and 17 assists in 55 games of the regular season. Toros Neftekamsk missed making it to the finals and after the end of the season Knyazew decided to leave the club. For the 2007/08 season he accepted a contract offer from HK Spartak Moscow . After he had already achieved regular appearances in the Russian Super League in his debut season, he managed to increase his points yield significantly in the following period. In his second season with HK Spartak Moscow in the Continental Hockey League , the 2009/10 season , he held the post of assistant captain together with Branko Radivojevič . After he had also played for Spartak Moscow in the 2010/11 season , the Russian signed a two-year contract with Ak Bars Kazan in May 2011 . In November 2011, however, he moved to Neftechimik Nizhnekamsk within the KHL .

In the 2012/13 season he was under contract with HK Dynamo Moscow and won the Gagarin Cup , the championship trophy of the KHL, in April 2013 . He was then committed by HK Yugra Khanty-Mansiysk . He was assistant captain at HK Ugra in the 2013/14 season. In the following season he was only used sporadically and released in November 2014. A few days later he was obliged by Torpedo Nizhny Novgorod .

International

Knjasew was only used for the Russian national team as part of the Euro Hockey Tour 2010/11 . In the three games of the Karjala Cup he remained pointless and received four penalty minutes.

Achievements and Awards

• 2009 KHL striker of the month for September
• 2013 Gagarin Cup winner with HK Dynamo Moscow

KHL statistics

	Seasons	Games	Gates	Assists	Points	Penalty minutes
Main round	6th	279	54	38	92	169
Playoffs	4th	23	5	1	6th	2

(Status: end of the 2013/14 season)

Web links

• Kirill Knjasew at hockeydb.com (English)
• Kirill Knjasew at eliteprospects.com (English)