Alexander Sergeyevich Nikulin is currently the current hockey player (striker) as part of the Vityaz hockey club. Now he is 30 years old, but he has already managed to play both in a number of Russian teams and overseas, as part of two foreign HCs, such as Ottawa Senators and Phoenix Coyotes.
Perm hockey student
He was born in the Urals, was born in Perm in 1985, on August 25. His father put him on skates when he was still 5-6 years old. He wanted his son to become an athlete. Later, his parents took him to the hockey section.
First there was a children's school of Perm’s native “Hammer-Prikamye”, followed by a business trip to Moscow. As part of “CSKA”, he first appears in the youth team, and only then goes into adult hockey.
He is a graduate of Perm hockey. Now Alexander Nikulin lives in the capital and, in fact, he has already become a Muscovite. However, he does not forget the city of Perm and, if possible, comes there.
His youthful years and becoming a hockey player are, of course, connected with CSKA. After this club, he begins to play in foreign teams. Then he went overseas to North America to conquer the NHL.
CSKA
By and large, his professional career began with the Moscow “CSKA” - this was in 2004. Prior to that, he had already played in the CSKA farm club (since 2002), as well as in the youth team of Molota-Prikamye.
In 2004, he was elected in the NHL draft in round 4, and only three years later he will be abroad as part of the Canadian club Ottawa Senators.
In 2007, he played for the “army” and spent 119 matches during that time.
"Ottawa"
He began the 2007/2008 season not in the first team, but in the Ottawa Farm Club - Binghamton Senators.
Later, he still finds himself in the first team, but, one can say, by pure chance. One of the Ottawa players was injured and needed to be replaced by someone. Then the coaching staff decided to invite Alexander Nikulin to play in the first team.
On the same day when this decision was made, he made his debut in the NHL. Then he holds another match as part of this team, but soon he will be returned again to the farm club.
Phoenix Coyotes
In the next season, the situation has not changed, then he puts an ultimatum to the leadership, which was as follows: “Either I'm leaving back to Russia, or they will exchange me for another club.”
Later, the Ottawa chief manager said that none of the teams in the NHL showed interest in center forward Alexander Nikulin. They started talking about the fact that after such a situation in the NHL draft, it is likely that in the future they will be less willing to choose Russian hockey players. Then, playing for the “senators”, he was not able to score a pass or a puck.
Thus, in November 2008, he ends up in another club. Now Alexander Nikulin is a Phoenix Coyotes hockey player, but in his team he plays only one game - this was his third match in the NHL. Then he played most of the season in the American Hockey League (AHL), which is the second most popular Hockey League after the NHL. He played for the San Antonio Rampage Farm Club.
Return to CSKA
He decides to return to CSKA. In the season 2009/2010, he has again performed as part of the “army team”. Then, the date of October 13, 2009 was marked by his first goal scored in the KHL. He became one of the best players of the year at that time, but already at the beginning of the next season he becomes part of Amur HC and extends the contract with him for another two years.
In October 2012, Alexander Nikulin signed a contract with the Siberian hockey club Sibir. Photo in which he is a hockey player of the club "CSKA".
In 2012, Nikulin was injured - a broken arm. He was injured during a match with SKA from St. Petersburg. Then there was an unsuccessful clash with the SKA striker, and Nikulin at that time played for the Amur team. Due to his injury, he could not play in the KHL playoffs.
May 2013 - Nikulin moves to Spartak. As part of Spartak, he holds 45 matches.
The list of hockey clubs in which he played after returning was Sibir, Amur, Spartak, Neftekhimik, Vityaz.
Silver medalist
He took part in the World Cup in 2005 and took second place with the youth team. He later tried himself at Euro Hockey Tour in 2006 and 2007.
In 2006, he was invited to Riga for the World Cup, but then he still had to leave with two players. Among those players were Alexander Kharitonov and Konstantin Barulin.
Before the World Cup he was involved in the training camp of the Russian national team.
By the fall of 2015, the total in the KHL for Nikulin was 285 matches and 106 points.
Going to Vityaz
Last fall, they began to talk about the fact that Alexander Nikulin will be exchanged for Vityaz, and he will leave the Togliatti Lada. Alexander Nikulin in the season 2015-2016 played for “Lada” and made two assists. In October 2, 2015, he transferred to the Vityaz team near Moscow. At the end of last year, he was injured and did not play for some time.
In January 2016, Alexander Nikulin returned to Vityaz (Podolsk) after a break due to the injury. In mid-January, he participates in the KHL regular match against Slovan.
He talks with joy about getting into the Vityaz team. He managed to throw his first goal in this team in the match “Vityaz” with “Serverstal”.
Game seasons
2004/2005 "CSKA" (Moscow).
2005/2006 "CSKA".
2006/2007 CSKA.
2008/2009 "CSKA".
2010/2011 Amur (Khabarovsk).
2011/2012 Cupid.
2012/2013 Cupid.
2012/2013 Siberia (Novosibirsk).
2013/2014 Spartak (Moscow).
2014/2015 Neftekhimik (Nizhnekamsk).
2015 - present "Vityaz" (Podolsk).
About his return to CSKA
It was always a great desire for him to get into the National Hockey League, and now, finally, his dream comes true. Nikulin leaves to play for the Canadian team in 2007. On his blog, upon returning to his homeland, he unsubscribed about the fact that he never managed to conquer the NHL.
But despite this, the years spent overseas are not considered lost by Alexander Nikulin. Reviews about the time spent there, despite the fact that he did not begin to play in the main part of the NHL, are warm - he is glad about the professional experience he received from that trip to North America.
Still, there were more pluses than minuses, because he partially realized his dream, albeit at least briefly becoming involved in it. He played three matches in the NHL as part of the Ottawa Senators and the Phoenix Coyotes. Most of the time he played in the American Hockey League.
Upon arrival in Russia, where his career began, he was impatiently waiting for him to start playing again with CSKA.
But in 2014, CSKA put him on the rejection draft, so he becomes a hockey player at another club - Neftekhimik. The line of attack in the club was then strengthened by the eminent striker who came to them - Alexander Nikulin.
Gaming career
2002/07 - CSKA.
2007/08 - “Ottawa Senators” - 2 games, “Binghampton Senators” (71).
2008/09 - “Binghampton Senators” (5), “Phoenix Coyotes” - 1, “San Antonio Rampage” (64).
2009/10 - CSKA Moscow (45).
2010/11 - CSKA Moscow (7) and Amur (45).
2011/12 - Amur (44, 26).
2012/13 - Amur (14, 3), Siberia (43, 17).
2013/14 - Spartak (45).
2014-15 / CSKA (5), Buran (7, 7), Neftekhimik (22, 5).
2015-16 / Lada (13, 1).
2015-16 / Vityaz (10, 3).
The blog
At the time of his departure to North America, he begins to maintain his blog. He gave him a sonorous name - "Conquer the NHL." This title reflected his long-standing dream and his aspirations as a hockey player, but as a result he was not taken to play in the main part of the NHL. After a while, he moves back to Russia.
His thoughts on events in his professional life are covered in his blog.
Alexander Nikulin: personal life
There is very little information about the personal life, but it is known that he is single.
His parents, as before, live in Perm. Most often, he comes to them in the summer and is there for a long time.
