Artemi Panarin

Early life

Panarin was born and raised in Korkino. He developed an early interest in ice skating. His maternal grandfather, a former amateur hockey player, encouraged Panarin to play hockey when he was five years old. He helped train Panarin and would often drive him to hockey tournaments in Tyumen. Panarin attended the Traktor Ice Hockey school in Chelyabinsk, where he trained six days a week for six months a year.

KHL

Panarin was not selected in the 2010 NHL Entry Draft and began his professional hockey career in the Kontinental Hockey League with HC Vityaz. Midway through the 2012–13 season, Panarin was traded by Vityaz after producing 18 points in 40 games to SKA Saint Petersburg in exchange for a draft pick on 31 January 2013. Panarin tallied 26 goals and 62 points in 54 appearances for St. Petersburg during the 2014–15 season. He played a significant role in the team's championship run, registering 20 points in 20 postseason games. He was named to the KHL first all-star team in 2014–15.

NHL

Panarin signed a two-year entry-level contract with the Chicago Blackhawks on 29 April 2015. He scored his first career NHL goal against Henrik Lundqvist of the New York Rangers in the first game for the Blackhawks. On 17 February 2016, Panarin scored his first career NHL hat trick against the New York Rangers. Panarin appeared in 80 games for the Blackhawks during the 2015–16 season, during which he recorded 30 goals and 47 assists. He led all rookies with 77 points, which also ranked within top ten among all skaters for the season. Panarin found instant chemistry with Patrick Kane and fellow-Russian Artem Anisimov on the Blackhawks’ second line. Kane, who was the NHL’s MVP and leading scorer in 2015–16, cited Panarin as a major contributor to his success.

Panarin scored his first NHL playoff goal in game two of the 2016 Stanley Cup playoffs against the St. Louis Blues on 15 April. During the playoffs, he had a total of seven points. Panarin was awarded the Calder Memorial Trophy, awarded to the NHL's top rookie, at the 2016 NHL Awards on 22 June. Panarin was also awarded the 2015–16 Kharlamov Trophy, given to the best professional Russian hockey player by the Russian Hall of Fame. He also earned a $2.55 million bonus as part of his contract for finishing the season in the top ten among forwards in scoring.

In the 2016–17 season, Panarin consolidated upon his rookie season, continuing his offensive role playing alongside Kane. On November 9, 2016, Panarin recorded his first career Gordie Howe hat trick against the St. Louis Blues. On December 28, 2016, the Blackhawks and Panarin agreed to a two-year contract extension worth $12 million. He completed his second North American season scoring a career best 31 goals in collecting 74 points in 82 games and was named to the NHL's Second All-Star Team.

On 23 June 2017, the Blackhawks traded Panarin to the Columbus Blue Jackets along with Tyler Motte and a sixth-round pick in 2017 in exchange for Brandon Saad, Anton Forsberg and a fifth-round pick in 2018.

Junior

Panarin was part of the Russian men's under 20 team that won a gold medal at the 2011 World Junior Ice Hockey Championships. Russia was trailing Canada 3–0 in third period of the championship game. Panarin made it 3–1 with 17:27 remaining on the clock in the third period and ignited a comeback. He would go on to score the game winner with 4:38 left on route to a 5–3 win.

Senior

Panarin made his senior team debut, when he was included on the roster, in one of the rounds of EuroHockeyTour in the 2013–14 season.

Panarin's was selected to the top senior squad for Russia's hockey team in the 2015 IIHF World Championship, earning a silver medal. He recorded up 10 points in 10 games. He also played in the 2016 IIHF World Championship, where Russia earned a bronze medal. Early in the tournament coach Oleg Znarok formed a highly productive line of Panarin (six goals and nine assists) and his former SKA Saint Petersburg teammates Vadim Shipachyov (six goals and 12 assists) and Evgenii Dadonov (six goals and seven assists). Panarin, Shipachyov, and Dadonov finished as the top three scorers of the tournament.

Panarin represented Russia at the 2016 World Cup of Hockey.

Personal life

Panarin moved to the United States in August 2015 after joining the Chicago Blackhawks. Panarin did not speak English at the time, and moved in with a Russian-born family who were Chicago residents. The family helped Panarin transition to his new surroundings and culture. Panarin also has a personal translator who helps him conduct interviews before and after games. His fellow Russian teammates, Viktor Tikhonov, who briefly played with the Blackhawks in 2015, and Artem Anisimov also helped Panarin understand English while playing hockey. Panarin was affectionately nicknamed the "Bread Man", a reference to the Panera Bread restaurant chain, by his teammates and coaches on the Blackhawks.