Oleg Znarok

Early and personal life

Oleg Znarok was born January 2, 1963 in Ust-Katav in the Soviet Union, presently in the Russian Federation. His father, Valeri Znarok, was a football (soccer) player at the time, who would himself go on to have a long coaching career. A young Oleg was introduced to hockey, when his grandfather brought him and his younger brother to a local skating rink.

Znarok would have a successful and long career as a player, before moving on to coaching. Playing for 23 years, across several leagues: Soviet, German, as well as a several games in the Czech Extraliga and the AHL of North America.

One of Znarok's youth team mates from Traktor Chelyabinsk was Vyachislav Bykov, who would go on to play for CSKA Moscow and the Soviet National Team. Bykov, after a successful playing career, would go on to coach the Russian National Team to back to back gold medals in 2008 and 2009 at the IIHF World Championships. He'd be replaced in favor of Zinetula Bilyaletdinov, a former star player of rival Dynamo Moscow, who would go on to coach the Russian team to a gold medal in 2012, posting an undefeated record of 10-0. In turn, he too would be replaced: this time in favor of Znarok himself. Despite dealing with heavy injuries (Ovechkin: knee injury, Orlov: broken arm, Anisimov: broken thumb, Zubarev: deep arm laceration, Loktionov: shoulder injury, Chudinov: illness), Znarok would go on to coach Russia to a gold medal in 2014, also going 10-0.

Oleg is married. He and his wife Ilona, have two daughters, Valeria and Alisa. Valeria is in marketing and Alisa is a model.

Oleg first saw his wife in the stands at a hockey game. She was not a sports fan, but came out to support her friends. Seeing her again at a post match celebration, at a local restaurant, Oleg worked up the courage to approach her. They have been together ever since.

In the attic of their house, Ilona has put together something of a museum of hockey memorabilia. Among other items, it holds Znarok's ever growing collection of medals, awards and jerseys. One such item is an NHL contract that Oleg was given to sign by the Boston Bruins, untranslated. As Oleg did not speak English and had no one nearby to translate it for him, he turned it down when he thought the dollar amount was too low. It would only be a decade later, that he would find out that the numbers written down, the only thing he could understand of what was written, were for a monthly salary and not a yearly one.

Playing career

Znarok started his ice hockey career at Traktor Chelyabinsk, making his debut in the 1979–80 season. Over the next few years he would intermittently make appearances with the top team, and would go on to play 18 games during the 1981–82 season. Although not productive at the senior level as a teenager, his first career goal came against the legendary Soviet goaltender Vladislav Tretiak.

From 1983 until 1991, he represented Dinamo Riga, where he would become a top level player and an all-time club legend. The 1984–85 season would see Znarok's break out with 27 points in 52 games. He scored 14 goals and 13 assists, after putting up only 3 assists in 30 games, the previous season. In 1987–88 season, he led his team to a second-place finish in the Soviet Championship League's playoffs, losing 3–1 to CSKA Moscow in the final. The 1990–91 season was Znarok's best individual season, putting up 51 points in 44 games scoring 24 goals, 27 assists. In total, he would amass 221 points over 361 games, in the Soviet league. Scoring 101 goals and 120 assists.

In the 1991–92 season he played 6 games with the Maine Mariners of the American Hockey League (AHL), scoring 3 goals and 1 assist.

Znarok had a two-game (1 goal, 1 assist) outing in the Czech Extraliga during the 1993–94 playoffs, for Vítkovice.

Between the 1992–93 and 2001–02 seasons, he would represent various clubs in Germany. In the 1992–93 season, he would help EV Landsberg earn a promotion from the Oberliga to the 2nd Bundesliga, on the strength of his astonishing 220 points in just 66 games, scoring 77 goals and 143 assists.

At the age of 30, he would begin his 9-year-long participation in the 2nd Bundesliga. He would be a highly dominant player for the rest of his playing career, representing EV Landsberg, EHC Freiburg and Heilbronner EC. Scoring 1,069 points in 461 games in the regular season, on the strength of 388 goals and 681 assists. Also, adding 33 points (9 goals, 24 assists) over 22 playoff games. After the 2001–02 season, Znarok retired as a player. That season, he had put up 63 points (16 goals, 47 assists) over 45 games and added another 7 points (1 goal, 6 assists) in 6 playoff games.

Soviet Union

In 1981, Znarok would be called up to the Soviet Union under-18 team, where he became a European champion, putting up 16 points (8 goals, 8 assists) in 5 games.

The 1989 Super Series, in which Soviet clubs faced National Hockey League (NHL) clubs, Dinamo Riga was one of two Soviet representatives. Znarok would play in 3 games scoring 1 goal.

As he was a Dinamo Riga player, he was also a part of the larger Dynamo sports society. This allowed him in 1990 to be loaned to Dynamo Moscow's squad for their Super Series tour of North America. He scored 2 goals, including one against the Toronto Maple Leafs and one against the Buffalo Sabres, over 4 games.

In 1990, he was called up to the Soviet Union national team for the Japan Cup, where he put up 8 points (4 goals, 4 assists) over 4 games.

Latvia

Following the collapse of the Soviet Union, Znarok would go on to represent Latvia in international competition. He would play in 5 IIHF World Championships and help promote Latvia to the top division of international competition in 1996. In 1997, he helped Latvia to its best ever placing of seventh in the world. In total he would go on to put up 35 points in 34 games, scoring 18 goals.

His first effort would be in Division B. Latvia would finish second to Slovakia after 6 wins and 1 loss in 7 games. Znarok put up 8 points (4 goals, 4 assists) in 8 games and 18 PIM.

In his second effort, now as captain in 1996, Latvia would improve to first in Division B after 6 wins and 1 draw in 7 games. Znarok led the tournament with 6 goals in 6 games and added 2 assists with 18 PIM, making the All-Star team. In the last game of the tournament, Latvia needed a tie or a win against Switzerland, to gain promotion. A loss, would have give nSwitzerland the promotion. Down 1–0, Znarok scored to tie the game, 1–1. Latvia earned a promotion to the elite division for next year's championship.

In his third effort, Latvia would now be facing some of the top national teams of the world, placed in a group with Canada, United States and Sweden. Not expected to show much, having just been promoted, Latvia would go on to greatly surprise the hockey world. Znarok lead the team with 10 points in 8 games. He was tied for 5th in tournament points and tied for 2nd in assists, with 7. Znarok led his team to a seventh-place finish, the highest ever finish for Latvia.

In his fourth effort and secondnd as captain, Latvia would finish ninth. In the consolation round establishing 9-12th place standings, there were some highlights. A 5–0 win over Germany and a 3–2 win against United States, avenging the previous year's loss. This sent the American and German teams to next year's qualification tournaments to fight against relegation. The American team would be successful and remain in the elite division for 1999. The German team, however, would only be back in the elite division in 2001. Znarok put up 8 points (5 goals, 3 assists) in 8 games.

The 1999 edition would mark Znarok's fifth and final effort (third as captain). Latvia would go on to finish eleventh. As a result, next year they would be forced to play a qualification tournament to remain in the elite group. At 36, Znarok would only manage 1 assist and be limited to only 6 games.

Coaching career

After finishing his playing career, Znarok turned to coaching.

In 2002–03, he was an assistant coach for the Latvian national team, while in 2003–04, Znarok was the head coach of the under-18 national team, as well as the head for Prizma Riga of the Latvian Hockey Higher League. From 2004 to 2006, he was the head coach of the under-20 national team and the head coach of SK Riga 20 of the Latvian Hockey Higher League, and an assistant coach, with the Latvian national team at two World Championships, 2006 Olympic qualifiers and 2006 Olympics. From 2006 to 2011, Znarok coached the Latvian national team at five World Championships and at 2010 Olympics as well as coaching SK Riga 20 through the 2007–08 season.

From 2008 to 2014, Znarok was the head coach of MVD of Kontinental Hockey League (KHL) for two seasons, before its merger with Dynamo Moscow and continued head coaching for the next four seasons. On March 26, 2014, Znarok joined the Russian national team, and coached them at 3 World Championships, various stages of EHT and the 2016 World Cup of Hockey. On June 1, 2016, he was named head coach of SKA Saint Petersburg, in the Kontinental Hockey League (KHL) with whom he won the 2016–17 Gagarin Cup.

Playing awards

Soviet Union national under-18 team:

Soviet Championship League:

Latvian national team:

Coaching awards

Russian national team:

KHL:

Latvian under-20 team:

State awards