| Born: | July 25, 1975 | Draft: | 1994 Sharks #219 Overall |
| Hometown: | Ust-Kamenogorsk, Kazakhstan | Position: | Goaltender |
| Known For: | Scoring a goal as a goaltender | Catches: | Left |
| National Team: | Russia |
Yevgeni Viktorovich Nabokov (Russian: Евге́ний Ви́кторович Набо́ков; born July 25, 1975) is a Kazakhstani-Russian former professional ice hockey goaltender who played for the San Jose Sharks, New York Islanders, and Tampa Bay Lightning of National Hockey League (NHL) and for Torpedo Ust-Kamenogorsk, Dynamo Moscow, Metallurg Magnitogorsk and SKA Saint Petersburg of the Russian Super League (RSL) and Kontinental Hockey League (KHL) from 1991 to 2015.
Nicknamed “Nabby”, Nabokov, who was selected 219th overall 1994 NHL Entry Draft by San Jose, was regarded as one of the top goaltenders in the NHL, winning the Calder Memorial Trophy as the best first-year player in 2001 and was voted a finalist for the Vezina Trophy as best goaltender in 2008. He departed the NHL for the first time in 2010 to play for SKA Saint Petersburg in Russia, but returned soon after, and concluded his career in the NHL. After retiring as a player Nabokov took up a role as a development coach for the Sharks, and in 2019 was named the goaltending coach for the team.
In his first nine seasons in the NHL, all with San Jose, Nabokov became the team leader in nearly every goaltending category, including games played, wins, and shutouts. At his retirement, he had the eighteenth most all-time NHL regular season wins. During a game in 2002, he scored a goal, the seventh goalie in NHL history to do so, and the first not from North America.
Born in the then-Soviet republic of Kazakhstan, Nabokov first played internationally with Kazakhstan at the 1994 World Championships Group C. However, he later joined the Russian national team and played for them from 2006, including both the 2006 and 2010 Winter Olympics, winning gold at the 2008 World Championships.
Years as an NHL player: 1999-2015
Years as an NHL coach: 2015-present
Evgeni Nabokov Statistics
Deeper Dive
- San Jose Sharks Hire Experience in Evgeni Nabokov
- San Jose Sharks’ Best Players in Franchise History
- Best Goalies: San Jose Sharks
- San Jose Sharks Coaching Has Room for Improvement
Coaching History
- San Jose Sharks (Development Coach/Scout) 2015-2018
- San Jose Sharks (Development Coach) 2018-2020
- San Jose Sharks (Goaltending Coach) 2020-present
Achievements
- 2x NHL All-Star Game (2001, 2008)
- NHL First All-Star Team (2008)
- World Championship All-Star Team (2008)
- World Championship Best Goaltender (2008)
- World Championship Gold Medal (2008)
- World Championship Top 3 Player on Team Russia (2008)
- NHL Scored a Goal as Goaltender (2002)
- Calder Memorial Trophy (2001)
- NHL All-Rookie Team (2001)
- European Hockey League (EHL) Best Goaltender (1997)
- RSL Most Valuable Player (1995)