Ņikita Jevpalovs

Ņikita Jevpalovs (born 9 September 1994) is a Latvian professional ice hockey forward currently playing for the Dornbirn Bulldogs in the Austrian Hockey League (IceHL).

Ņikita Jevpalovs
Ņikita Jevpalovs on January 11, 2020
Born	9 September 1994 Riga, Latvia
Height	6 ft 1 in (185 cm)
Weight	205 lb (93 kg; 14 st 9 lb)
Position	Forward
Shoots	Right
IceHL team Former teams	Dornbirn Bulldogs San Jose Barracuda Dinamo Riga Laval Rocket
National team	Latvia
NHL Draft	Undrafted
Playing career	2015–present

Playing career

Ņikita Jevpalovs on December 19, 2013.

Jevpavlos spent his junior career between Canada and Latvia, mostly playing in the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League with Blainville-Boisbriand Armada. Undrafted, on January 1, 2015, he was signed by San Jose Sharks to a two-year entry-level agreement.[1]

In his rookie professional season in 2015–16, Jevpavlovs was reassigned by the Sharks between the ECHL and AHL playing for the Allen Americans and San Jose Barracuda. In the following 2016–17 season, he exclusively played with the Barracuda, notching a professional high 13 goals and 21 points in 65 games.

At the expiration of his contract with the Sharks, Jevpalovs was not tendered a qualifying offer and returned to Latvia to play for Dinamo Riga of the Kontinental Hockey League on July 4, 2017.[2] He made his KHL debut in the 2017–18 season opening match against Avangard Omsk,[3] and scored his first goal on 31 August in a defeat to Spartak Moscow.[4] He completed the season scoring just 5 goals and 8 points in 46 games.

As a free agent, Jevpalovs opted for a return to North America, agreeing to a one-year AHL contract with the Laval Rocket, affiliate to the Montreal Canadiens on July 1, 2018.[5] After scoring a career-high 25 points in the AHL, Jevpalovs signed a subsequent one-year, one-way contract with Laval.[6]

Following his second season with the Laval Rocket and with the COVID-19 pandemic delaying the 2020–21 North American season, Jevpalovs opted to remain in Europe by signing a one-year contract with Austrian outfit, the Dornbirn Bulldogs, on 1 September 2020.[7]

International play

Jevpavlos represented Latvia on junior level. He was selected by Bob Hartley for 2018 world championships roster.[8] He made his WC debut on opening game against Norway.[9]

Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs

				Regular season						Playoffs
Season	Team	League		GP	G	A	Pts	PIM		GP	G	A	Pts	PIM
2010–11	South Muskoka Shield	GMHL		41	48	43	91	28		16	9	18	27	16
2011–12	HK Riga	MHL		58	8	13	21	52		1	1	0	1	2
2012–13	Blainville-Boisbriand Armada	QMJHL		60	18	21	39	26		15	3	5	8	2
2013–14	Blainville-Boisbriand Armada	QMJHL		61	28	26	54	32		20	10	6	16	8
2014–15	Blainville-Boisbriand Armada	QMJHL		64	49	51	100	32		5	1	5	6	4
2015–16	San Jose Barracuda	AHL		60	5	9	14	12		3	1	0	1	0
2015–16	Allen Americans	ECHL		5	1	5	6	2		15	2	6	8	10
2016–17	San Jose Barracuda	AHL		65	13	8	21	41		11	0	0	0	6
2017–18	Dinamo Riga	KHL		46	5	3	8	10		—	—	—	—	—
2018–19	Laval Rocket	AHL		69	13	12	25	38		—	—	—	—	—
2019–20	Laval Rocket	AHL		53	9	13	22	24		—	—	—	—	—
KHL totals				46	5	8	3	10		—	—	—	—	—

International

Year	Team	Event	Result		GP	G	A	Pts	PIM
2011	Latvia	WJC18	9th		6	1	2	3	0
2012	Latvia	WJC	9th		6	2	3	5	4
2013	Latvia	WJC	10th		6	2	1	3	8
2014	Latvia	WJC-D1	12th		5	4	5	9	4
2018	Latvia	WC	8th		8	0	0	0	0
Junior totals					23	9	11	20	16
Senior totals					8	0	0	0	0

References

1. "Sharks Sign Forward Nikita Jevpalovs". San Jose Sharks. 26 January 2015. Retrieved 6 May 2018.
2. eliteprospects. "Dinamo Riga 2017-18 season roster". eliteprospects.com. Retrieved 6 May 2018.
3. KHL (22 August 2017). "Game protocol" (in Russian). khl.ru. Retrieved 6 May 2018.
4. KHL (31 August 2017). "Game protocol" (in Russian). khl.ru. Retrieved 6 May 2018.
5. "Rockets agree to terms on a one-year AHL contract with Nikita Jevpalovs". Laval Rocket. 1 July 2018. Retrieved 1 July 2018.
6. Peters, Dave (29 May 2019). "Laval Rocket re-signs forward Nikita Jevpalovs to one-year AHL deal". Montreal Gazette. Retrieved 31 May 2019.
7. "Magnan stays and trio arrives" (in German). Dornbirn Bulldogs. 1 September 2020. Retrieved 1 September 2020.
8. DELFI sports (2 May 2018). "Paziņots Latvijas hokeja izlases kaujas sastāvs pasaules čempionātam" (in Latvian). delfi.lv. Retrieved 6 May 2018.
9. iihf (5 May 2018). "Team LAT match stats". iihf. Retrieved 6 May 2018.

External links

• Biographical information and career statistics from Eliteprospects.com, or The Internet Hockey Database