Sergei Plotnikov

Sergei Sergeyevich Plotnikov (; born 3 June 1990) is a Russian professional ice hockey forward for SKA Saint Petersburg of the Kontinental Hockey League (KHL). Plotnikov previously played in the KHL with Amur Khabarovsk, Lokomotiv Yaroslavl and CSKA Moscow. He has played briefly in the National Hockey League (NHL) with the Pittsburgh Penguins and the Arizona Coyotes.

Playing career

Plotnikov was not drafted by any NHL team. On 1 July 2015, Plotnikov bought out the final year of his contract with Lokomotiv Yaroslavl. He signed a one-year, entry-level contract with the NHL's Pittsburgh Penguins.

In his first North American season in 2015–16, Plotnikov scored just two points in 32 games. From December 2015, he was a healthy scratch for almost two months. Displeased with his lack of playing time, Plotnikov requested a trade and was subsequently traded to the Arizona Coyotes on 29 February 2016 in exchange for Matthias Plachta and a conditional seventh-round draft pick in 2016, dependent on if the Coyotes resigned him. Plotnikov's struggles continued with the Coyotes, unable to find his offensive touch with one assist from 13 games.

As a free agent from the Coyotes and with little success in the NHL, Plotnikov returned to Russia in agreeing to a two-year KHL contract with SKA Saint Petersburg on 1 July 2016.

Following his fourth season with SKA Saint Petersburg in the 2019–20 season, in which he served as team captain, Plotnikov was traded to his original club, Amur Khabarovsk in exchange for Igor Rudenkov on 16 May 2020. Unable to agree to terms with Amur, Plotnikov was soon traded for the second time within the month, dealt to Metallurg Magnitogorsk in exchange for four prospects and financial compensation. He was then signed to a two-year contract on 28 May 2020.

Following a lone season with Metallurg Magnitogorsk, Plotnikov left the club with a year remaining on his contract in agreeing to a one-year deal with fellow KHL club, HC CSKA Moscow, on 6 July 2021.

During his three season tenure with CSKA Moscow, Plotnikov captured two Gagarin Cup championships, before leaving as a free agent and signing a four-year contract to return to former club SKA Saint Petersburg on 24 May 2024.

International play

Plotnikov won a gold medal with Russia at the 2014 World Championship. He finished the tournament third overall in scoring.

On 23 January 2022, Plotnikov was named to the roster to represent Russian Olympic Committee athletes at the 2022 Winter Olympics.

Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs Regular season Playoffs Season Team League GP G A Pts PIM GP G A Pts PIM 2005–06 Amur–2 Khabarovsk RUS.3 49 6 6 12 86 — — — — — 2006–07 Amur–2 Khabarovsk RUS.3 39 12 5 17 38 — — — — — 2007–08 Amur–2 Khabarovsk RUS.3 48 20 14 34 100 — — — — — 2008–09 Amur–2 Khabarovsk RUS.3 6 4 2 6 18 — — — — — 2008–09 Yermak Angarsk RUS.2 26 2 3 5 36 4 2 1 3 2 2009–10 Amur Khabarovsk KHL 43 6 6 12 30 — — — — — 2010–11 Amurskie Tigry MHL 16 12 22 34 32 8 1 5 6 47 2010–11 Amur Khabarovsk KHL 45 5 8 13 36 — — — — — 2011–12 Amur Khabarovsk KHL 53 13 7 20 70 4 0 0 0 8 2011–12 Amurskie Tigry MHL 1 1 2 3 0 — — — — — 2012–13 Lokomotiv Yaroslavl KHL 50 14 16 30 54 5 1 2 3 4 2013–14 Lokomotiv Yaroslavl KHL 53 15 20 35 88 18 4 10 14 30 2014–15 Lokomotiv Yaroslavl KHL 56 15 21 36 71 5 1 0 1 33 2015–16 Pittsburgh Penguins NHL 32 0 2 2 20 — — — — — 2015–16 Arizona Coyotes NHL 13 0 1 1 4 — — — — — 2016–17 SKA Saint Petersburg KHL 46 11 18 29 53 15 3 3 6 14 2017–18 SKA Saint Petersburg KHL 55 16 23 39 60 12 1 2 3 37 2018–19 SKA Saint Petersburg KHL 61 19 20 39 40 18 3 11 14 23 2019–20 SKA Saint Petersburg KHL 48 8 21 29 81 4 2 0 2 4 2020–21 Metallurg Magnitogorsk KHL 58 13 30 43 50 12 3 6 9 28 2021–22 CSKA Moscow KHL 43 16 11 27 23 22 6 7 13 12 2022–23 CSKA Moscow KHL 65 23 24 47 43 27 4 7 11 18 2023–24 CSKA Moscow KHL 66 13 13 26 43 5 0 0 0 2 2024–25 SKA Saint Petersburg KHL 52 21 22 43 30 3 1 1 2 6 2025–26 SKA Saint Petersburg KHL 61 18 29 47 61 5 0 3 3 4 KHL totals 855 226 289 515 833 155 29 52 81 223 NHL totals 45 0 3 3 24 — — — — —

International Year Team Event Result GP G A Pts PIM 2014 Russia WC 10 6 6 12 12 2015 Russia WC 10 1 1 2 2 2016 Russia WC 7 0 1 1 4 2017 Russia WC 10 3 4 7 10 2019 Russia WC 3 0 1 1 0 2022 ROC OG 4 0 2 2 2 Senior totals 44 10 15 25 30

Awards and honors Award Year RefKHL All-Star Game 2013, 2015 Gagarin Cup champion 2017, 2022, 2023