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Alexandar Georgiev

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This article is about the hockey player. For the association football player, see Aleksandar Georgiev. For the draughts player, see Alexander Georgiev.

Alexandar Georgiev
Georgiev with the Colorado Avalanche in 2023
Born (1996-02-10) 10 February 1996 (age 28)
Ruse, Bulgaria
Height 6 ft 1 in (185 cm)
Weight 180 lb (82 kg; 12 st 12 lb)
Position Goaltender
Catches Left
NHL team
Former teams		 San Jose Sharks
TPS
New York Rangers
Colorado Avalanche
National team  Russia
NHL draft Undrafted
Playing career 2014–present

Alexandar Georgiyevich Georgiev (Bulgarian: Александр Георгиевич Георгиев; born 10 February 1996) is a Bulgarian-born Russian professional ice hockey goaltender for the San Jose Sharks of the National Hockey League (NHL). He is the first Bulgarian-born player to play in the NHL.[1]

Playing career

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Born in Bulgaria, Georgiev started playing hockey in Russia, where his family moved shortly after he was born;[2] he is a dual citizen of both countries.[3] He started playing for the Moscow-based Penguins, then moved to Voskresensk to play for Khimik Voskresensk, and later to Finland. Georgiev made his Liiga debut playing with TPS during the 2014–15 season.[4]

Despite two standout seasons with TPS showing developmental promise, Georgiev went undrafted through the 2017 NHL entry draft. With an ambition to play in North America, Georgiev was invited to participate in the New York Rangers' developmental camp.[5] In impressing through his performances, on 18 July 2017, he agreed to a three-year, entry-level contract with the Rangers.[6] On 22 February 2018, Georgiev made his NHL debut where he made 38 saves as the Rangers lost 3–1 to the Montreal Canadiens.[7] On 3 March, Georgiev stopped 35 shots and earned his first NHL win as the Rangers beat the Edmonton Oilers 3–2.[1]

On 21 November 2018, Georgiev recorded his first career NHL shutout, winning 5–0 against the New York Islanders.[8] On 10 February 2019, Georgiev made a career-high 55 saves in a 4–1 win over the Toronto Maple Leafs, becoming the goaltender with second-most saves in a game in Rangers' history, while also setting a record for most saves in regulation.[9][10] In a 3 March game against the Washington Capitals, Georgiev threw his stick at the puck after forward Alexander Ovechkin had faked him out. Officials originally called it a no goal, but changed the call after reviewing it, granting a 3–2 shootout win to the Capitals.[11]

On 7 July 2022, the negotiating rights to Georgiev were traded to the Colorado Avalanche in exchange for third-round and fifth-round picks in the 2022 NHL entry draft and third-round pick in the 2023 NHL entry draft.[12] As a pending restricted free agent he quickly agreed to terms on a three-year, $10.2 million contract with the Avalanche on 10 July 2022. [13] He had a career year in his first season with his new team, leading the league in wins with 40. He did this a consecutive time in 2023–24, but his effectiveness dropped significantly overall. Despite logging 38 wins for the Avalanche, he finished with a save percentage of only .897.

Entering his final season under contract in 2024–25, Georgiev continued to struggle. Following 18 appearances for the Avalanche in which he collected only eight wins, Georgiev was traded by the Avalanche alongside fellow Russian Nikolai Kovalenko, a 2025 conditional fifth-round pick and a second-round pick in the 2026 NHL entry draft, to the San Jose Sharks in exchange for Mackenzie Blackwood, Givani Smith and a fifth-round pick in the 2027 NHL draft on 9 December 2024.[14][15]

Career statistics

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Regular season and playoffs

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Bold indicates led league

Regular season Playoffs
Season Team League GP W L OT MIN GA SO GAA SV% GP W L MIN GA SO GAA SV%
2014–15 TPS Jr. A 25 — — — — — — 2.25 .920 12 — — — — — 2.60 .909
2014–15 TPS Liiga 14 2 8 2 759 28 2 2.21 .917 — — — — — — — —
2015–16 TPS Jr. A 9 — — — — — — 2.85 .905 — — — — — — — —
2015–16 TPS Liiga 10 3 4 0 395 15 1 2.28 .915 2 0 1 79 5 0 3.78 .857
2015–16 SaPKo Mestis 13 — — — — 30 — 2.49 .907 — — — — — — — —
2016–17 TPS Liiga 27 13 8 4 1555 44 2 1.70 .923 1 0 0 2 0 0 0.00 —
2017–18 Hartford Wolf Pack AHL 37 14 13 7 2076 103 2 2.98 .909 — — — — — — — —
2017–18 New York Rangers NHL 10 4 4 1 515 27 0 3.15 .918 — — — — — — — —
2018–19 New York Rangers NHL 33 14 13 4 1875 91 2 2.91 .914 — — — — — — — —
2018–19 Hartford Wolf Pack AHL 11 2 9 0 624 38 0 3.66 .883 — — — — — — — —
2019–20 New York Rangers NHL 34 17 14 2 1892 96 2 3.04 .910 — — — — — — — —
2020–21 New York Rangers NHL 19 8 7 2 974 44 2 2.71 .905 — — — — — — — —
2021–22 New York Rangers NHL 33 15 10 2 1746 85 2 2.92 .898 2 0 1 59 2 0 2.03 .935
2022–23 Colorado Avalanche NHL 62 40 16 6 3701 156 5 2.53 .919 7 3 4 415 18 0 2.60 .914
2023–24 Colorado Avalanche NHL 63 38 18 5 3638 183 2 3.02 .897 11 6 5 694 33 0 2.85 .894
2024–25 Colorado Avalanche NHL 18 8 7 0 941 53 0 3.38 .874 — — — — — — — —
Liiga totals 51 18 20 6 2,709 87 5 1.93 .920 3 0 1 81 5 0 3.70 .857
NHL totals 272 144 89 22 15,281 735 15 2.89 .907 20 9 10 1,168 53 0 2.72 .904
Medal record
Ice hockey
Representing  Russia
World Championships
Bronze medal – third place 2019 Slovakia
World Junior Championships
Silver medal – second place 2016 Finland

International

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Year Team Event Result GP W L OT MIN GA SO GAA SV%
2016 Russia WJC 2nd place, silver medalist(s) 5 4 0 1 310 13 0 2.52 .898
2019 Russia WC 3rd place, bronze medalist(s) 2 2 0 0 120 0 2 0.00 1.000
Junior totals 5 4 0 1 310 13 0 2.52 .898
Senior totals 2 2 0 0 120 0 2 0.00 1.000

Awards and honours

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Award Year
Liiga
Best GAA (1.70) 2017
NHL
NHL All-Star Game 2024

References

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  1. ^ a b "Alexander Georgiev earns first NHL win, Rangers beat Oilers". sportsnet.ca. 4 March 2018. Retrieved 22 November 2018.
  2. ^ Seren Rosso, Alessandro (14 August 2017). "Alexandar Georgiev ready for the Rangers". The Hockey Writers.
  3. ^ Woodley, Kevin (16 March 2018). "Georgiev impresses with Rangers, joins wave of Russian goalies to NHL". NHL.com. Retrieved 17 March 2018.
  4. ^ "2014–15 HC TPS player statistics". Eliteprospects.com. 4 June 2015. Retrieved 4 June 2015.
  5. ^ Caporaso, Nicole (2 December 2017). "WOLF PACK'S GEORGIEV CHASING HIS DREAM". theahl.com. Retrieved 15 March 2018.
  6. ^ "Rangers agree to terms with Free Agent Goaltender Alexander Georgiev". New York Rangers. 18 July 2017. Retrieved 18 July 2017.
  7. ^ Cyrgalis, Brett (22 February 2018). "Goalie's solid NHL debut one bright spot in Rangers' loss". New York Post. Retrieved 23 February 2018.
  8. ^ Rosen, Dan (21 November 2018). "Georgiev's first NHL shutout helps Rangers end skid against Islanders". NHL.com. Retrieved 22 November 2018.
  9. ^ Obernauer, Michael (10 February 2019). "Recap: Georgiev Sets Career-High in Saves as Rangers Top Leafs". NHL.com. Retrieved 11 February 2019.
  10. ^ Buttar, Simmi (11 February 2019). "Georgiev's 55 saves help Rangers cool off Leafs 4-1". AP News. Retrieved 11 February 2019.
  11. ^ Hascup, Jimmy (4 March 2019). "Capitals win without goal when Rangers goalie throws stick at Alex Ovechkin attempt in shootout". USA TODAY. Retrieved 6 March 2019.
  12. ^ "Rangers Acquire Three Draft Picks in Exchange for Alexandar Georgiev". NHL.com. 7 July 2022. Retrieved 7 July 2022.
  13. ^ "Avalanche signs Georgiev". Colorado Avalanche. 10 July 2022. Retrieved 10 July 2022.
  14. ^ "Avalanche acquire Blackwood from Sharks for Georgiev, Kovalenko, and draft picks". The Sports Network. 9 December 2024. Retrieved 9 December 2024.
  15. ^ "Sharks acquire goaltender Alexandar Georgiev, Nikolai Kovalenko and two draft selections from Colorado". San Jose Sharks. 9 December 2024. Retrieved 9 December 2024.
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