Welcome the final part of our series on who wore each number best for the Penguins.
The idea is being openly borrowed from our new hockey writer, Cody Tucker, and his project at the Lansing State Journal covering all the uniform numbers worn through Michigan State football history, one that’s been well received by their readers and prompted heavy discussion and debate.
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Name: Aleksey Morozov
Number: 95
Position: Right wing
Born: February 16, 1977 in Moscow, USSR
Seasons with Penguins: 1997-04
Statistics with Penguins: 451 games, 84 goals, 135 assists in regular season; 39 games, 4 goals, 5 assists in playoffs
WHY MOROZOV?
The Penguins selected Aleksey Morozov in the first round (24th overall) of the 1995 NHL Entry Draft.
Morozov didn't join the Penguins right away, playing two more seasons in Russia. He came to Pittsburgh for the 1997-98 season, and it didn't take him long to get started. The 20-year-old scored his first goal on his first shift and first shot in the NHL:
Morozov was never much of a superstar for the Penguins -- with Mario Lemieux, Jaromir Jagr and Alexei Kovalev on the roster, he wasn't going to be one of the top guys. Well, unless they were playing the New Jersey Devils. Morozov, appropriately nicknamed "The Devil Killer," amassed 12 goals and 13 points in 30 career regular season games against New Jersey. In March 2001, Morozov's two assists and game-winning goal ended the Devils' 13-game win streak. Of his four career playoff goals, three were against New Jersey.
Morozov saw an increased role in his final seasons with the Penguins, even playing on a successful top line with Lemieux and Kovalev in 2002-03 -- until Morozov suffered a season-ending injury after 27 games and Kovalev was traded, that is.
In Morozov's last season in Pittsburgh, in 2003-04, he led all Penguins forwards in points with 50 (16 goals, 34 assists) in 75 games.
WHAT'S HE DOING NOW?
Morozov signed with Ak Bars Kazan of the KHL during the 2004-05 lockout and never returned to the NHL. He was named captain in 2007, and remained with Ak Bars Kazan through the 2012-13 season.
He signed with HC CSKA Moscow in 2013, and played one season in his hometown before retiring.
In 2016-17, Morozov was president of MHK Krylia Sovetov Moskva in the MHL, the second-highest level of Russian hockey.
He was also an ambassador for the 2018 FIFA World Cup in Russia.
IT WAS SPOKEN
This exchange is from a 2002 interview between Dan Patrick and Martin Brodeur:
Patrick: Who don't you want to see coming at you on a breakaway? Maybe somebody that would surprise me?
Brodeur: Aleksey Morozov.
Patrick: Oh, well, he's a good player.
Brodeur: The kid's got probably over 25 percent of his career goals on me. It's unbelievable.
Patrick: What is it about him?
Brodeur: I don't know. If you figure it out, please tell me. When he shoots the puck, I never catch it really clean. When he's going to make a pass, I think he's shooting. When he's shooting, I think he's making a pass. The guy's in my kitchen. He's in my head. I can't get rid of him.
“No question he has our number." -- New Jersey's Scott Stevens on Morozov
“Another lucky day in New Jersey for me. I can’t explain it." -- Morozov after a two-goal night in New Jersey
"For some reason, this team suits him. Game after game, he proves it." -- Robert Lang on Morozov ending New Jersey's streak
"We know he's got a lot of skill. He can skate and shoot the puck as well as anybody on the team. It's just a matter of giving the guy a chance. Hopefully, he can stay in the lineup now." -- Lemieux on Morozov
HONORABLE MENTIONS AT NO. 95:
None
ANY DEBATE?
Nope. Apologies to Brodeur, but nobody else wore No. 95.
Tomorrow: That's it! 95 is the highest number ever worn by a Penguin. Thanks for reading.
Yesterday: Petr Nedved
