Pavel Viktorovich Torgaev (born January 25, 1966 in Gorky

Nizhny Novgorod

Nizhny Novgorod , colloquially shortened to Nizhny, is, with the population of 1,250,615, the fifth largest city in Russia, ranking after Moscow, St. Petersburg, Novosibirsk, and Yekaterinburg...

, Soviet Union

Soviet Union

The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....

) is a retired Russia

Russia

Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...

n ice hockey

Ice hockey

Ice hockey, often referred to as hockey, is a team sport played on ice, in which skaters use wooden or composite sticks to shoot a hard rubber puck into their opponent's net. The game is played between two teams of six players each. Five members of each team skate up and down the ice trying to take...

 player who played 55 games in the National Hockey League

National Hockey League

The National Hockey League is an unincorporated not-for-profit association which operates a major professional ice hockey league of 30 franchised member clubs, of which 7 are currently located in Canada and 23 in the United States...

 for the Calgary Flames

Calgary Flames

The Calgary Flames are a professional ice hockey team based in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. They are members of the Northwest Division of the Western Conference of the National Hockey League . The club is the third major-professional ice hockey team to represent the city of Calgary, following the...

 and Tampa Bay Lightning

Tampa Bay Lightning

The Tampa Bay Lightning are a professional ice hockey team based in Tampa, Florida. They are members of the Southeast Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League . They have one Stanley Cup championship in their history, in 2003–04. They are often referred to as the...

. An 11th round draft pick by the Flames, 279th overall in the 1994 NHL Entry Draft

1994 NHL Entry Draft

The 1994 NHL Entry Draft was held at the Hartford Civic Center on June 28–29, 1994.-Selections by round:Club teams are located in North America unless otherwise noted.-Round one:-Round two:-Round three:-Round four:...

, Torgaev had been playing pro in his native Russia since 1982.

Playing career

Torgaev spent 12 seasons in the Soviet League before moving to Finland

Finland

Finland , officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country situated in the Fennoscandian region of Northern Europe. It is bordered by Sweden in the west, Norway in the north and Russia in the east, while Estonia lies to its south across the Gulf of Finland.Around 5.4 million people reside...

 for two years in 1993. After being drafted by the Flames, Torgaev came to North America, where he appeared in 41 regular season games with the Flames in 1995–96, recording six goals and ten assists in 41 games. After returning to Europe to play in Switzerland

Switzerland

Switzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....

 for three seasons, Torgaev once again returned to the NHL in 1999–2000, Torgaev appeared in nine more games with the Flames before being claimed by Tampa Bay on waivers. After playing five more games with the Lightning, he refused an assignment to the minor leagues, and returned to Russia, where he remained until his retirement following the 2004–05 season.

Torgaev represented his nation internationally several times. He was a member of the bronze medal winning Soviet team at the 1985 World Junior Hockey Championships. Torgaev was also a member of the Russian squad at the 1994 Winter Olympics

Ice hockey at the 1994 Winter Olympics

Ice hockey at the 1994 Winter Olympics was held at the Fjellhallen in Gjøvik and the Håkons Hall in Lillehammer, Norway. The competition, held from February 12 to February 27, was won by Sweden and Canada as runner-up.-Final rankings:Source:* Gold -...

, scoring two goals as the Russians finished fourth. In 1995, he again represented Russia at the Ice Hockey World Championships

Ice Hockey World Championships

The Ice Hockey World Championships are an annual ice hockey tournament organized by the International Ice Hockey Federation . First officially held at the 1920 Summer Olympics, it is the sport's highest profile annual international tournament. The IIHF was created in 1908 while the European...

.

International statistics

Year	Team	Event	Place		GP	G	A	Pts	PIM
1994 Ice hockey at the 1994 Winter Olympics Ice hockey at the 1994 Winter Olympics was held at the Fjellhallen in Gjøvik and the Håkons Hall in Lillehammer, Norway. The competition, held from February 12 to February 27, was won by Sweden and Canada as runner-up.-Final rankings:Source:* Gold -...	Russia	Oly Ice hockey at the Olympic Games Ice hockey tournaments have been staged at the Olympic Games since 1920. The men's tournament was introduced at the 1920 Summer Olympics and was transferred permanently to the Winter Olympic Games programme in 1924. The women's tournament was first held at the 1998 Winter Olympics...	4th		8	2	1	3	10
1995 1995 Men's World Ice Hockey Championships The 1995 Men's World Ice Hockey Championships was played in Stockholm and Gavle Sweden, from April 23rd to May the 7th, 1995. In the tournament finals, Finland won the gold medal by winning over Sweden 4-1 at the Globen arena in Stockholm. The Finnish goals were scored by Timo Jutila and Ville...	Russia	WC Ice Hockey World Championships The Ice Hockey World Championships are an annual ice hockey tournament organized by the International Ice Hockey Federation . First officially held at the 1920 Summer Olympics, it is the sport's highest profile annual international tournament. The IIHF was created in 1908 while the European...	5th		6	0	2	2	4