Andrey Nikolishin started his professional career in 1990 with Dynamo Moskva and played there until 1994. He won the Russian title with them in 1993 and was named Russian Player of the Year in 1994. Nikolishin was drafted by the Hartford Whalers of the NHL in 1992 and joined the club in 1994. He played with the Whalers until 1996 when he was traded to the Washington Capitals, where he played until 2002. He then played one season with the Chicago Blackhawks and another with the Colorado Avalanche, before moving back to Russia in 2004.
In Russia, Nikolishin played with CSKA Moskva, Lada Togliatti, Avangard Omsk and SKA St. Petersburg, but did not stay with any of those clubs long until he played four seasons with Traktor Chelyabinsk, from 2007-11. In 2011 Nikolishin joined Sokol Kyiv in Ukraine. Internationally, Nikolishin played at two Olympic Winter Games (1994, 2002), winning a bronze in 2002. He also played at five World Championships tournaments (1993, 1994, 1996, 1997, 2000), winning a World title in 1993.
Russian Federation