Andrei Viktorovich Nazarov (Russian: Андрей Викторович Назаров; born May 22, 1974) is a Russian former professional ice hockey player and head coach of HC Sochi of the Kontinental Hockey League (KHL).[1] He has formerly managed the Kazakh team Barys Astana (of the Kontinental Hockey League's Chernyshev Division), the Ukrainian national team and been joint coach of the Russian National Hockey Team.[2] He has been nicknamed "the Russian Bear", and in his coaching career, "the Russian Keenan".[3]
Nazarov served only one season (2013-2014) as the coach of HC Donbass before moving to Barys.[4]
In 2021, without any evidence, Nazarov accused NHL star Artemi Panarin of assaulting a woman. Nazarov, a known supporter of Russian leader Vladimir Putin, has repeatedly and publicly criticized Panarin for his outspoken beliefs regarding Putin’s regime.