Sergei Zubov (born July 22, 1970, in Moscow, USSR) is a defenseman for the Dallas Stars of the NHL. He is considered one of the better offensive defensemen in the NHL today. He played in the NHL All-Star Game in 1998, 1999, and 2000. He has also won two Stanley Cups, one with the New York Rangers in 1994, and the other with Dallas in 1999. In 1992, Zubov won a gold medal at the Olympic Games, playing for the CIS. Zubov was drafted in the fifth round of the 1990 NHL Entry Draft by the New York Rangers. Prior to this, he played for the Red Army's hockey team, CSKA Moscow, in Russia. He continued to play for the Red Army until 1992, after the fall of the USSR. Although Sergei spent some of his rookie season with New York's AHL affiliate, the Binghamton Rangers, he played forty-nine games as a rookie for the Rangers, scoring 31 points, considered then to be above-average for a defenseman. Zubov's high-scoring ways continued, as he scored 12 goals and earned 77 assists during the 1993-1994 season, and contributed 19 points to the Rangers' playoff campaign.
Zubov continued to play well for the Rangers, but on August 31, 1995, he was traded to the Pittsburgh Penguins with Petr Nedved for Ulf Samuelsson and Luc Robitaille. Zubov only spent one season in Pittsburgh, as he was traded to the Dallas Stars on June 22, 1996 for Kevin Hatcher.
Although Zubov had never again reached the scoring height of his 93-94 season with the Rangers, due to a combination of Dallas's more conservative system and decreased scoring in general, he has earned all three of his trips to the All-Star game with the Stars. He never has again reached an 80+ point total, but he is currently the only active defenseman to have 10 consecutive years of 40+ point seasons.
As with many offensive defensemen, Zubov's attempts to score sometimes cause a scoring chance for the opposition. Another knock on Zubov is that his physical play is not considered to be up to snuff, and he can be physically dominated by bigger forwards. However, in the "New NHL" rules instituted as of the 2005-06 season, Zubov's offensive style has prospered. Not only can he dance, with the puck, around forwards, but he also has a powerful shot that he uses from the point that often leads to goals. He is also known for his ability to freeze the goalie up in breakaways and shootouts.
Zubov has always played a solid game, but has gone for years under the radar and unrecognized as he has never been nominated for the James Norris Trophy for the league's best defenseman. However, under the rules of the New NHL his offensive style game was rewarded. In 2005/06 regular season he notched 71 points - his best scoring output since the 1993/94 season.
