Grigorijs Panteļejevs

Grigorijs Panteļejevs (born November 13, 1972, in Gastello, Soviet Union) is a Latvian ice hockey coach and former player.

Career
The 5th choice, 136th overall selection of the Boston Bruins in the 1992 NHL Entry Draft, Panteļejevs came to North America and the NHL in 1992-93 after spending the past two seasons with Dynamo Riga.

Upon his arrival in North America, diminutive forward went on to split his first season with Boston and their AHL affiliate in Providence before spending the majority of the next two seasons in Providence.

After three seasons in the Bruins organization, Panteļejevs was released following the 1994-95 season only to be signed as a free agent by the New York Islanders in September 1995.

Panteļejevs played only four games with the Islanders while playing the majority of the 1995-96 season with the IHL's Utah Grizzlies and Las Vegas Thunder. In 1996-97 Panteļejevs joined the IHL's San Antonio Dragons and went on to play a little over one season with the team before being dealt to the Orlando Solar Bears early into the 1997-98 IHL season.

The Gastello, USSR native returned to Orlando the following year before heading overseas in 99-2000 as a member of the Hannover Scorpions of the Bundesliga/Deutsche Eishockey Liga and went on to represent Latvia in the 2000 World Championships. After only one season in Germany, jumped to the Swiss League then to the Swedish Elite League before landing in Finland in 2002-03. In the midst those three seasons, the diminutive forward went on to represent Latvia two more times at the World Championships, once in 2001 and again in 2003.

Panteļejevs made himself available for the 2004 World Championships held in Prague, Czech Republic and did the same in 2005.

He has played in 9 World championships and 2006 Olympics for Latvian national team.

He is currently the head coach of HK Rostov.