Alexander Valerievich Radulov (Russian: Александр Валерьевич Радулов; born 5 July 1986) is a Russian professional ice hockey player for Lokomotiv Yaroslavl of the Kontinental Hockey League (KHL). He had previously had two separate stints with the Nashville Predators, the NHL team which had drafted him, from 2006 to 2008 and again in 2012, as well one season with the Montreal Canadiens, five seasons with the Dallas Stars between 2016 and 2022, and eight seasons in the Kontinental Hockey League (KHL), split evenly between Salavat Yulaev Ufa and CSKA Moscow from 2008 to 2016.
Radulov is a two-time World Champion (2008 and 2009) with Russia; a triple Gagarin Cup champion, in 2011 with Salavat Yulaev Ufa and again in 2025 and 2026 with Lokomotiv Yaroslavl; and a 2006 Memorial Cup champion with the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League (QMJHL)'s Quebec Remparts. He won the Golden Stick Award (KHL MVP) on four occasions. Radulov ranks second in all-time KHL scoring with 427 points, behind Sergei Mozyakin. He is of mixed Russian and Gagauz ethnicity. Alexander is the brother of Igor Radulov.
Radulov began his North American career in 2004–05, selected at the 2004 Canadian Hockey League Import player draft by the Quebec Remparts of the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League (QMJHL). That year, he finished third in scoring for his team, with 75 points in 65 games, behind Josh Hennessy and Karl Gagné.
The following year, Radulov became a dominant player in the QMJHL. In the first half of the season, he and Angelo Esposito formed one of the duos in the league. He became equally renowned for skating in front of the opposing team's bench and twirling his stick around and banging the handle on the ice after scoring a goal.
On 28 October 2005, Radulov set a new franchise record with six goals against the Drummondville Voltigeurs. He added an assist in the eventual 11–3 win. That night, Radulov tied the Remparts team's record with Eric Chouinard for most points in a single game, with seven. Later, on 19 March 2006, in a game against the 2005 Memorial Cup second-place finishing Rimouski Océanic, for whom his teammates Cédrick Desjardins and Michal Sersen played for in 2004–05, Radulov wrote history in the Québec Colisée by scoring an unprecedented 7 goals and 4 assists for 11 points, breaking both records for most goals and points in a single game for the Remparts, in a lopsided 16–3 victory.
Radulov owns the Remparts record for the most consecutive point streak games with 50, passing the 28-game mark established by Eric Chouinard in the 1999–2000 season. Radulov is ranked second all-time with that sequence in the QMJHL, only behind Mario Lemieux, with 62.
Radulov finished as the scoring leader for the QMJHL and the CHL in 2005–06 with 152 points (61 goals and 91 assists). He currently owns the record for the most points in a single season for the Remparts, surpassing the mark of 120 set by Simon Gagné in 1998–99. Radulov also owns the record for the most goals and assists in a season as a Rempart. He passed the mark of 57 goals set by Eric Chouinard and the mark of 75 assists set by Wes Scanzano, both in 1999–2000. He also tied with Pavel Rosa for the most points by a QMJHL European player in a single season. His 61 goals were second-highest in the QMJHL for the 2005–06 season; Maxime Boisclair of the Chicoutimi Saguenéens was first, with 70.
In the 2006 QMJHL playoffs, Radulov scored 55 points (21 goals and 34 assists) and was ranked again as the scoring leader. He registered at least a point in each game. Radulov finished only two points shy of the playoff points record set by Simon Gamache in 2000–01. In the Remparts' semi-final series against the Acadie-Bathurst Titan, he had 19 points in the seven-game series alone. He lost the MVP award, however, to victorious Moncton Wildcats forward Mārtiņš Karsums.
All team records set by Radulov are for the new edition of the Remparts, which began in the 1997–98 season.
Radulov delivered an incredible performance in the Remparts' 2006 Memorial Cup championship game victory over the Moncton Wildcats. In the 6–2 win, he netted two goals and assisted on three more, totaling five points, one point away from tying the all-time record in a Memorial Cup final. He registered nine points (five goals and four assists) in four games and won the Stafford Smythe Memorial Trophy as the tournament MVP.
On 28 November 2007, the Remparts retired Radulov's number 22 jersey.
During Radulov's 2005–06 season in the QMJHL, he signed a three-year, entry-level professional contract with the Nashville Predators on 9 January 2006. He would begin his professional career as a member of the Predators' minor league affiliate, the Milwaukee Admirals of the American Hockey League (AHL), the following season. He was selected Player of the Week on 16 October 2006, posting two goals and four assists in only two games.
On 21 October 2006, Radulov made his NHL debut with the Predators against the Vancouver Canucks, logging seven minutes and one minor penalty. He scored his first career NHL goal on his first career shot against the San Jose Sharks on 26 October. Following another reassignment to Milwaukee, Radulov remained on the Nashville roster for the rest of the 2006–07 season after he was recalled on 21 November 2006.
In Game 2 of the first round of the 2007 Stanley Cup playoffs, Radulov was suspended for one game for his hit on San Jose forward Steve Bernier. Bernier was sent into the boards head first and lay motionless on the ice for three minutes, before being helped off by teammates Joe Thornton and Marcel Goc. Bernier, however, did not suffer any serious injury.
On 11 July 2008, it was announced that although Radulov was still under contract with the Nashville Predators for one more season, he had signed a three-year contract with Salavat Yulaev Ufa of the Kontinental Hockey League (KHL), which would be extended to four years. Radulov had previously notified the Predators organization of his desire to play in Russia, stating that he was being offered better conditions.
Immediately after the announcement, the Predators, NHL and the International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF) all released statements emphasizing that Radulov's contract obligated him to play for the Predators through the 2008–09 season and that signing with a team in Russia was a direct violation of an agreement made the previous day between the NHL and all international hockey leagues to respect players' existing contracts. After the IIHF ordered that Ufa void Radulov's contract, Ilya Kochevrin, vice-president of the KHL, argued that Radulov was signed on 5 July, before the agreement was made on 10 July. While the contract remained disputed, the IIHF suspended Radulov from international play on 18 July as investigations continued, although the suspension was soon lifted.
Nashville management gave Radulov until 1 September to confirm his intention to remain with the team. They suspended him on 2 September without pay for the 2008–09 season.
In his first year, the 2008–09 season with Salavat Yulaev Ufa, a 22-year-old Radulov would finish third on the team with 48 points in 52 games. The team would win the Continental Cup as regular season champions. In the playoffs, they would bow out in the first round, with Radulov earning two assists in four games.