Igor Merezhko
Ukrainian ice hockey player (born 1998)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Igor Merezhko (born 30 April 1998) is a Ukrainian professional ice hockey defenceman who currently plays for HC Škoda Plzeň of the Czech Extraliga.
| Igor Merezhko | |||
|---|---|---|---|
|
| |||
| Born |
30 April 1998 Kharkiv, Ukraine | ||
| Height | 1.94 m (6 ft 4 in) | ||
| Weight | 100 kg (220 lb; 15 st 10 lb) | ||
| Position | Defence | ||
| Shoots | Right | ||
| ELH team Former teams |
HC Škoda Plzeň Humo Tashkent Rubin Tyumen Odense Bulldogs HK Spišská Nová Ves | ||
| National team |
 Ukraine | ||
| Playing career | 2019–present | ||
Merezhko also represents Ukraine in international hockey competitions.
In 2023, he was recognized as the best Ukrainian hockey player.[1]
Career
Merezhko began his hockey career at the Kharkiv SDYUSHOR (Sports School of Olympic Reserve). He is a graduate of the "Donbass 98" program. The 2014–2015 season saw him playing for Red Bull Salzburg in Austria. In 2015, he moved to Canada, where he spent four seasons in the Western Hockey League (WHL). In 2019, Merezhko signed his first professional contract with Humo Tashkent, a team competing in the Supreme Hockey League (VHL). He then played the 2020–2021 and 2021–2022 seasons with Rubin Tyumen, another VHL club. In the 2020–2021 season, he became a bronze medalist in the VHL. The 2021–2022 season was a championship-winning season for Merezhko.
Since 2022, he has been the captain of the Ukrainian national ice hockey team.
In 2022, Merezhko signed a one-year contract with the Odense Bulldogs, a team in the Danish Hockey League.
In 2023, he was recognized as the best Ukrainian hockey player.[2]
The 2023–2024 season saw Merezhko playing in the Slovak Extraliga for HK Spišská Nová Ves. His team finished as the league's runner-up.
Following his season in Slovakia, Merezhko joined the Czech Extraliga[3] team HC Plzeň "Škoda".
Achievements
World Championship Division I Group B
| Medals | Tournament | Location |
|---|---|---|
| 🥉 Bronze medal – third place | World Championship Division I Group B | Tychy (Poland) 2022 |
| 🥈 Silver medal – second place | World Championship Division I Group B | Tallinn (Estonia) 2023 |
| 🥇 Gold medal – first place | World Championship Division I Group B | Vilnius (Lithuania) 2024 |
Career statistics
Regular season and playoffs
| Regular season | Playoffs | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Team | League | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | ||
| 2015–16 | Lethbridge Hurricanes | WHL | 56 | 0 | 10 | 10 | 61 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | ||
| 2016–17 | Lethbridge Hurricanes | WHL | 72 | 2 | 19 | 21 | 88 | 20 | 0 | 10 | 10 | 12 | ||
| 2017–18 | Lethbridge Hurricanes | WHL | 71 | 5 | 28 | 33 | 76 | 16 | 0 | 4 | 4 | 13 | ||
| 2018–19 | Lethbridge Hurricanes | WHL | 55 | 4 | 31 | 35 | 42 | 7 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 4 | ||
| 2019–20 | Humo Tashkent | VHL | 43 | 1 | 8 | 9 | 35 | 11 | 0 | 5 | 5 | 11 | ||
| 2020–21 | Rubin Tyumen | VHL | 44 | 3 | 13 | 16 | 25 | 16 | 1 | 6 | 7 | 8 | ||
| 2021–22 | Rubin Tyumen | VHL | 50 | 10 | 15 | 25 | 14 | 7 | 0 | 6 | 6 | 4 | ||
| 2022–23 | Odense Bulldogs | Metal Ligaen | 48 | 13 | 23 | 36 | 41 | 6 | 2 | 6 | 8 | 2 | ||
| 2023–24 | HK Spišská Nová Ves | Slovak Extraliga | 49 | 10 | 38 | 48 | 14 | 5 | 1 | 8 | 9 | 4 | ||
| VHL totals | 137 | 14 | 36 | 50 | 74 | 34 | 1 | 17 | 18 | 23 | ||||
