Pavel Dorofeyev

Dorofeyev played as a youth in his native Russia within the junior ranks of Metallurg Magnitogorsk. Following his second season in the KHL with Metallurg in 2019–20, Dorofeyev was traded by the club along with three other prospects to Traktor Chelyabinsk in exchange for Vladislav Semin on 11 June 2020.^[2]

He began the 2020–21 season, with Chelaybinsk affiliate, Chelmet Chelyabinsk of the Supreme Hockey League (VHL), posting eight goals and 17 points through 36 regular season games. He made his lone KHL appearance with Traktor Chelyabinsk in a 4–2 victory over Kunlun Red Star on 7 October 2020.^[3]

With the pandemic-delayed North American season approaching, Dorofeyev ended his contract with Traktor Chelyabinsk and was signed to a three-year, entry-level contract with the Vegas Golden Knights on 25 January 2021.^[4] He was then assigned to join the Golden Knights' new AHL affiliate, the Henderson Silver Knights, in their training camp.^[5]

Dorofeyev made his NHL debut with Vegas in their 2021–22 season opening game, a 4–3 victory over the Seattle Kraken.^[6] After spending most of the 2021–22 and 2022–23 seasons with Henderson, Dorofeyev was again recalled to Vegas' roster in March 2023;^[7] he then recorded his first NHL point and first NHL goal on 12 March 2023, with an assist on a William Karlsson first-period goal later followed by a go-ahead deflection goal off his helmet in the third period.^[8][9]

After recording seven goals and nine points in 18 games played during the 2022–23 season, and with his entry-level contract expiring, Dorofeyev signed a one-year extension with Vegas on 19 July 2023.^[10] After a career-high 47 games in the 2023–24 season, Dorofeyev signed a further two-year extension with Vegas on 1 July 2024.^[11]

Dorofeyev scored his first career hat trick on 14 January 2025, recording a natural hat trick across the second and third periods of a 5–3 loss to the Nashville Predators.^[12] Just two months later, on 20 March, he scored his second hat trick, contributing three goals in a 5–1 victory over the Boston Bruins, and in the process recording the first 30-goal season of his career.^[13] In Vegas' 2025–26 season opener, Dorofeyev recorded his third career hat trick, scoring all three of his goals in the second period of a 6–5 shootout loss to the Los Angeles Kings.^[14] After scoring again in each of his next two games, for a total of five goals in three games, Dorofeyev was named the NHL's First Star of the Week for opening week of the season.^[15]