HOCKEY OBSERVER

IGOR VIAZMIKIN (1966 - 2009)

2009-11-03T09:28:00.000-08:00

Igor Viazmikin (14). October 1997. Photo by author

Another sad news came from Russia. On October 30, 2009 Igor Viazmikin passed away after long illness . He was 44 only.

Igor Viazmikin was born in Moscow on January 8, 1966. His dad brought him to the Red Army hockey school when Igor was 6. When he was 12 the family has lost the elder son who by this time played hockey for Spartak Moscow farm club.

He played his first game for the famous Red Army when he was 16 only and scored his first goal during his debut game against Sokol Kiev.

After 1986 World Junior championship where he won the gold medal and was elected to All Stars team, Igor was included to the Soviet national team to take part in 1986 Moscow World championship to play with his line mates Konstantinov and Kamensky. It never happened. At the very last practice he has got injury working on perfection of the power play. He missed the Worlds, has no chance to do it again.

In 1989 he left Red Army to play for Khimik. Next season he tried to make Edmonton roster. Igor played 4 NHL games (1 goal) but was sent to the farm. He decided to come back to Europe and for the several years played in Denmark, Italy and Finland.

In 1997 he returned to Russia where he played for CSKA and Severstal during the next 2 seasons. (43 games, 9 goals, 11 assists)

Two-times World Junior champion, four-times the Soviet champion Igor Viazmikin had serious problems with his attitude to hockey through his entire career. Unfortunately, I have to make it clear. First of all, Igor should blame himself for the failure of his very promising career. His alcohol addiction was well-known around the hockey World many-many years before he finished to play hockey. Igor Larionov has mentioned it openly as an argument in his famous fight against Viktor Tikhonov. I am not too sure what kind of decease Igor was suffering all his last years. I guess Alex Kasatonov once told it was leukemia.

Any way, Igor Viazmikin has joint the long list of the Russian players of his generation who passed away too early. Evgeny Belosheikin, Igor Stelnov, Alexander Chernykh, Andrei Lomakin among many others are on this sad list.

GRENOBLE WINTER OLYMPICS - SWEDEN vs. DDR

2009-10-24T13:09:00.000-07:00

Tommy, your answer is correct on the photo that I published last time is Deutsche Demokratische Republic vs. Sweden game.

I'm bringing the next one from the same Olympic tournament to your attention. Can you name this team as well?

WHO ARE THEY PLAYING AGAINST?

2009-10-15T19:54:00.001-07:00

Can you name the team which plays against team Sweden? I'll give you a hint - this photo from my archive was taken in 1968 during the Winter Olympics in Grenoble, France

GORAN HOGOSTA - NHL FAILURE

2009-10-15T06:35:00.000-07:00

Goran Hogosta. Prague 1978

Arthur Chidlovski said...

Roland was great... but if you ask me, it was Goran Hogosta, the goalie, who was the hero in 1977. I think Viktor Tikhonov should send him a huge pay check because in many ways he owes him for all his future success...it was Hogosta whom the soviets couldn't score against. as a result, soviet head coach Kulagin had to step down and that's how Tikhonov began to coach Team USSR.

That's right, Arthur
I agree. For some reason Goran had no success when he joint Quebec Nordiques in 1979-80 season. He played 21 games only with horrible 4.15 goal-against result.
But do you know that in fact Hogosta tried to make New York Islanders roster actually played one regulation game for them in 1977-78 season? The best goalie of the 1977 World championship played 9 minutes only wearing Islanders jersey, his task was more than tough - to compete with Billy Smith and Glenn Resch who was the best NHL goalie pair for this moment.

For some reason Quebec is not the best place for European goalies to play hockey. I mean Sergei Mylnikov...

SWEDE ROLAND ERIKSSON - THE CZECHOSLOVAKIA BEST FRIEND

2009-10-08T15:11:00.000-07:00

Roland Eriksson. Late 80s

It was almost unthinkable. Entering the very last day of 1977 World championship team Czechoslovakia has the gold medals almost shining on it's players jerseys.... Why is "almost"? The final touch was to beat team Canada. This task did not look too hard. Canada lost to Soviets 1:11 and 1:8.

The game Czechoslovakia vs. Canada has proved it. It was really "one way traffic". The final scores reflected it - 8:2. With only one additional note - Canada won.
Smiling Phil Esposito was congratulating Russians - "we did everything for you, guys!"
Indeed, to get the gold medals Russian needed to win their last game against Sweden. Every one was thinking the case was done. Soviets wouldn't have any trouble to do it. Unfortunately, USSR players thought the same.

The only exceptions were Heran Hegosta, Sweden goalie, and the hero of my last day question Roland Eriksson.
After the fast goal scored by Vladimir Shadrin, Goran Hogosta stopped everything but the real MVP was Roland who scored all three goals provided 3:0 win to Sweden.

That "redirected" the whole event to the previous scenario by given World champions title to Czechoslovakia.

THE 197X CHAMPIONSHIP HERO.

2009-10-07T11:08:00.000-07:00

This player has been remembered in Russia mostly for just one game he played against the Soviet - the last game of the 197X World championship. His fantastic performance coasted the USSR team the gold medals which dropped out from their hands to indescribable surprise for all hockey World.

He played for Minnesota and Vancouver then has his North American career finished playing with Jets (WHA). His last professional club is Vasteras (Sweden)

I think, it's enough. Tommy, you should name him right away. This is ...

JIRI CRHA - THE "LUCKY" INJURY

2009-10-02T07:02:00.001-07:00

Arthur, you are right as usual even when you "just guessing". This last post goalie is Czechoslovakian Jiri Crha who defected to Canada in 1979 to join Maple Leafs.

The member of Czechoslovakia team at four World Championships he represented his country in 1976 Winter Olympics in Innsbruck, Austria.
I remember one funny moment (but not that funny for Jiri). During one game (against the USA I guess) it was an action deep in the USA zone. Suddenly to everyone surprise the game was stopped. It took some seconds to realize that the reason to stop the game was - Jiri Crha who was standing with "Ken Dryden famous pose" for a long time. Somehow he managed to fall down (stepping on coin I guess) so badly that he had his leg broken. Again, during the game at the opposite end (!).
This injury was the bad one, Jiri was able to come back to the Czech national team in 1978 only just to fled to the NHL one year latter.

He played until 1993 in Germany. He was 43 years old when he decided to finish his career. It's not necessary to add that we in the Soviet Union had know idea what happened to Jiri from 1979 - he simply "disappeared" from hockey surface by this time.

2/16/80 Jiri Crha becomes the first goaltender to defect to play in the NHL after Curt Ridley was injured. He was 8-7-0 in the 1979-80 season and played well enough to convince the Toronto Maple Leafs to trade Mike Palmateer. He went 20-20-11 in 1980-81 before a disastrous playoff series against the Islanders where he allowed 11 goals in 65 minutes across 3 games.

DO YOU KNOW THIS GOALIE?

2009-10-01T09:41:00.000-07:00

Another photo, another player, another story...
I published the photo, I'll tell you this goalie story (with my memories as well), but you are to name this guy.

The hint is - he represented his country in 197X Olympics. He played in the NHL, finished his career in Germany, his name is...

DOMANSKY AND NE-DOMANSKY

2009-09-29T08:49:00.000-07:00

"But Alex, who was the second guy defected to North America in 1974?" - should ask my readers.

The second one is Czechoslovakian hockey legend VACLAV NEDOMANSKY.
Vaclav was the one of the best European forwards of the late 60s - early 70s. Emotional player he had his best games playing against the Soviets after the USSR's 1968 invasion to Czechoslovakia. He, the Holik brothers and Vlado Dzurilla were the guys who inflamed whole team to play every single game against "the big red machine" like the last battle of their life. "To win or to die" or let me say "to die but to win" was the main and only idea for them facing Russians since 1968 for the next two decades. Even Jaromir Jagr are wearing his number 68 in memory of this sad event.
But let me bring you back to 70s. It was the era of the Soviet - Maoist China conflict. It wasn't an ideology confrontation only. It came to some real fights at some boarder regions. One of them, the most famous at this time, was DOMANSKY Peninsula.
So it was a joke spread out, like we in the Soviet Union has two problems by this time - "DOMANSKY and ...NEDOMANSKY"

The Vaclav name was literally erased from every hockey book, article or broadcasting. There were no information on how he is doing, how he is playing, even was he alive at all. Simply, nothing.
In 1983 I was attending some games of World Junior, sitting at VIP sector of "Lenin SKK Arena", trying to enjoy the games.
Why "trying"? I have our hockey legend Boris Majorov sitting one row down and talking no stop to his friend. He missed the goal Czechoslovakia scored on Canada just saying "not the first, not the last..." but in five minutes I was rewarded. His friend asked Majorov about Nedomancky. "He is playing with Detroit", - was the answer.

I have got this info confirmed in seven years only...

RICHARD "THE TRAITOR" FARDA

2009-09-26T05:50:00.000-07:00

Yes,yes,yes...This guy is Richard Farda, the 1972 World Champion from Czechoslovakia.
He was born on August 11, 1945 in Brno, played with Dukla Jihlava (serving army), then ZKL Brno. Richard represented this club and his home town in Czechoslovakia national team, became 1972 World champion (Prague), 1972 Olympic bronze medalist and Czechoslovakia champion of 1966.

Another Photo Of Richard Farda (11)

Nice and straight career, but till 1974 only. This year after 1974 World championship (Helsinki) he and his partner Vaclav Nedomansky defected to Canada becoming "the traitors" as was said by the main Czechoslovakia newspaper "Rude Pravo". This article was reprinted in the USSR by "Soviet Sport". The climax of the story was set by the Soviet main newspaper "Pravda", the Communist World leading Media, by publishing the article "Canadian Hockey Trade Items" describing how poor stupid guys (Farda and Nedomansky) were fooled by North Americans hockey capitalist-sharks and "had their careers ruined".

Ironical it proved to be truth saying on Farda case. He achieved nothing but some money playing for Toronto and Birmingham for 3 years (WHA). He has his career finished in couple of years playing in Switzerland.
His name was forbidden and almost forgotten for us for decades.

DO YOU KNOW THIS GUY?

2009-09-24T15:14:00.000-07:00

Do you know this player? He become well known in the ... Soviet Union literally overnight. The main soviet newspaper "Central Pravda" published the article devoted to him and his partner. The article was located outside of sports area and was named "Canadian Hockey Trade Items" ("канадский хоккейный товар")
So the hero of this publication and the man from my photos is...

JIRI HOLECEK "FORGETS" HIS JERSEY AT HIS DEBUT GAME

2009-09-24T06:02:00.000-07:00

Look at this photo. 1966. It was one of the first games the legend goalie Jiri Holecek represented his country (maybe the very first, I am not sure). The friendly game between Czechoslovakia and Team Canada was played in Prague right before 1966 Lubliana's World Championship where Czechoslovakia finished second just one point behind of the Soviets and where Jiri started his fantastic international career officially.

But it's not the only and major reason I am publishing this photo from my famous (can I say it, Arthur?) archives. I clearly remember (no, no - not this game, I was 5 years old only!) I was kind of shocked in early 80s (or late 70s?) seen Sweden played dark blue jerseys instead of ever-yellow for first time in decade. My neighbour - the hockey fan veteran, said me - "Hmm, kid, you are too young to remember hockey of 50s.."
I am not "too young" anymore, but it's not an issue. The point is, look at this b/w photo again. Don't you think it's little bit strange having whole Czechoslovakia playing white and their goalie Holecek playing dark jersey?!
Maybe he has his white jersey forgotten (as the kids from my son's team doing more than often) to bring for his debut game? (Just kidding...)

BOBBY CLARKE - I WAS NO FIGHTER

2009-09-23T06:35:00.000-07:00

Somehow I missed this article when it was published first in 2006. I found it suddenly when I did some search on different point. But it was so interesting that I decided to re-publish it today. Enjoy!

In Russia he is remembered as a hockey ruffian who broke Kharlamov's leg in 1972; in Northern America – as one of the greatest players in the NHL's history.

Bobby Clarke And Boris Mikhailov During 1975 Banquet

By Slava MALAMUD, Sport-Express author. 2006

Robert Earl (Bobby) Clarke

Born: August 13, 1949, in Flin Flon, province of Manitoba.
Centre forward. Played for the NHL's Philadelphia Flyers (1969-1984): 358 goals and 852 assists (1,210 points) in regular season; 42 goals and 77 assists (119 points) in play-offs.
Three-time winner of the Hart Memorial Trophy as the NHL's most valuable player (1973, 1975 and 1976); twice a member of the NHL First Team (1975, 1976); eight-time NHL All Star; two-time Stanley Cup winner (1974, 1975).

Played in the 1972 Summit Series against the Soviet Union; member of Team Canada in the 1976 Canada Cup and 1982 World Championships. Played in the Challenge Cup against the Soviet Union for the NHL All-Stars. Inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1987. The recipient of the Order of Canada (the second grade - Officer of the Order). The President and the General Manager of the Philadelphia Flyers.

Who is he in reality, Bobby Clarke, the captain of the "Broad Street Bullies", the legend and symbol of the Philadelphia Flyers?

The truth is, as usual, somewhere in the middle. Clarke was a tough, fierce player, entirely faithful to his team. He was equally competent both in giving a smack in the mouth and putting the puck in the net. He was a superstar at a club that played anti-star hockey, but he became the leader, the inspiration and the soul of this, in all respects, terrible group. He is not ashamed of his deeds and he does not apologize for anything. Well then, who is he, Bobby Clarke? Judge for yourself. The ex-Bully and at present the General Manager of the Flyers gave an exclusive interview to our "SE" correspondent.

FLIN FLON

Undoubtedly, there is a better time for meeting with the NHL's club President than in the first post-lockout month. NHL club bosses simply do not have any days off nowadays. But the prospect of a lifetime first – a big interview for a Russian publication – was so attractive for Clarke that he immediately agreed to squeeze an hour from his working time, after one of the first Flyers practices of the new season.

It happened in the Orange-and-Blacks’ training arena in the town of Woorhees, New Jersey, near Philadelphia. Peter Forsberg and his crew shared the ice with some farm team players. A couple of girls practised figure skating on the adjacent rink. And on the second floor, moments after the Flyers media representative escorted me into an empty office, a man of medium height, wearing a baseball cap and shorts, came in, sat down in a chair under the portrait of Lindros (who is as everpresent in the building as Lenin was in Russia some time ago) and broadly smiled.

The details of his biography are widely known to North American fans. Everybody knows that he was born and raised in the far north, in the tiny Canadian town with a funny name of Flin Flon which is about ten hours by bus from the provincial centre, Winnipeg. But Bobby shrugs off the quaint and exotic in his biography.

- It’s just an ordinary mining town. Nothing special. I am sure, somewhere in the North of Russia there are towns exactly like this. There were a lot of lakes around and all the boys played hockey. In my time, several NHL players came out from there. I, however, didn’t even know much about the league. I was already playing junior hockey when the first TV’s arrived in our town. That's about all that could be said about Flin Flon.

The NHL knew enough about young Bobby but was not in a hurry to see him among its players. From his childhood Clarke suffered from diabetes, and the scouts were sure that it would prevent him from playing professional hockey.

- At that time people knew very little about the disease, - explains Clarke. – As far as I know, none of the clubs except Philadelphia even asked the doctors for any explanations. Everybody just decided that if there was something wrong with your health, then you are not NHL material. During the first training camps I had some seizures, but the team doctor worked out a special diet for me and since then everything was okay.

- What was the diet he came up with?

- I had to take a lot of glucose. Before a game I would drink a can of Coke or juice with five spoons of sugar. Did the same thing during the intermissions. I also always had some chocolate with me, just in case. The thing is, you inject insulin every morning, so you must eat enough to balance out its content in your blood. But when you play sports, you burn the calories and you need to improvise to bring the level back to normal. In general, we managed to work it out so that my disease did not affect the game at all.

Besides, I was lucky to complete my career without any major injuries. I had a broken finger, a sprained leg, lots of cuts on my face, that's pretty much all. It came from being the kind of player I was. But nothing really bad. Thankfully, I kept my knees and shoulders whole.

- But still you quit hockey at 34. According to modern standards, it's still a young age.

- But not back then, it wasn’t. Twenty years ago when a player got over 30, he was an old man. We had not been whipped into shape as the modern players are. We had very little offseason training. At that time there was no such thing as off-the-ice conditioning: we were only taught hockey. You took care of your own body on your own time. And, of course, none of today’s medical and fitness staff. But the workload during the season was very much the same, if not heavier. So, by the age of 30, most players were spent.

"THEY SCARED THE S*** OUT OF US"

Bobby Clarke is not only about that sixth game of the 1972 Series between Canada and the Soviet Union or Kharlamov's broken leg. The great Soviet forward himself many times referred to Clarke as a brilliant player. But still, that Series had made such an important impact on the career and reputation of Clarke that it naturally dominated our conversation. And is it not interesting to look at this mega-event through the eyes of one of its major personalities?

- "No doubt, the Soviet players were much better prepared physically than us," recalls Clarke. "Another thing that played against us was probably the arrogance. There was not a player in our team wou doubted we’d win easily. And, of course, we were quicky proven to be wrong, as our opponent turned out to be just as good as we were… This is probably the main lesson everyone learned in that series: there was no considerable difference between us. We were all just hockey players, similar to each other in many ways. This is why I think this series was the greatest event in the history of hockey. Canada won, but both teams became famous.

- Please, describe your attitude to your opponent before the Series began.

- I did not think about them at all. I had plenty other problems to occupy myself with. I happened to be the last player who was named to the team, so in order to get any playing time, I had go all out in practices during the camp. So I made the fourth line with Henderson and Ellis, who also were lucky to be on the team at all. But that team had some players who could do nothing and still make the lineup. The three of us had to die on the ice to prove that we were worthy. And in the end, those guys who didn’t try hard paid the price: they weren’t as ready as they should’ve been.

- You probably mean Phil Esposito, do you not?

- Yes, you're right. He was one of them. But yo be fair to Phil, as the series went on he just got better and better until he had reached his normal level. But many of them still played to half of their ability. Also, some did not have enough time to recover from the last season or from injuries and were not able to play at all. Like Bobby Orr, for instance.

- What did you know about the Soviets?

- Nothing. We started the game without knowing a thing about our opponent. I don’t know, maybe a couple of notes from someone, or maybe someone saw them a couple of times a long time ago – that was about all we had on the Russians. This sounds strange but nobody cared about the opponent. Until we saw them in action, we could not imagine how strong their team was.

- So you did not know a thing about your opponent, you did not even think about coming off second-best … Then how did you motivate yourself? Or was there not any motivation at all because you did not expect this event to become important?

- Well, for us it just was a series of exhibition games. Four games against the Russians in Canada, two games in Sweden, four more in Russia and one more in Czechoslovakia on the way back. Just preseason stuff, you know. I personally could not imagine that it was going to be such an important milestone in the history of hockey. Only after the first game when we had our asses kicked, we started thinking about how to pull ourselves together take it seriously. Luckily, we were able to do it, just in time.

- Could you describe your feelings during the first game?

- I thin, most of us had the s--- scared out of us. After the first period we realized that we could not keep up with the Russians. The players just know these things intuitively. We understood that they were a better team than us that day. By the middle of the second period it became clear that it could get real ugly. After the end of the Canadian part of the Series all the emotions we felt sort of transformed into pure anger. Anger at ourselves. We did not play the way we were able and that drove me nuts.

- Do you remember the famous speach by Phil Esposito when he was interviewed after the fourth game in which he ripped the Canadian fans for booing? Did you share his point of view?

- No, I did not. He is one of the most emotional and outspoken people to ever play in the NHL. I kept my anger inside and I was angry at myself and the team. The fans had every right to boo because we deserved it. The fact that we did not imagine the strength of the Soviet team and that we were poorly prepared – all of that was just an excuse. We had nobody to blame but ourselves.

- So what had happened to your team in Moscow? The break in the action hardly explains the change in fortunes, as you lost your fifth game too.

- During the Canadian series we were just in a terrible shape. After the terrible loss in Montreal, we won in Toronto, but we played on pure emotions. And in Winnipeg we managed to scrape up a tie that way. But you can’t play just on emotions alone forever: in the long run you just exhaust yourself. That was exactly what happened in Vancouver. But after we had had a little rest in Sweden we got into a much better shape. Our team work was better, our speed was better, our passing was better too. In Moscow we were a team, a team that was capable of playing the full 60 minutes. But the fact that the games were stuill close, well, that’s just a credit to the Russians.

"LIQUIDATION" OF KHARLAMOV

- So we have reached the episode with Kharlamov in the sixth game of the Series. The first thing I would like to ask you: did you know his leg was sore before you hit him?

- No, I had no idea. You see, there’s been so much crap written about this. It was not something planned. My line played against Kharlamov during the whole series and we played well. He scored in the first games but then we managed to hold him back. - Bobby, that is not exactly so. For instance, he assisted Vikulov who scored the winning goal in game five. Moreover, if I am not mistaken, Kharlamov had intercepted your pass when doing this.

- Is that right? Maybe. I don't remember it very well. But on the whole we controlled him well. As for the episode you've mentioned, we were going for the puck together, he pushed me with the stick, then turned around and skated away. I caught up with him and hit him on the leg, not thinking at all where and how I hit.

- You speak about it as if it were a perefectly normal thing.

- For us it was normal. The thing is that we, Canadians, are used to fighting as an integral part of hockey. When you have “misunderstandings” like this, they are often solved with the fists. Soviet hockey had no fights so the players used other methods to get the point accross. Like a little bit of “stick work” here and there, you know. And I personally don't mind this. I am a tough player and I respect toughness in others. But if I am poked with a stick I will do the same. We just had to adapt to the new ways of doing things, that’s all.

- But still, honestly, you were not seeking revenge on Kharlamov for the ending of the fifth game?

- Like I said, I do not remember what happened there in the fifth game (Smiling). I am sure I remembered then, but I can not say anything now.

- And how about the fact that assistant coach John Ferguson allegedly ordered you to take Kharlamov out?

- Well, John later said that he said something like this but to tell you the truth, I don't remember that. But, knowing Ferguson, I don’t doubt that it that he could have said it. And if he did, I would have listened to him, by the way. But I don’t think he ever said anything to me personally. Probably, he just said something like: "Someone’s gotta do something about this guy".

- Taking into account this episode and several others from the Moscow series would it be fair to say that you achieved such a turnaround in the Series just because you intimidated your opponent?

- No, there were other factors involved. In Moscow we played much better than in Canada. We were almost equal to the Soviet team physically by then, we passed much better, we shot the puck much better, we became faster and played better on defence. Besides, when you have nothing to loose, it is easier to play. And after the fifth game we had nothing to loose.

- A lot was said and written about refereeing in Moscow.

- Yes, there were plenty of strange calls. It seems to me that all the background political crap from both sides had a big effect on the Series. I think this stuff should never be allowed to influence sports, but somehow it always happens anyway.

- How would you comment on the episode in the eighth game when after a questionable penalty, Parise had threatened the referee with the fragment of his stick?

- I don't think that Parise could have hit him. Jean-Paul has always been a good, honest, straight-shooting guy. He could have never injured anybody on purpose. But the refereeing in the beginning of the eighth game was just horrible, and I am sure that the referee drove Jean insane in the end. I am glad that he just raised the stick but did not hit him, and I remember I was very much surprised. Someone like me, you could expect to do it but not Jean.

IT WAS VERY CLEAN

- What was your impression of Moscow in the 1972?

- I liked it very much. I remember it was very clean and quiet, people were very friendly.

- Weren't you afraid that you would be followed?

- I know what some of our players said (no doubt, Clarke means Phil Esposito – S.M.) but even if there was something like this, it did not worry me. I came to Moscow to play hockey, and I never cared about politics and s--- like that.

- But at that time both America and the USSR considered the Series as an important political event, as the war of the worlds. Did it not touch on you at all?

- I remember how the Series was presented. It was at the height of the cold war, after all, so I heard stories about the battle between communism and democracy and all that stuff. But for me it was a matchup of hockey players. I don’t know what motivated others, but for me hockey and the will to win were always enough.

- What, in your opinion, was the main advantage of the Canadian team?

- I believe that the strength of the Soviet team lay in good teamwork. The Russians could play very well with each other within their five-men units. As soon as we managed to break their lines up a little, they couldn’t do as well any longer. They could not re-adjust and play differently.

- How did you do it?

- How? Just by playing the Canadian way: we ran the s--- out of them and plastered them all over the boards. During the first games we weren't as fast as they were, but as we got into a better shape we were blocking passes and taking them from their favourite spots. This is the Canadian style which is comfortable for us.

Of course, after this series we learned a lot from the Russians, but it seems to me that European hockey got more from us than vice versa.

- And how did it show?

- Just look at the modern international tournaments. It used to be that when two national teams would get out on the ice, you could see the difference in styles immediately. Now everybody plays the same type hockey. And it’s the North American type. In our time Soviet players never dumped the puck into the zone. They would rather turn around at the blue line and pass backwards to start a play all over again. Now they do it our way more often. I think that after 1972 the Russians learned that it’s more effective to get the puck into the opposite end and play physical hockey there. And we learned to pass better and improved our conditioning.

- Does that mean that Canadian hockey of the time was strictly the simple “dump and chase”?

- No, it’s not about simplicity. The Canadians always played "North to South" that is vertically, from one goal to the other. We’d get the puck and we’d always try to find the shortest way to the opponent's goal. Our hockey was much more direct and aggressive. In Europe they played "East to West", horizontally, between the boards. Soviet players would try to hold the puck longer, pass it to each other, move it between the blue lines. That's not for us. We would take the blue line by storm, if it was possible to stickhandle or pass across it, we’d do it, but if it wasn’t – dump and run. The difference here is not in the complexity but in the direction and speed.

THE GRACEFUL YAKUSHEV

- Don't you think it was a symbolic thing that the final result of the Series was determined by your line which consisted of relatively non-star players? As by that time you were not a star yet.

- I wouldn’t single us out. Of course, Paul Henderson scored the winning goals in the last three games, but it was not my line that won the Series, it was the team. Someone had to stop the Russians from scoring, someone had to score other goals. Without them, Henderson's goals would have meant nothing. Paul has deserved his hero status, but in hockey it’s teams that win.

- Were Soviet players more skilled one-on-ne?

- I would not say so, although there were plenty of great players. Kharlamov was an incredible player and he could play physically too. What he was doing with the puck was just unbelievably beautiful. But when I played against Maltsev, I thought to myself that he was the best forward I had ever met on the ice. And I still think so now. He was great in everything – from controlling the puck to face-offs to physical play. And Yakushev! I would say he was the best player of the Series in both teams. Towards the end I looked at him and thought about the great Jean Beliveau, Alexander resembled him so much. He had that special grace, that Jean had. He is one those you could envy in a good way. Everyone would like to play like him: clean, beautiful, presise, strong and always with this one-of-a-kind grace.

- The Series was supposed to prove something. Either that the Canadians were still stronger than the rest of the world or that the Soviet team had overtaken them. As a result, what, in your opinion, did it prove?

- That the best Soviet hockey players are as good as the best NHL players. A one-goal victory in the last game of the series does not really prove a lot. Since then, I think, we’ve stopped considering ourselves to be head and shoulders abouve the rest. However, we are still number one in the world. See for yourself: Canada has a very small population compared to Russia, so Russia should produce more first-rate players, but this just doesn’t happen. Canada has been winning everything in international competition lately. As a general manager, am surprised we can’t find more great players in Russia, Finland, Sweden. Yes, sometimes you come across a Malkin or an Ovechkin but beyond them there is nothing. I don't get it.

- Can it be said that your status of a superstar first became firmly established during the Summit Series?

- Sure. I'd played in the League for only three years then, and being a part of the series really gave me a big push in my development. Probably, as a player in 1972 I skipped ahead about 2 years.

THERE WERE NO COWARDS IN CSKA…

At present Bobby Clarke's smile looks like an excellent advertisement of American dentistry. His pristinely white smile features not so much as a single natural upper tooth. In times gone by, Bobby's toothless grin was his trademark. And not only his, but in fact it was the trademark of his whole team, the great and terrible Philadelphia Flyers, the "Broad Street Bullies". This semi-mythical embodiment of the worst NHL stereotypes, as described by Vladimir Vysotsky in his song Professionals, can be thought of in many ways. But there is no doubt that the Bullies were an outstanding and a unique phenomenon, and the businesslike hockey administrator who was sitting right in front of me was the leader of that crew.

- We just caught a glimpse of the Broad Street Bullies in 1976 during the scandalously famous game with CSKA, but it was quite enough. Soviet fans who were unaccustomed to such competitive behaviour expressed their indignation at your playing style, but I know that in North America the opinion about that Philadelphia team was a long cry from unanimous.

- I believe that this was a team that anyone would want to be a part of. Yes, there were fans from other cities who hated us, but this was more out of envy than anything else. Maybe we fought more often than some would’ve liked, but that was just a good team-oriented mindset we had. Is there a fan who wouldn't want a team like this to root for? We went to fight together, and we were ready to fight for each other. Unfortunately, there aren’t any teams like that in today’s hockey.

- Does that mean that you would not mind seeing "The Hammer" Schultz and "The Hound Dog" Kelly play in today's NHL?

- I think that such players are also needed. And they are still around. There are lots of them grown in Canada but thye have a much tougher time breaking into the league now.

- You, in spite of your impressive statistics and three Hart Memorial Trophies, are mainly remembered as a tough player, a fighter.

- I played the way I thought was right. My motto was: "Give everything to the team". To some extent, my individual trophies are a result of playing for a very good team. For me it was very important to realize that I was a team player, one of the guys; on the ice, in a fight, and after the game when we went out for a beer with the rest of the guys.

- By the way, everybody knows how tough you were while playing. Were you as good in fights?

- No, I couldn’t fight worth a damn. I tried especially when I was young but I quit it pretty soon. Now, playing good tough hockey is a different matter.

- Including stickwork?..

- Including that. That’s the game. Once I told a reporter, who asked about my episode with Kharlamov, that I would have still been in Flin Flon hadn't I learned how to lay a two-hander once in a while. I could hit them on the leg, but don't forget that they did the same things to me. I am all for fairness, so the players who play tough hockey have to be prepared to get the same thing back. And I was ready for that.

- Do you remember the game against CSKA in 1976 when the Soviet team left the ice?

- That was very bad for Soviet hockey. It made it look as if the Russians were afraid of us. But I know it was not like that at all. The Russian guys were not cowards. I played against them before, they were real men, real tough sons of bitches. It was some other people that decided to take them off the ice. I am sure that was done against their will. If someone were to do this to me, I’d rip their throat out. Nobody ever has a right to make me out a coward. Besides, that game wasn’t all that dirty. Philadelphia played tough but it’s allowed in the game of hockey.

- The incident happened after a Philadelphia player punched a CSKA player in the head.

- I don’t think it’s what happened. I looked to me like Van Impe checked Kharlamov, nothing more. Even if he had punched him – so what? Kharlamov was not afraid of punches, so why take him from the ice by his hand like he was a child?

- Don't you agree that you would try to intimidate your opponents?

- You can intimidate only those who allow themselves to be intimidated. We just played our game, the way we usually played. The other teams tried to follow the CSKA style and got there asses kicked. We weren’t about to do that.

- Before the game with CSKA you said: "They'll try to play brain games, but this does not work with us. There are 20 guys in our team and none of them have any brains."

- To tell the truth, I don't remember that. Although I could have definitely said out something like that.

I AM NOT A RUSSOPHOBE

- Who out of the Soviet players you met impressed you the most and what could they, in your opinion, achieve in the NHL?

- Of course, Tretiak was one of the best goalies. Kharlamov and Yakushev could have won a Hart trophy each – that goes without saying. Petrov and Maltsev would have become NHL stars. The rest of the players of the 1972 team would have at least made the league. Naturally, the NHL hockey was a little bit different from the one the guys were used to, but I am certain, they would have adapted. Like I said, these guys feared nothing.

- Then may I remind you of another sentence? "I hate these sons of bitches. They don't like anything, they always complain of something and whine all the time".

- Yes, I said this before the game against CSKA. Of course, that was silly and I am ashamed of this now. After all, we had no problems with CSKA players outside the ice, we even became friends as far as it was possible in those times. I invited Tretiak to my place, had him meet my family. Why have I said that? Well, I was always good at playing mad. It was very difficult for me to be on the ice against somebody I liked. It was necessary to develop hatred against an opponent. So these words had no personal feelings for the Soviet players.

- It was said by some that you, as a general manager, didn’t much approve of Russian players and Europeans in general. The Flyers for a while were one of the most “North American” teams in the league.

- Really? We were the first NHL club to draft a Russian player. And who has drafted the Stastny brothers? As far as I am personally concerned you can ask any Russian player who played in Philadelphia if Bobby Clarke cares about his nationality.

- What is your opinion about the fact that Russia has not signed the agreement with the IIHF and the NHL?

- For the players, especially for those who want to play in the NHL, it's bad. But at the same time I can understand the Russians. I would not like to have my players taken away because of an agreement that was written by someone other than me.

At the same time I don't think that the NHL will seriously suffer from the Russian decision. In fact, there aren’t that many great players coming in from Russia. There are several real stars and plenty of third and fourth liners. If we are lucky to attract the best over here then everything is going to be all right. As for the average players, there are many more of them in Canada, and they are better anyway. So I'll think twice before I draft a Russian. Of course if he is a Malkin or an Ovechkin, you’ve got to take those guys.

- What do you think about the change if the rules? The red-line rule, for instance?

- I think it’s bulls... I like hockey the way it is. It's quite funny because the red line rule was introduced to increase the scoring. Now it's being removed for the same reason. So what’s gonna be the result? Nothing. Maybe there will be more teams using the trap. I do like the return of the old offside rule, and the decreasing of the goalie equipment, though.

- How about the clutching and grabbing crackdown?

- Nonsense. I am in full agreement with Scott Niedermayer. He has said that there is no clutching and grabbing at all. NHL defensemen today see the ice so well and position themselves so well that forwards have no place to go. I don’t see why we need to crack down on anything. The guys a playing a good, contact sport. Let them hit each other, let them use the boards. Who said that a 5-3 game is better than a 3-1 game? Scoring is just a part of hockey. If there is no physical play, it is not hockey.

2006. Sport-Express

PRAGUE 1974. LONDON LIONS

2009-09-21T17:15:00.000-07:00

Sure, Arthur
Your answer is correct as usual. The photo was taken in Prague in 1974 during friendly game between Czechoslovakia and London Lions.
The goalie is Leif "Honken" Holmqvist whose photo from 1975 World Championship I am publishing right now.

By the way, do you have any ideas why he and Ulf Sterner were so popular in the Soviet Union during our early childhood? We actually played our own battles as "Holmqvist" and "Sterner" among our "Firsov", "Ragulin" and "Zinger" long-long time ago...

HAVE YOU SEEN THIS ANISIMOV GOAL?

2009-09-21T09:49:00.000-07:00

CAN YOU NAME THIS TEAM?

2009-09-21T05:35:00.000-07:00

Ok, how is about this one? Our old friend Vladimir Martinec is here again. Team Czechoslovakia is playing, that is obvious. But who are they playing against? I guess, the goalie should give you a hint...Go ahead!

SO, THE ANSWERS ARE:

2009-09-21T05:30:00.000-07:00

First photo - Jiri Kochta,

Second photo - Gunnar Larsson and "Lill-Strimma" Svedberg

Regards

KEN DRYDEN, SERGE SAVARD AND...

2009-09-20T07:51:00.000-07:00

As you know, there was one game only within 1972 summit Team Canada faced Czechoslovakia. Probably, this is a reason were are not too many photos from this game around the Globe.

This one I published today is one of them. Ken Dryden and Serge Savard are trying to stop Czech forward while ref Rudolf Bata is watching the game. But who is this Czech player? Can you name him?

Click on photo to get it enlarge.

THE NEXT PHOTO is for you, TOMMY.

It's not big deal to identify Vladimir Martinec on this photo. Can you name two Swedes?

CZECHOSLOVAKIA TEAM PHOTO

2009-09-20T05:53:00.000-07:00

OK, so here is the list of players depicted 23 years ago:

Standing (top) row from left to right:

Andrst (federation chairman), Bubla, Fairezl (team official), M.Stastny, P.Statsny, coach Gut, Novy, Kaberle, Dvorak, Pouzar, doctor Trefny, B.Stastny, Cernik, E.Novak, Chalupa, trainer Krizek

"One knee" (bottom) row from left to right:

J.Novak, Kajkl, Holecek, Pospisil, J.Holik, Machac, Dzurilla, Hlinka, Martinec, coach Starsi

CZECHOSLOVAKIA. 1976 WORLD CHAMPIONS TEAM PHOTO

2009-09-19T12:59:00.000-07:00

This is the CZECHOSLOVAKIA TEAM photo from my archive. On this one they are celebrating the victory of 1976 World championship which was held in Katowice, Poland

This team became famous every where, even in Canada - in four months from this moment almost the same guys represented Czechoslovakia at 1976 first Canada Cup, went up to the finals where were overpowered by Canadian star team.

Nice, but the question is - how many players from this photo can you recognize and name them?
Go ahead! Click on photo to get it enlarged.

VLADISLAV TRETIAK - ALEXANDROV SET NO SURPRIZE FOR ME. JANUARY 1976

2009-09-17T15:57:00.000-07:00

Boris Alexandrov Is Congratulated By Boris Mikhailov And Vladimir Petrov After Scoring a Goal Against Rangers On December 28, 1975

After the 1975-76 Series when CSKA has faced the NHL for the first time the new name attracted all attention - the youngster Boris Alexandrov has caught everyones admiration and passion.
Vladislav Tretiak was asked if Alexandrov's brilliant play during those games was any surprize for him.
"Not at all", was the answer, "for more than two years Boris is scoring me more goals than Kharlamov during CSKA practices..."

Today I would like to remind you this fantastic player whose achivments reeflected his abilities for maybe 10%...

REMEMBERING BORIS ALEXANDROV

2009-09-17T09:51:00.000-07:00

"Dumbasses like me don't defect to other countries!"

Boris Alexandrov. Red Army and Soviet National Team

Despite the slender build, Boris Alexandrov, not only scored a lot of goals to Canadians, but firmly fight them back every possible time.
What makes us proud of our country? One and only answer cannot be provided. Someone contemplating, looking at the green birch trees, someone's heart stops, when the heavy tanks are roaring thruogh the Red Square, and some remembering the ballet and the cosmos, where we always were the first, and for tens of millions of citizens our hockey remains as our greatest proud.
The greatest athletes of the world, receiving miserable wages, magicians of the puck, easily interacting with Brezhnev and Gagarin, but often lived in one-room closet, people unusually gifted physically, who by age of thirty had this seemingly endless resource drained to the bottom, national heros across the country, through two or three years turning into a chronic alcoholics, people with disabilities who die sometimes just before retirement, but also not passing forty years mark...
After a career they were forgotten firmly and permanently. Someone was able to become a coach, someone friends were able to help to get a job at a prestigious car service, but someone went up to play hockey till fifty in the lower leagues, or for veterans, earning a penny, but knowing that nothing else he could do himself feed him. It’s a different fate of the once greats. But why is "once"? For us, they are great. After all, there is no such thing as “former” Olympic champions...
In the spring of 1996 along with a photographer Anatoly Belyasov I was sitting in a cozy apartment of one of the most beloved hockey players of our country, Boris Alexandrov. His stocky figure exuded calm and confidence. A huge black Labrador dog, manipulative calmed down and was lying at the feet of the master.
We drank tea and were talking slowly, remembering the old days. Boris smiled, glancing out the window at the Tushino (the Moscow suburb – A.N) new buildings, the church at Volokolamka and nature awakens across the “Koltsevaja” Highway. And none of us could have known that seeing each other we had last time and it was his interview would also be the last – this interview was destined to go to print after almost seven years after meeting, after the tragic death of this great player last year.
In two days Boris left to Ust-Kamenogorsk, where I received a fax from him short: "Excellent! You can print ". But it so happened that I left print company, which was prepared to print this interview, went to the civil service, and the text stayed in my old notebook for all these years...
After the death of Boris, I began looking for it, but never found - while repairing a computer was "cleaned". But quite by accident, going through my archives, I came across a dozen of the old floppies. Stuck the first one into my computer and found ... seemingly lost files!

Boris Alexandrov. Izvestia Prize 1976. Photo by Nikale1

- Tell me, Boris, when you were in 1972, watching on TV the first games the USSR played against team NHL, did you think that after several years the kids of Ust-Kamenogorsk would just admire your game against Montreal and Philadelphia?
- Not that I thought, I was just hoping to play against Canadian professionals. There already one already a well-known player in Ust-Kamenogorsk - Eugene Paladiev (Spartak Moscow and Soviet national team defender, 1972 series participant – A.N), so that everyone understood that the road to great hockey for us is not that closed. One needed only to get to a decent team.
- But it was crazy competition among the forwards in CSKA. Mikhailov and Petrov and Kharlamov, and Firsov with Vikulov, and other stars all played that time for Red Army...
- In March 1973 CSKA came to us for two friendly games, though without the major players, the national team members in the roster. I played not too bad against them, scored, I guess three goals. In general, after some time came Anatoly Firsov, who was the playing coach of CSKA Moscow, talked with my parents, and in August 1973 I found myself in Moscow. I played for the main CSKA and, when the schedule allowed, for the youth CSKA team as well. In 1974-1975 I began to play for the Soviet Junior team, participated in two World Championships.
- You go out on the ice in the main Soviet league 22 years ago. Now in 1996 you are doing it for the Ust-Kamenogorsk Torpedo. When was it easier to play?
- Now the level of hockey is greatly fallen. And of course, the veterans - Vasily Pervukhin, Alexander Kozhevnikov, and me – we all feel pretty calm. In addition, when I started to play most teams played three lines. Now every team is playing four lines, one cannot even be too tired after the game. In the past, players approaching the thirty years mark accumulated fatigue from hockey.
- But you know, Boris, I am quite sure that in case Larionov stayed in Russia he wouldn’t play any hockey now...
- But the NHL – is a different matter. The people there are playing for a lot of money, they want to extend their hockey career, earn a little more for the rest of their life. And we, once again I say, were much more tired by that age. I now think of my youth: we have never been at home. It was permanent camp at Archangelsky, no family, no friends, nobody. Viktor Tikhonov used to keep us for nine months on the base itself, and by the way, lived with us all this time. And from this one gets tired most of all - the same room, same person, same talk about hockey ...
- And every vocation out of camp turned into a full-drunkenness, everything that is said, were out of any “border”. Right?
- For me, just sitting at the training camp was a torture. I'm kind of funny and emotional man, so when the suppressed emotions were given way out... someone did it quietly, drank a glass almost under his pillow, then trembled - just hoping the coach would not smell the alcohol, about my “actions” at that time everybody knew. Usually, after the hard game, unmarried young players from CSKA Moscow, met in the restaurant on the air terminal, it only began where, and then we moved to the "Belgrad" (famous Moscow restaurant – A.N)and had all this “celebrations” finished where...
- And What about other restaurants, "Beijing" for instance? Did not you attend it?
- No, "Beijing" - it was a Dynamo restaurant (meaning this one was common for Moscow Dynamo hockey players – A.N). Spartak after the winning game can be found in Aragvi (another famous Moscow restaurant – A.N). So our leisure all was organized about the same: win, drank, walked, fall asleep, and – back to the camp.
- How it was from the coaches view?
- It varies. Konstantin Loktev, for example, didn’t not welcome such "rest", then, at least, understood that players needed it, and did not not punished for such things. For him playing hockey was more important, not what one does off-ice. But Viktor Vasiljevich (Tikhonov – A.N) had different attitude ...
- And how these fairly decent dose of alcohol affect the physical condition?
- When you young, it did not affect you. We do not drink hard drinks, mostly champagne. When the organism is young, trained, you go out the next day to workout, run, sweating ... To play the game in two days in general you are a hundred percent ready. But such "alcoholic" days we were given infrequently, two or three times a month. The rest of the time we were just sitting at the camps – no way out.
- But at the training camps you all also drank as well...
- Sometimes, but rarely. If someone had a birthday, we drove into the woods; birthday boy took out of the trunk a few bottles of champagne. We all drank and one got congratulated ...

Boris Alexandron And Mats Waltin

- This summer, when in the same Archangelsky camp, I spoke with Tikhonov, I saw this picture: young players from CSKA Moscow (the eldest - 23 years), went out after training, smoke, and Tikhonov, pretends not to notice ...
- Before he could any star just get "buried" for such thing. Great many players finished to play ahead of time just because of Tikhonov! Sasha (Alexander – A.N)Gusev (CSKA and Soviet national team defender –A.N) Tikhonov removed from the team too early, and Mikhailov-Petrov-Kharlamov line was ruined by his own hands. Tarasov created, but Tikhonov destroyed (Red Army team – A.N). When he arrived, they were already great hockey players, so knowledgeable and able to do everything in hockey, to the same they were self-willed people, so Tikhonov “finished” them one by one and removed ...
- You too? For in due time about your transfer to the SKA MVO (despite the fact that you were one of the best scorers in the league) passed around so many rumours ...
- Well, you know, rumours are rumours, but in reality it was so - in 1979 we played in Leningrad back-to-back games with SKA. We had one game played already. I stood on the steps of the hotel and talking to my girlfriend who was from Leningrad - a figure skater Marina Leonidova (famous Soviet ex-figure skater – A.N). Time was - fifteen minutes past eleven. Tikhonov arrives: Oh, so-so, tomorrow game, and you're standing here with a prostitute ... Well, I replied in the same spirit, were not in very decent shape. In general, the next day it was the team meeting - I was sent to Moscow as result. I was offended, didn’t go back to Moscow, and remained in Leningrad for another four days. And when I returned to Moscow, I found out that I already belong to SKA MVO...

Boris Alexandrov. Spartak Moscow. Photo by Nikale1 1981

- How did you manage to escape from the army to Spartak?
- Of course, from CSKA Moscow, with such fans as Brezhnev, Ustinov (the minister of defence – A.N), I would not be able to get away, but from SKA MVO was easier (Just a comment for the non ex-Soviet readers – SKA MVO at this time was the second Soviet league team which can be regarded as CSKA farm club if not less – that made Alexandrov’s escape possible as moving him down to this team indicated the finish of his career as a top player - A.N). But Boris Pavlovich Kulagin, coach of Spartak, had to work hard to get me. There were government members Spartak supporters as well so the special decision has been made and I was released peacefully.
- Boris, despite your slender build, you had the reputation of one of the toughest players in our hockey. You even called in CSKA Cassius Clay (that was ironically – A.N)...
- The nickname I was given by Zhenya (Evgeny – A.N) Mishakov (Read Army and Soviet national team forward – A.N). We played a tournament in 1973 where there were constant skirmishes, fights, someone I have sent to knockout like a boxer so that's how I got a nickname.
- Have you done any boxing specifically?
- I was engaged with soccer, and gymnastics, and boxing - all quite seriously. Anyway, I have my boxer blow set right.
- Due to this, you could knock down the huge Canadians?
- Well, first of all, I had a very good skating, I stand on skates excellent (It is what, in my opinion, Crosby doing perfectly, but not Malkin – sorry for off-point comment - A.N), I felt the distance. Secondly, I felt, when nobody was waiting my hit or body check. There were times to count, where the player is about to pass, has his head bowed, I met him - and got him flying easily.

Boris Alexandrov. Torpedo Head Coach

- Recently on TV two decades ago game CSKA vs. Canadiens was shown again, which is still widely considered the most beautiful game of modern hockey. During this game you did not only sent Canadians “flying” (Hm..?! – A.N), but also scored the decisive goal, equalized the game...
- Till that time I just turned twenty years old, but I had no fear of the Canadians at all. On the contrary, I wanted to bet with them, to score against them. Here we are with you remembered the games of 1972. Me, up to tears, it was sad for hockey players, who were beaten, but they did not respond. And then I already decided to take revenge for them avenged. I did revenge: I have got the Canadians beaten, I scored against them, depriving the sweetest victory in the historic match. Imagine how they would be proud if this game finished with a score of 3:2. But I did not give them to do so.
- Were you offered to stay in Canada, U.S., play in the NHL?
- Of course, I was offered. But we were so “watched”, we were "herded" what we failed even talk about this with anyone. Even if a few words had been shared with someone of the emigrants, one had already been taken for bad memo ... When we played The World Junior Champ in Winnipeg, I was offered to stay in Canada. Then after the game with "Montreal" I was offered to sign a decent contract.
- And did you really have no desire to stay?
- No, I didn’t. There were times when we stayed in Canada and have played for a month; we were already waiting for the last few days to fly back home. I still thinks that Dumbasses like me(“раздолбаи” in Russian version – A.N), do not stay in other countries, it was possible for “quiet” person ... And I could not imagine myself out of Russia.
- But you still got to Italy.
- It was during the Soviet restructuring (Gorbachev “perestroika” – A.N). At that time I was a leader among the highest scorers in the elite league, scored 33 points while playing in Ust-Kamenogorsk during the first phase of the championship. That was the reason the special personal contract came to me from Milan. I played in Italy 28 games and scored 33 goals. But I was forced to leave Italy just next year. In Italy hockey a Canadian lobby was very strong. There were quite a lot of Italian-Canadians, who played in Canada. All their contracts were twice of our cost. They had everything done to get rid of the other foreigners. If we lost, then everything was normal, but if you start winning, then you should never get a pass from them. You almost have to take the puck by force from your partner, to cross entire rink and to score. So they changed me to a Canadian of Italian origin ...
- So, Boris, you're finished playing, absolutely stopped any drinking, took possession of a lucrative service station, bought a silver Chevrolet and got yourself “bourgeoisified” and finally calmed down. And what possessed you after two years of quiet life to return to hockey as a player?
- I was invited to play for the national team of Kazakhstan at the 1994 World Cup. I arrived to Ust-Kamenogorsk, practiced with the team. But to play for the national team did not happened. I had a Moscow residence permit (“Propiska” in Russian – it’s pointless even to try to explain the meaning of this institute to non ex-Soviets – A.N). But after that I remained with Ust-Kamenogorsk team. The normal conditions were created for me there; I played mostly in the "home" games, no special camps, I was scoring quietly somewhat... Well, Then I became part-time senior coach of Kazakhstan national team. And then appointment of the head coach of the Ust-Kamenogorsk Torpedo all of a sudden had fallen. In addition to being a coach, at any time I get on the ice, if I feel that the team without me lose ...

... With Torpedo (Ust-Kamenogorsk) and the national team of Kazakhstan Alexandrov has reached great achievements. Team under his direction performed at the Olympics in Nagano, 98 in group A and has taken 5-8-th place. In July 2002, Boris was suddenly removed from the club. It was some rumours talked about financial improprieties (though the head coach has nothing to do with money), discontent with some hockey players ...
It is clear that Boris was very upset. But the main thing is beyong it. If Boris remained with "Torpedo", he would hardly go out of Ust-Kamenogorsk to drive to Moscow through Chelyabinsk and Ufa, where his youngest son, Victor has played a small tournament with the capital's Spartak. On the evening on July 31 while driving by his wife's brother, Boris, the car went to overtake a bus, flew into the opposite lane and was faced with the "Volga" ...
Boris Alexandrov was 46 years old. A great hockey player he was buried in Moscow Mitinskoe cemetery.

Alex Bogomolov February 24, 2003

PRAGUE 1972. STANISLAV MIKITA

2009-09-16T16:34:00.001-07:00

Today I would like to make a present to all my friends - 1972 Summit followers. This photo of Chicago legend STAN MIKITA, wearing CSSR jersey, was taken in Prague during the 1972 series when Canada faced Czechoslovakia team.

Stan Mikita was treated by fans as a national hero due to a number of reasons.
First of all he is Slovakian, he fled from communist regime, he was a NHL superstar and the last but not least he is a terrific hockey player.

Some years ago I have seen an interesting TV program about Stan. He told that at the beginning of his career he was tough if not rough player, getting a lot of fighting penalties etc.
One day he came home after the game and asked his 5-years-old daughter how she liked the Blackhawks game.
She told - A..aa, hmm..It was good...Dad, may I ask you one question?
-Sure, darling, go ahead!
-Why while your team was scoring a lot of goals you have spent almost half a game watching from the penalty box?
-Well, You know, a-hm...m-a
Mikita said: "I realized if 5-years old child can understand it, why didn't I?!" Since that day, Stan changed his play style....

THIS GUY IS INGE HAMMARSTREM

2009-09-15T10:23:00.000-07:00

Congratulations to Tommy - he is the one who gave us the right answer. This young player whos photo I have took from Sweden early 70s newspapper is INGE HAMMARSTREM

Inge played his first hockey games at the top national league level in 1963 for Timrå IK, at the age of 15. The 1968–69 season he left for Brynäs IF where he would win the Swedish Championship 4 times (1970, 1971, 1972 and later in 1980).

In 1973, Hammarström became the first player from Timrå IK ever to play in the NHL. He went on to spend five seasons with the Toronto Maple Leafs and two for the St. Louis Blues.

His career ended in 1982, aged 35, after another three seasons with Brynäs IF.

Do you know that Inge has a son Mikael playing hockey as well?

WHO IS THIS SWEDE?

2009-09-14T05:02:00.001-07:00

This is a photo from a Swedish newspaper of an youngster who became one of the best European forwards late 60s - early 70s.

He was on the first wave of the Sweden players who within the next 10 years became the third largest community in the NHL and WHA (after Canadians and Americans)
He played more than four hundred NHL games and scored more than hundred goals
He represented Sweden on 1972 Sapporo Olympics and 1976 Canada Cup.

After his playing career ended, he began working as a European-based hockey scout, including a stint with Central Scouting. From 1990 to 2008, he was the chief European scout for the Philadelphia Flyers.

Most famously, he is credited with being the scout who pushed the hardest for Philadelphia to select Peter Forsberg with the sixth overall pick of the 1991 NHL Entry Draft. At the time, the pick was considered a surprise -- and a bit of a gamble. Forsberg had been ranked considerably lower by The Hockey News in its 1991 Draft Preview, and most observers expected the player to be taken late in the first round or early in the second round of the draft.

His name is...

THE WORST ST. PETERSBURG HAS SEEN SINCE 1917 BOLSHEVIK REVOLUTION

2009-09-13T07:23:00.000-07:00

Coaches (second from left) Zinetula Bilyaletdinov, Alexander Yakushev, GM Alexei Kasatonov and the entire Russian team had to explain their failure to outraged media at the 2000 IIHF World Championship in St Petersburg.
PHOTO: Jukka Rautio/Europhoto

Star-studded Russia ends up all-time low at home in 2000. St Petersburg, Russia, May 14, 2000

It started really well. The best team that Russian hockey had assembled since the glorious Soviet days, ran over France 8-1 on opening day of the 2000 IIHF World Championship in St. Petersburg. This meant that a Soviet/Russian team had never lost a World Championship game at home, riding a streak of 36 consecutive games without a loss, dating back to 1957.

The Russian fans were sure that this team, loaded with NHL stars like Pavel Bure, Maxim Afinogenov, Alexey Yashin, Sergei Gonchar, Alexei Zhamnov, Alexei Zhitnik, Dmitri Mironov, Andrei Kovalenko and Valeri Kamensky, simply couldn’t fail. In total 14 NHLers came home to join the team that was on a mission to win the nation’s first World Championship gold since 1993.

But already in the next game the star-studded Russians were shut-out by USA, 3-0 and the unbeaten home streak that had lasted for 43 years, through four World Championship events, was over. What’s even worse – the loss to the Americans happened on May 1, traditionally a very important day for Russian people, symbolically significant as a day of celebration for workers across Europe. Another blow happened two days later when Switzerland rallied back from being 2-1-down to win 3-2, the first ever Swiss win against a Soviet or Russian team in a men’s hockey championship.

In just four days the fans’ sentiments had changed from joyous to furious. But there was still time for redemption. The sole win against France was enough for the Russian team to qualify for the next round. But things would only from bad to worse. In the opening game of the Qualifying Round, Russia lost to Latvia 3-2, in a game where the former Soviet goalie Arturs Irbe played the game of his life. For the hockey fans from Latvia, a former Soviet republic, this was the best day of their lives.

Now, after three consecutive losses, Team Russia’s qualifying for the quarterfinal was in serious jeopardy. They badly needed wins against both Belarus and Sweden. The game against Belarus (another former Soviet republic) on May 7 will probably forever be remembered as the lowest point in the country’s hockey history. Vladzimir Tsyplakov’s goal after twelve minutes was enough. A fundamentally demoralized team full of hockey millionaires could not overcome even this setback. The game ended 1-0 for Belarus and the fans at St. Petersburg Ice Palace booed their players mercilessly.

The team and head coach Alexander Yakushev were chopped into pieces by Russian media. “The worst St. Petersburg has seen since 1917” shouted one headline and another publication called the players “Hollywood stars, not athletes”. But the media wasn’t done. In an action that has no precedence in the world of team sports, the home media demanded that the entire team and coaching staff would show up at a press-conference to publicly apologize for the showing which was considered as a national embarrassment.

The Russian Ice Hockey Federation had no other choice than yield to the demands and to subject the entire team to this humiliation, where many of the Russian scribes acted more as fans than as covering journalists. Some of the best players in the world sat there and the only thing that they could say was “we are sorry”.

The last game against Sweden proved meaningless. Despite a 4-2-win Russia finished 11th – between Norway and Italy. What was predicted as a revival of a once great national team on home ice, ended with an all-time low.

MATS NASLUND. SEVEN YEARS OLD FUTURE HOCKEY STAR

2009-09-12T06:39:00.000-07:00

Mats Naslund. Moscow 1979

OK, with my little hint you got it right - the kid is Mats Naslund, the Swedish hockey legend and one of the Canadiens fans all-time favourites.
The story of this photo is interesting. It was published by TACC (Central Soviet Press Agency) after PRESSENSBILD before 1979 Moscow World championship. The description to the photo said:
" 12 years ago there was a hockey tournament for boy's teams. The 7-years old Mats Naslund was shining at this competition. During same days the Soviet national team played in Sweden capital and V. Starshinov presented the memorable stick to little Mats.
Now 19-years old Mats Naslund is participating at his very first World championship"

Mats Naslund. Before 1980 Olympics

Hockey Hall Of Fame

Forward Mats Naslund had already established himself as a bonafide star forward in the Swedish Elite League before joining the Montreal Canadiens for the 1982-83 season. Naslund had played with the powerful Brynas IF Gavle team and was one of the club's top offensive stars and was a key member of Team Sweden at the 1980 Lake Placid Olympics. Upon arriving in Montreal, the Canadiens immediately inserted Naslund into the starting lineup where he played eight years, missing just 23 games over that span, displaying incredible resiliency for a man of just 5'7" and 160 pounds.

Mats Naslund. Montreal Canadiens Years

Naslund's best personal offensive season in the NHL was in 1985-86 when he scored 43 goals and 110 points. The fantastic regular season was capped with an amazing Stanley Cup championship with a finals victory over the Calgary Flames. In 20 playoff games he produced 19 points and was a candidate for the Conn Smythe trophy, given to the MVP of the postseason.

Mats Naslund. Sweden National Team

At the age of 30, while still very much on top of his game, the three-time NHL all-star elected to leave the league and continue his hockey career in Europe. He also appeared in three Canada Cup tournaments in 1984, 1987 and 1991 and also suited up for Sweden in the 1992 and 1994 Olympics. At 35, Naslund signed a free-agent contract with the Boston Bruins in 1994-95, but appeared in just 34 games before deciding it was time to retire.

Mats Naslund. Norway. 1994 Olympics

Mats Naslund is one of Sweden's "Great Three" who, along with Hakan Loob and Tomas Jonsson, has won the national championship, the World Championship, Olympic gold and the Stanley Cup. The three played together on Sweden's national Tre Kronor and sometimes against each other in the NHL.

ARTHUR, WHO ARE THOSE TWO?

2009-09-11T10:53:00.000-07:00

OK,ok... The big number 8 CCCP guy is ... Alexander Ovechkin...no,no,no. That's Soviet team captain, the Russian legendary warrior, the member of 1972 summit Vjacheslav Starshinov.
But who was the kid on this photo? I am sure you all know him perfectly. This is...

OK, let me put some hints:

1. The kid is Swede
2. He is not just "known", he is famous in Canada
3. He played at 1979 Moscow World championship
4. He played at 3 Olympics
5. Enought?

SO THIS HIGHLY "MEDALIZED" KID IS MARCEL DIONNE

2009-09-11T10:11:00.000-07:00

Artur, you are right (as usual) - this kid on my photo is young Marcel Dionne.

Drummondville, Quebec native Marcel was born on 3 August 1951.
He played 18 NHL season, 1348 regulation games, scored 731 goals, registered 1040 assists (1771 points)

The Art Ross Trophy (1980) winner he was elected to the First All-Star Team twice (1977, 1980), twice to the Second All-Star Team Centre (1979, 1981), has won the Lady Byng Memorial Trophy (1975, 1977) and the Lester B. Pearson Award (1979, 1980).

He is greatly respected by Russian fans for his scoring abilities, skills and gentleman behaviour on ice.

"There was an interview with Dionne by sport express and he was asked about the Soviet players he played against in the 1970s... amazingly, Marcel said there was this guy with the mustache, great skater played for the national team in the 1970s... he was a great player! guess who the guy was - B-A-L-D-E-R-I-S!

Arthur Chidlovski

HELMUT BALDERIS:"ARTHUR, THATS TOO MUCH!"

2009-09-10T09:12:00.000-07:00

"Really Arthur, buddy, do you think I am the best ever hockey player?! That's too much, my friend, maybe one of top three only... But I trust you, you know better"

To Arthur with love - Helmut The-Ever-Best Balderis

HOW IS IT ABOUT THIS PHOTO?

2009-09-10T06:17:00.000-07:00

" Alex, do you have Russian players photos only? It's not enough for you they are Russians. You put the photos of 40s, 50s and 60s for your trivia! Give me a life, man!"
Your Admirer

OK, this letter (specially 'admirer') I have written myself. But I think the point can easy be true.

Look at this photo. The kid surrounded with hundreds of hockey trophies is pure Canadian. He is one of the greatest hockey players of the modern era. He has played his entire NHL career in the States. He is well known and high respected in Europe due to the number of his Canada national team performances. That's it. His name is...

VSEVOLOD BOBROV. THIRTY YEARS AGO...

2009-09-09T16:04:00.000-07:00

We have to live in fast and harsh world. Today's hero is nobody tomorrow. The one who was an idol of millions in few years is unknown soldier of our life battles.

On July 01, 2009 not too many people around the World realized it's 30 years from the sad day when the legend of the Soviet sport, probably the best ever sportsman who was born in Russia passed away.

His name was VSEVOLOD MIKHAILOVICH BOBROV.

I have seen no articles, no TV programs on his memory this day from Russia. One has to admit, without him we would have no Kharlamov, no Makarov, no Ovechkin. He was icebreaker to our hockey, to our sport after World War II.
I have missed this day too...Sorry, "Bober"...

BRENDAN MORRISON - ANOTHER BERTUZZI VICTIM

2009-09-09T06:20:00.000-07:00

by Mike Vogel, Dump and Chase author and Nikale1

THE MORRISONS - NICE ADDITION TO THE CAPITALS FAMILY

Do you remember the Bertuzzi's hook from behind on Steve Moore? Silly question, just to start conversation. Sure you do. So how many victims did this stupid move bring as result? One (Moore who never played again)? Two (Moore and Bertuzzi, who never was himself after that)? Or four including Naslund and Morrison? I think the last version is correct. Markus never reached his level again forced to retire this year and Brendan disappeared from the hockey horizon for years.
This summer he moved to Capitals trying to get new life with young and ambitious Washington 'Ovechkinized' team to replace the significant hole that occurred after Fedorov and Kozlov departure to Russia and Nylander miserable last season performance.
Below is an article written by Mike Vogel the author of Dump and Chase excellent Capitals blog.

- Less than two months after he signed a one-year deal with the Capitals as an unrestricted free agent and just two weeks shy of his 34th birthday, center Brendan Morrison visited the District this week. Along with wife Erin, the newest Capital is house-hunting for a place for his family, which includes four children aged 7, 5, 4 and almost 1.

Morrison also took time out to have a workout at Kettler Capitals Iceplex and to spend some time chatting up the media. We had a chance to sit down with Morrison for a video interview which you'll see on Caps365 sometime next week. He spoke at length about winning the Hobey Baker Award, winning an NCAA championship at U. of Michigan, playing on the West Coast Express line with Markus Naslund and Todd Bertuzzi, his lengthy consecutive-games-played streak, and more.

I've always found it interesting to look back on old scouting reports of young players years later to see how accurate those first impressions tended to be. Here's what the Central Scouting Bureau had to say about Morrison back in the summer of 1993, when he was drafted in the second round (39th overall) by the New Jersey Devils:

Personal Profile: Brendan is a student at Pentiction Secondary whose childhood hero was his dad, and who ranks Wayne Gretzky as his favorite NHLer because he's an "unselfish team player with great skills and a true ambassador of the game." Brendan has been awarded a full athletic scholarship to the University of Michigan, and hopes to both achieve a university degree and to start his own business one day. He lists the Kelowna Spartans of the BCJHL as his toughest hockey opponents. Away from the rink, he enjoys leisure sports such as golf and tennis, and he also likes to read about all types of sport.

Career Highlights: has been offered a full athletic scholarship to the University of Michigan.

Coach's Comments: Coach Garry Davidson says, "Above average skills with great offensive vision (read and react). Has improved his defensive game immensely in 1992-93."

Central Scouting Report: "Strong skater with balance and agility ... hard to knock off his skates ... excellent scorer with excellent selection of shots, hard and accurate ... clever around the net ... makes the big play ... very good passer, hits the open man ... fast, accurate passes to either side ... good stickhandling and puck control ... solid positional player ... can forecheck and backcheck ... uses size and strength to best advantage ... good stamina ... plays aggressively within the rules ... never gives up ... plays when hurt ... excellent team player ... a game breaker ... understands and adapts to the play."

Morrison was listed as being 5-foot-11 and 170 pounds in those days. He is still listed at 5-foot-11 but has thickened up to 181 pounds some 16 years later.

HOSTS WIN CZECH HOCKEY GAMES

2009-09-08T06:57:00.000-07:00

Jiri Hudler, who hadn't played for the Czechs since 2004, scored five goals in the first Euro Hockey Tour event. Photo: Europhoto

KARLOVY VARY, Czech Republic – The first major men’s national team event of the season ended with a success for the Czech Republic, which won the first Euro Hockey Tour tournament on home ice.

The Euro Hockey Tour consists of four, round-robin tournaments during the four international breaks. The Czech Republic, Finland, Russia and Sweden play in the series. Last season, the Czechs finished in last place with three wins in twelve games, but they couldn’t be stopped last weekend in Karlovy Vary.

Roman Cervenka and Jiri Hudler led the team to a 2-0 victory against Finland on opening night, while Lukas Mensator earned a shutout with 29 saves.

The victory was even bigger against Sweden, 5-2. The Swedes didn’t make use of a 31-27 shots advantage. Josef Melichar, Jaroslav Bednar, Hudler, Josef Vasicek and Petr Kumstat scored the Czech goals.

A sell-out crowd of 5,682 attended the last game against last year’s tour winner Russia on Sunday. Petr Schastlivy opened the scoring for Russia on the power play at 5:10, but it was again Hudler, who scored the 1-1 goal at 17:30. He tied the game a second time at 57:21 and after Russia held a 2-1 lead for most of regulation. A shoot-out decided and the game-winning goal was scored by who else than Hudler, who played his only World Championship in 2003.

Russia finished the tournament in second place with a 3-2 win over Finland and two shoot-out losses. Finland was third with three points thanks to a lopsided 8-3 win against Sweden. The Swedes earned just two points from a 4-3 shoot-out victory against Russia.

It’s the first time since 2002 that the Czechs won an exhibition tournament, which came at the Euro Hockey Tour at Baltika Cup in Moscow. It was during the successful era between 1996 and 2005 when the Czechs won five World Championships and the 1998 Olympic Winter Games.

VIKTOR FEDOROV VISITED SPORT EXPRESS OFFICE

2009-09-08T06:42:00.000-07:00

VIKTOR FEDOROV. "The honoured coach of Russia"

by SPORT-EXPRESS

Yesterday one of the most popular hockey experts Viktor Fedorov visited the Sport Express office.

The honoured coach of Russia and one of the most popular hockey experts, head of Fedorov dynasty Viktor Fedorov (WOW!!! - A.N) visited the Sport Express office to talk with our correspondent Igor Larin.

"First of all I would like to say that I am going to change image of Fedorov Sr. that Russin fans got used to", said Viktor.

"I had a critical point of view on several unpleasant events in NHL since this league formed long time go. Meanwhile Kontinental Hockey League makes its first steps and we need to help them and excuse for their mistakes".

"I came to Sport Express office from Magnitogorsk where I helped my sons Sergey and Fyodor to adapt to their new club. They have already rented a house and have settled down in Magnitogorsk. They are satisfied with everything".

"Fyodor and Sergey looked nice in the link with Chistov in the final match of Ramazan Cup against Traktor. Though Traktor with Andrey Nazarov in charge played very well against the Fedorov brothers".

"Actually we never paid too much attention to this kind of trial matches because only the season will show clubs’ real power".

"In KHL there are no less opponents than in NHL. I would lay special mention to defending champion AK Bars, and also to Dynamo, SKA and Atlant. Salavat Yulaev can boast strong roster which will be the main irritator for everyone".

"New leader of Salavat Yulaev Viktor Kozlov has been named the best forward of the Czech Hockey Games. I think that Washington Capitals managers should pay their attention to this fact after they experimented on him last season. Just imagine that this master played less than ten minutes during one game in the Capitals that made hockey experts surprised".

"NHL is business and their managers saw that salary limits didn’t allow the club offer Kozlov a worthy contract. That is why they did everything possible to change his statistics in the team. By the way Sergey Fedorov found himself in similar situation in Washington".

"He told us about his decision, listened to our point of view and decided to do as he wanted".

Let's leave along Viktor Fedorov controversial comments (as usual). But describe him as "The honoured coach of Russia and one of the most popular hockey experts" and "head of Fedorov dynasty" for me it's kind of shocking...
Alex 'Nikale1'

NIKOLAI DROZDETSKY - "HARD TO PRONOUNCE, IMPOSSIBLE TO STOP"

2009-09-07T06:31:00.000-07:00

Yes, you got it, last day photo shows one of my all time favourite player Nikolai Drozdetsky. During 1981 Canada Cup when he became popular in Canada one of article headers said "Drozdetsky - hard to pronounce, impossible to stop". An excellent description of this player...

Nikolai Vladimirovich Drozdetsky (Jun 14, 1957, Kolpino - Nov 24, 1995, St. Petersburg) was a Russian ice hockey right winger, who competed for the USSR. He played for SKA Leningrad (now St. Petersburg) from 1974-1979, then for CSKA Moscow (Red Army team) from 1979 until part way through the 1986/87 season, when he played again for Leningrad, until 1989. He finished his career with Borås HC in Sweden from 1989-1995. He was named most valuable player of the Soviet elite league in 1984. He scored 252 goals in 503 league games and 64 goals in 109 international games with the Soviet national team.

Drozdetsky played on the Soviet national team in 1981, 1982, 1984, and 1985, which won the IIHF World Championships in 1981 and 1982, the Olympic Gold medal in 1984, the 1981 Canada Cup, and the 1981, 1982, and 1985 European championships. He led all goal scorers at the 1984 Olympics with ten goals in seven games, and also led the Soviet team with 12 points.

He died from complications of diabetes.

There is an excellent article about Nikolai here, unfortunately it's Russsian...

HONOURS AT HOME FOR PATRIK ELIAS AND ZDENO CHARA

2009-09-06T09:23:00.001-07:00

by iihf.com

Patrik Elias in the Czech Republic and Zdeno Chara in Slovakia received Player of the Year honours in their native countries prior to their return to their NHL teams.

New Jersey winger Elias was awarded the Golden Stick during the Czech award ceremony in Karlovy Vary on Saturday. A panel of coaches and journalists gave him 428 points, ending the four-year reign of Jaromir Jagr (Avangard Omsk), who was second with 357 points. Jan Marek (Metallurg Magnitogorsk) finished in third place with 334 points.

It was the first time that the 33-year-old was voted the best Czech player. Last season, Elias had 31 goals and 47 assists in 77 NHL games and became the New Jersey Devils’ all-time leading scorer. In 747 NHL games he notched 644 points (265 goals, 379 assists). The Devils are the only NHL club Elias has played for, winning two Stanley Cups. He also represented the Czech Republic in two Olympics and three World Championships winning bronze in Turin 2006.

“I immensely appreciate this, it’s my first individual award and a huge honour to be included among those legends who received the trophy in the past,” Elias said at the ceremony.

During the national team camp, Slovakia also had an award night, handing out Golden Pucks. Zdeno Chara, Boston’s towering defenceman, was voted Slovakia’s Player of the Year. It’s just the second time in history that a defenceman won the honour.

Chara contributed to Boston’s run in the Eastern Conference as the only team to allowed less than 200 goals. With 50 points he also contributed to the offence. His performance earned him the Norris Trophy as the NHL’s Best Defenceman.

MAYBE YOU CAN NAME HIM TOO?

2009-09-06T08:28:00.000-07:00

OK, this is another photo from my endless collection (nobody honours me, let me do it myself!). This skeleton-style 16 years old kid had great future as a player in front of him. He was a member of one of the Soviet teams which is well remembered in Canada due to it's huge damage done here many years ago. I won't tell you any more but one fact - unfortunately he is not any longer with us...
HIS NAME IS...

FINNISH HOCKEY HALL OF FAME. TAMPERE

2009-09-05T08:05:00.000-07:00

Have you ever heard about Finnish Hockey Hall of Fame? No? But there is one located in Tampere, the second large town of Finland.

The Museum exhibition rooms at the Hakametsä Ice Arena in 2000. Photo: Carlos Salinas Bascur. Tampere Museums.

The Finnish Hockey Hall of Fame is one of the six museums in the world that have specialized in the history of the ice hockey. The museum holds more than 10,000 hockey-related objects in its collections.

The vigorous journey of the Finnish ice hockey from the end of the 1920's up to today is introduced in the permanent exhibition of the Museum. The best-known exhibition objects are the Finnish Championship Trophy, the 'Canada Trophy', and the World Championship Trophy from 1995.

The Finnish Hockey Hall of Fame has its foundations in the 50th anniversary of the Finnish Ice Hockey Association in 1979. In honour of the anniversary, a local bank in Tampere region (Tampereen Aluesäästöpankki) arranged a historical hockey exhibition in its premises.

The exhibition was a tremendous success and later the same year Mr. Aarne Honkavaara, Mr. Kalervo Kummola, Mr. Kimmo Leinonen, Mr. Harry Lindblad, Mr. Juhani Linkosuo and Mr. Usko Teromaa founded the association called Suomen Jääkiekkomuseoyhdistys ry. ('Finnish Ice Hockey Museum Association').

The Stanley Cup winner Ville Nieminen meets Aarne Honkavaara, the Honorary President of the Finnish Ice Hockey Museum Association, at the opening ceremony of the new Museum exhibition rooms in September 2001. Photo: Carlos Salinas Bascur. Tampere Museums.

Ms. Pirkko Linkosuo who acted as the secretary of the Association was the first one to collect objects for the museum. She started this activity by contacting the players of the Finnish League of the 1930's. Suitable exhibition rooms were found at the Tampere Ice Arena and the Museum was opened for public on the 13th of December in 1979.

Mr. Aarne Honkavaara, who has been awarded the title of Honorary Sports Counsellor, worked as the Museum Attendant at the Ice Arena for almost 20 years. Together with his wife Maire, he took care of the routine matters of the Museum and presented the exhibition to thousands of visitors annually. A visitor record was made in 1996 as more than 12,000 people visited the museum.

Goalie masks from the 1960's. Photo: Carlos Salinas Bascur. Tampere Museums.

The exhibition room at the Tampere Ice Arena was closed for public in the end of 2000and the new permanent exhibition was opened in Museum Centre Vapriikki in April 2001

The permanent exhibition of the Finnish Hockey Hall of Fame presents the history of the Finnish ice hockey from the 1920's to the present. Jerseys, sticks and other equipment from different decades tell their own story about the development of hockey. The absolute gem of the exhibition is the original Finnish Championship Trophy, the Canada Cup, yearly awarded to the Finnish champions since 1951.

The exhibition objects and video clips bring many memorable moments of the Finnish hockey back to the visitor's mind. Also all championship medals won by Team Finland as well as the World Championship Trophy from 1995 are on display in the Museum.

The exhibition room also introduces a scoring simulator.

Finnish team in Oslo in 1952. Top row from left: Lauri Silvan, Esko Rekomaa, Christian Rapp, Erkki Hytönen, Matti Karumaa, Aarne Honkavaara, Yrjö Hakala, Keijo Kuusela and Eero Saari. Bottom row from left: Jukka Wuolio, Pentti Isotalo, Eero Salisma, Unto Wiitala, Pekka Myllylä, Ossi Kauppi, Matti Rintakoski and Kauko Mäkinen. Photo: Finnish Hockey Hall of Fame.

The Finnish Hockey Hall of Fame preserves, studies and introduces material related to ice hockey. It has a collection of more than 10,000 objects of which the original Canada Cup (Finnish championship trophy) and the World Championship Trophy of 1995 are the best-known to the public. All Championship medals won by Team Finland can also be found in the Museum.

Photo by NIKALE1

The Museum's jersey collection includes over 500 jerseys. The permanent exhibition introduces you for example Stanley Cup winner Ville Nieminen's away games jersey that he wore in the NHL finals in 2001 as he played with the Colorado Avalanche. Pekka Rautakallio's NHL All Stars Game jersey from 1982 is also on display. A wide collection of jerseys worn by Team Finland starting from the year 1948 can also be found.

The Museum receives the objects mainly through donations. Admission costs are -Adults: 7 €, Children 7 to 16 and students: 2 €, Children under 7: Free of charge

I hope you have enjoyed this trip. For me, I was glad to find Carl Brewer, Gustav Bubnik and Curt Lindstrom (all at coaches department) as members of Finnish Hall of Fame among all Suomi guys.

CORRECT ANSWER IS SERGEI KOTOV

2009-09-05T05:42:00.000-07:00

Even without any hint David and Arthur hit the target. Yesterday question right answer is SERGEI KOTOV, the Soviet Wings right winger, the long time linemate of Sergei Kapustin and Vladimir Repnev, the Soviet Union 1974 champion

Sergei Kotov as a coach.

Born in 1950 in Kazan, Russia he spent his career with Krylia Sovietov (Moscow "Soviet Wings"). Extremely skilled forward he scored 177 goals in 446 games added 3 goals in 12 games for the Soviet national team. Kotov played his debut game for the USSR in Prague on March 10, 1974 and scored his first goal visiting Czechoslovakia (5:7, friendly game)

He finished his career in Innsbruck Austria when in 1985-86 season he registered 21 points in 16 games played for this club.

DO YOU RECOGNIZE HIM?

2009-09-04T05:53:00.000-07:00

Leningrad. 1976. Photo by Nikale1

Look at these two photos. This is the same man - just his photos are separated by 33 years. I think he was underestimated at his time, underachieved and almost forgotten as a player. The 1974 Soviet champion he never played on World championships or Olympic. But you, my friends and hockey experts supposed to know him - he was a member of 1974 Soviet team played against Team Canada (WHA). I can provide the date and place he was born, but it turns the question into joke for such experts as Arthur, David or Joe. So, enough, his name is...

Moscow. 2009

1972. JEAN BELIVEAU IN MOSCOW

2009-09-03T06:27:00.000-07:00

Maybe the fact that I am about to reveal is pretty common known I have just missed somehow, but anyway, do you guys know that Montreal legend Jean Beliveau visited Moscow during the 1972 summit? Even more, he met Russian players, had long and pleasant conversation.

VLADIMIR VIKULOV, JEAN BELIVEAU, VALERI KHARLAMOV

According to dennis-kane.com "Jean Beliveau was in Moscow in 1972, and this photo, which used to belong to Beliveau and now belongs to me, shows him and Kharlamov having a nice time, although Kharlamov didn’t speak English and Beliveau, I’d be willing to bet a case of Molson’s on, doesn’t speak Russian. But it looks like they were enjoying each others company anyway"

NIKOLAI BORSCHEVSKY - LEAFS 93 PLAYOFFS HERO

2009-09-02T11:16:00.000-07:00

This young kid from the last post photo, taken during the final game of the 1992 Winter Olympics is NIKOLAI BORSCHEVSKY who became a Maple Leafs hero just one year latter scoring his unquestionable career most important goal which victoriously ended up game seven overtime Toronto's 93 playoffs series against Red Wings.

Even Nikolai has retired spending now most of his time in Russia he is still running "Nikolai Borschevsky Hockey School" which is actually very close to my home here in Toronto's suburb. This school is famous for European excellence of skating that was, probably Nikolai's "trade mark" as a player.

But do you know an interesting fact that starting his career with Dynamo Moscow he was cut by this team after seven seasons for permanent discipline problems on and off ice? It's proved to be better for him, joint Spartak he was able to get into his new and the best era as a player, becoming 1992 Olympic champion and joining Maple Leafs the same year.

TODAY's "MY ARCHIVE" PHOTO

2009-09-01T06:20:00.000-07:00

OK, guys, the answer to my last question had a hint - Tarasov's book cover right on the top of my site. And like one of my Canadian friends said " Alex, for God sake, how do you expect us to know how Tarasov looked like in 1946 when no one from here were born where and when, not knowing of Tarasov existence till 1972?!"
He is probably right. OK, I am not arguing.

On this photo, below this text, is Viktor Tikhonov. You are not surprised yet, right? But who is the guy next to him? Don't tell me "Alex, common! We are not obliged to know every Russian player!" Because it's not "just another Russian player". This kid in 2 years from time this photo was taken became well known in North America. His name is - no, no, no...YOU NAME HIM!

ANATOLI TARASOV - THE FATHER OF SOVIET HOCKEY

2009-08-31T14:59:00.000-07:00

"He (Tarasov) squeezed every ounce of energy and performance out of his players. Even the slightest hint of self-importance was dealt with mmediately.
According to Tarasov, egoism on the ice was the gravest of all sins."
The Hockey Hall Of Fame

Time is running, years are rushing out with no mercy to anyone even if you are the famous ever hockey coach... The my yesterday question right answer is ANATOLI VLADIMIROVICH TARASOV, the first Soviet championship best scorer, the "father of Soviet hockey", the person who devoted all his life till the last days to the game named HOCKEY. Here are his photos through the years...

TARASOV. DECEMBER 1946

TARASOV. DECEMBER 1946

TARASOV. END 50s - EARLY 60s

TARASOV. 60s

TARASOV. 70s

TARASOV. 1991

MOSCOW. DECEMBER 1946. ANOTHER QUESTION...

2009-08-30T07:05:00.000-07:00

Look at another photo of 1946-47 Soviet championship. This is a very famous person of Soviet hockey, one of the best forwards of the USSR early hockey years.

HIS NAME IS...Sorry, you are to answer - ...

SERGEI KABANOV - IT IS A PITY WE GOT TRAPPED BY SPARTAK PROVOCATION

2009-08-29T18:45:00.000-07:00

SPORT-EXPRESS. August 28, 2009

The father of the scandalous Kirill Kabanov and his representative Sergey Kabanov talked to Sport Express about the situation with his son.

KIRILL KABANOV

The scandal around the denial of one of the most talented juniors in Russia to perform for Salavat Yulaev is nearing its culmination.

In July the former club of Kabanov Spartak gave all the rights on the player to Ufa but the player never appeared in the camp of Salavat Yulaev.

And the KHL president Alexandr Medvedev said that the most probable verdict of the League would be suspension of the player.

"The contract of my son with Spartak was signed when we yet had Superleague," said Sergey Kabanov.

"There was a clause that the club would immediately let the player to NHL if there are offers and moreover without a compensation."

"When they were creating KHL many young players, including Kirill, were asked whether they wanted to confirm this agreement and register it in the League or not."

"Some of the young hockey players panicked and refused to confirm their agreements but in Spartak they persuaded us not to do this."

"They said that Kirill is a face of Sparak’s ice hockey school, a rising star. And we agreed on it only because in the Moscow club they accepted all our stipulations – including these two clauses about move to NHL."

"And the League registered this contract. And Salavat did not give us a contract with such clauses. As a result we signed no agreement with Ufa."

"And we think that we have no acting agreement with Salavat. Kirill has not even seen the order of dismissal from Spartak. Nobody asked for our consent."

"It is known that Salavat bought our all rights on Kabanov together with an acting contract but without clauses about NHL we think the agreement with Spartak invalid."

"These are our main differences from views of Salavat and the League. I hope that Alexandr Medvedev will study this case in detail."

"Relationships with employers in our country are governed by Constitution and the Labour Code. Just imagine a situation when your management refuses to fulfill one of your contract’s stipulations – pay bonuses that are inserted into the contract."

"The entire document becomes invalid because of this. After I spoke to lawyers I understood that our stand has a strong legal basis."

"These two clauses were annulled while registered in the League. But nobody told us this and Kirill never signed any documents concerning these things."

SERGEI KABANOV, KIRILL'S FATHER AND AGENT

"We realized that KHL is against moves of young players to NHL and we did not try to fight with the whole system."

"Our case is illustrative and can discourage somebody to travel across the Atlantic. But other juniors with their parents can draw different conclusions and won’t bind oneself with the club for long five years."

"And then young talents will leave the country much earlier than now – in 13-14 years."

"Actually at the moment I fear suspension. And you know the door to the national teams in closing gradually now. And Kirill played maximum number of different tournaments for Russia often bringing the title of the best forward."

"The situation with the son is wormwood to me. Just because I yielded to Spartak’s provocations and persuaded Kirill and the entire family to resign the contract."

"This clause with NHL is very important because Kirill grew up and progressed in the times when everybody praised NHL. It became a big dream that cannot be easily shaken off."

THE CORRECT ANSWER IS...

2009-08-29T18:39:00.000-07:00

David and Arthur, yes you are right. I was pretty sure you are able to answer this question. I wanted to get suggestions from our "non USSR born" friends.

So, correct answer is - THIS WAS A PENALTY BOX OF SOVIET HOCKEY EARLY DAYS.

MOSCOW. DECEMBER 1946

2009-08-29T07:12:00.000-07:00

Look at this photo from my archive. This is Dynamo Moscow vs Red Army game played on December 1946 during the very first Soviet "Canadian" hockey championship.

I would like to present you my trivia question - What was this nice fenced bench for?

The correct answer I'll publish tomorrow. Meanwhile feel free to leave your comment. Go ahead!

NHL IS WAITING FOR PETER THE GREAT

2009-08-28T11:10:00.000-07:00

PETER FORSBERG. MODO. SWEDEN 2008 - 2009

Peter Forsberg's latest stop on his long road back to the NHL began last night in Yverdon-les-Bains, Switzerland. The Swedish star suited up in a pre-season game for Modo and played on the first line during his team's 2-1 win over Geneva.
Wearing No. 7 instead of his usual No. 21, Forsberg was held off the scoresheet but was on the ice when Modo scored their first goal.

"The real feeling with the puck is not there," Forsberg told reporters in Switzerland. "You need a couple of games to get into it. It felt really good, no problems at all"

On Friday, The 36-year old was included on Sweden's initial 69-man list of players who will be considered for the 2010 Olympics. The former NHL MVP last appeared in the NHL in 2007-08, when he counted 14 points in nine games for the Colorado Avalanche. Persistent foot problems have plagued Forsberg over the last few years.

THE PETER FORSBERG SHOW

PETER FORSBERG. SOME FACTS
by Answers.com

Peter Forsberg is the son of Kent Forsberg, who was the former coach for Modo Hockey and the Swedish national team. Peter Forsberg has been coached by his father for a significant part of his career: the two teamed up from 1991 to 1994 in Modo Hockey, later for the national team in the 1996 World Cup of Hockey, then for the 1998 Olympic ice hockey tournament, and for the 1998 World Championship, which Sweden won. They also own a Swedish development company named Forspro Company. The company co-funded the Modo Hockey team's new Swedbank Arena in Örnsköldsvik.

Independently of his father, Peter Forsberg also owns a company—Pforce AB—that imports and markets Crocs shoes in his native Sweden since 2005. Forsberg is also interested in harness racing, and owns or has owned a few racing horses during the years, including Tsar d' Inverne and Adrian Chip. He has also invested money in a golf course named Veckefjärdens Golf Club in his native Örnsköldsvik.

Forsberg and fellow Swede Markus Näslund founded Icebreakers, an organization that brings together professional ice hockey players for exhibition games to raise money for charities.

Forsberg's idol while growing up was Håkan Loob

NAGANO 98. ULF SAMUELSSON IS NOT A ...SWEDE

2009-08-27T06:51:00.000-07:00

Reporter's scoop reveals that Samuelsson is not a Swede in Nagano-98
Nagano, Japan. February 15-17, 1998

Picture it: The 1998 Olympics in Nagano with full NHL-players participation for the first time and a huge media following. After one of Team Sweden’s practices a big media scrum is waiting in the mix zone for the players to appear from their dressing room for interviews. As rugged Swedish defenseman Ulf Samuelsson passes by the reporters, Sport Illustrated hockey writer Michael Farber cracks a joke to Janne Bengtsson, a Swedish reporter standing next to him: “Why would we give a dirty player like that U.S. citizenship?”

Ulf Samuelsson (right) in his last ever game with Tre Kronor in Nagano, Japan, against Belarus. PHOTO: Europhoto/Jukka Rautio

The innocent comment initiated one of the biggest journalistic scoops in hockey history, triggered chaotic development over the following 24 hours that ended in the highest sports court and finally resulted in Samuelsson having to leave his team and the Olympic village.

Farber knew that Ulf Samuelsson, who played for the New York Rangers and at that time had already lived 13 years in the States, had applied for U.S. citizenship. For Farber that was nothing strange. The sports world is full of athletes who carry dual citizenship. But his innocent comment ignited Janne Bengtsson’s journalistic instincts. The reporter for Svenska Dagbladet was distantly aware about a Swedish law that said that Swedish citizenship is annulled when a person acquires a foreign passport. So while the passport that Samuelsson submitted to the tournament directorate prior to opening game was indeed Swedish, it was no longer valid.

Realising that he could be onto something big, Bengtsson immediately started researching. He was sure to confirm the Swedish law that - at that time - didn’t allow dual citizenship and also the IIHF eligibility regulation that stated that in order to represent a country one must indeed be a citizen of his team’s country. It took some time, but on February 16, the same day as Sweden played against Belarus, Bengtsson had all the facts.

During the first intermission, Bengtsson approached Rickard Fagerlund, the president of the Swedish Ice Hockey Association and also member of the IIHF Council. “Do you know that Samuelsson is a U.S. citizen and, as such, not eligible to represent Sweden?”

When Fagerlund overcame his initial shock, he called to team manager Bo Tovland, who was on the team bench, and told him to ask Samuelsson if it was correct that he was a U.S. citizen. Midway through the game, with Sweden up 3-1, Samuelsson confirmed that he held an American passport.

Sweden won the game 5-2, but no one on the Swedish team really cared. Samuelsson was told by Tovland and Fagerlund that his U.S. citizenship nullified his Swedish passport. The player was stunned. He cannot believe that he, born and bred in central Sweden, is considered a Swede no more.

Now the circus began and it lasted through the next 24 hours, finishing at five the next morning as the sun was rising in Nagano. There was no question that Samuelsson must be disqualified and that he must leave the team and the Olympics. Just like in a doping case, the IIHF tournament directorate ruled that the player was out, but the team suffered no consequences and kept its standings points.

But things were not so easy. The Czech Republic disagreed with the decision and wanted the directorate to deprive Sweden of all their points. The reason was simple: If the Swedes lost all their points from the games with Samuelsson’s participation, the Czechs would face Belarus in the quarterfinal and not the U.S. – a huge difference.

The Czechs filed a protest against the directorate’s decision and the case went to CAS, the Court of Arbitration in Sport that is always at the Olympic venue. But time was running out. It was February 17 and the quarterfinals were scheduled for the 18th. CAS dealt with the affair quickly and supported the position of the tournament directorate. Samuelsson was out of the Olympics, Sweden retained its points and played Finland in the quarters. The Czechs had to face the Americans.

Meanwhile, the Swedish Olympic Committee held a press-conference with the entire hockey team. Samuelsson, one of the toughest and meanest players in the NHL, broke down in tears. He assured the media that he was not aware of the rule that said he couldn’t be a dual citizen. The players said goodbye to Samuelsson as they had to prepare for the quarterfinal. The team never re-covered and Sweden lost to archrival Finland, 2-1. The Czechs? They easily defeated USA 4-1 and went on to win the country’s first Olympic hockey gold.

Samuelsson never saw the Swede’s game against the Finns. The city he arrived in one week earlier as a celebrated Swede, he left as a disgraced American. After having played close to 100 games for different Swedish national team, he would never again suit up in the Tre Kronor-jersey.

It wasn’t easy for reporter Janne Bengtsson either. Back in Sweden, his family needed police protection as they received more than 400 threatening phone calls, many of them with death threats. Many fans accused him of high treason. What they never understood was that he was doing his job. He was a reporter, not a supporter. And his scoop led to one of biggest stories in the history of international hockey.

ALEXANDER OVECHKIN RESTS IN RUSSIA - NON-STOP ENTERTAINING CONTINUES

2009-08-26T08:37:00.000-07:00

by Sovietsky Sport and Slapshot

In an interview with Sovietsky Sport, Alexander Ovechkin talks about the Russian soul and the vastness of Siberia in relating an anecdote about his recent visit to Capitals teammate Alexander Semin's hometown, Krasnoyarsk, 4,400 kilometers southeast of Moscow.

"We stopped at this small village to go to the local store," Ovechkin says. "There was this woman behind the counter cutting some fish. I came in and asked for water, chocolates and sandwiches. And she looked at me kind of strange and asked me, 'Is it you or not?' I reply, 'Of course it's me.' She says, 'Give me a smile.'" -- to check if it was Ovechkin by seeing his missing tooth.

"Can you imagine that?" he continues. "It was in the middle of nowhere! Washington is on the other side of the globe, Moscow is really far away. And people knew me there. I played a lot for the national team and know what patriotism is. The gold medal from Quebec is my most treasured trophy. But I couldn't catch my breath there [in that store]. I just felt what Russia is about, how dear and big it is and how we -- hockey players and the national team -- are loved here. When you think of people like those you want to win the Olympics twice as much."

DUSTING THE BOOK SHELF - USA WINS ITS FIRST WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP

2009-08-26T07:13:00.000-07:00

USA wins its first and so far only Worlds in 1933 (not counting 1960 Olympics), denying Canada for the first time
Prague, Czechoslovakia, February 26, 1933

HOME ON THE RANGE: The Massachusetts Rangers won the 1933 World Championship representing the United States, denying Canada for the first time. PHOTO: IIHF Archives.

In the early days of international hockey, Canada was all but invincible. It won the first four Olympic tournaments (1920, ‘24, ‘28, ‘32) and the first two World Championships (1930 and ‘31) without losing a single game. But when looking closely at the scores, one could see that Canada was occasionally vulnerable. The Canadians needed overtime in both games against the USA in the 1932 Lake Placid Olympics to secure the gold medal, and, in the 1931 World Championship, Sweden skated away with a 0-0 tie against the eventual champions.

In the 1933 world tournament in Prague, Czechoslovakia, USA and Canada once again faced each other in the gold medal game on February 26 at the beautiful Zimni Stadion at Stvanice. Both teams had coaches who later became high-profile men in the professional leagues back in North America. The Canadian entry, the Toronto National Sea Fleas, was led by Harold Ballard, later known as the controversial owner of the NHL’s Toronto Maple Leafs. The Americans, represented in Prague by the Massachusetts Rangers, had Walter Brown as their coach. Brown, the president of the NHL’s Boston Bruins and owner of the NBA’s Boston Celtics, became the president of the IIHF in 1954 and an inductee to both the Hockey Hall of Fame as well as to the IIHF Hall of Fame later in the 20th century.

The gold-medal game in ‘33 was tied 1-1 at the end of 45 minutes of regulation time. Sherman Forbes scored for the U.S. while Tim Kerr had the Canadian equalizer. Six minutes into the 10-minute “non sudden-death” overtime, defenseman John Garrison scored on a beautiful solo effort, beating Canadian goalie Ron Geddes. Gerry Cosby, the American goalie who would later open his famous hockey store at the Madison Square Garden in New York, stoned Canada for the rest of the overtime period and his team held on for the historic 2-1-win.

For Garrison and star forward Winthrop Palmer it was the sweetest revenge. Both players were part of the 1932 Lake Placid team that lost the Olympic gold medal by the narrowest of margins.

Amazingly, as big as the USA success was back in 1933, no American men’s team has been able to repeat the World Championship gold in the next 75 years. In fact, they have won only four silver medals since, the most recent coming in 1956 at the Olympics in Cortina d’Ampezzo, Italy.

'PROFESSOR' LARIONOV's QUOTES ON KHL

2009-08-25T06:15:00.000-07:00

Yesterday I was asked by my friend and hockey expert Arthur Childovski (http://www.chidlovski.com/) the following question:

Alex, is there any info on how Larionov reacts to the KHL? It seems that Igor was one of the biggest free-thinkers in the history of soviet russian hockey as a hockey player and personality. I am curious if he allows stints like this to be played using his name...

This is my answer:

Arthur,
I think you hit the"ZERO". I tried to find some Larionov interviews or quotes on KHL. The result is close to NOTHING (and nothing at all for 2009!), only technical staff about EuroLeague etc. This kind of silence says a lot to every ex-Soviet, right?
I was able to find one-year old interview that I published here (the last one). All his comments on KHL he did for NA press are completely different comparing with Russia press (Zubov, Fedorov, Ovechkin etc)

Here we are:

By Paul Hunter, Toronto Star. November 2008

During a stellar hockey career, Igor Larionov was known for his tremendous on-ice vision. It should be no surprise that the deep-thinking centre possesses visionary qualities off the ice as well.
So as the great Russian trailblazer held court with the media on the morning of his induction into the Hockey Hall of Fame – honoured for great careers on both sides of the Atlantic – he shared his dream for the upstart Kontinental Hockey League (KHL), the new pro loop in his home country for which he sits on the board of the directors.
Although he concedes that the quality of play between the KHL and NHL is currently "not even close," he said he foresees a day when the champion of each league will play off for a world pro title.
Larionov also said that, in the spring, the Russian league will consider potential expansion into untapped hockey markets such as China, Japan and Korea and the KHL hopes to help establish a Russian junior league, as a feeder system, by September. This despite the fact some of the league's teams are struggling financially during the current global economic downturn.
The 47-year-old also called for the NHL and KHL to work together to grow the game internationally.
He also conceded that he is an optimist.
"We don't need a cold war right now in hockey," he said. "The KHL is starting to make its first steps toward recognition. We should be working together (with the NHL) to make the game globally recognized and to find new markets."
So far the relationship between the two leagues is so cold you could skate on it. There is no agreement between the NHL and the Russian hockey federation when it comes to player transfers so any movement between the two hockey powers is often viewed with suspicion, anger and resentment.
When Alexander Radulov jumped from Nashville to Russian club Salavat Ufa, for a three-year contract reportedly worth $13 million (U.S.), it drove what appears to be an immovable wedge between the NHL and the new league. That was only exacerbated by the recent defection of Montreal prospect Pavel Valentenko, who signed with Dynamo Moscow when he was allowed to go home for personal reasons.
Despite the acidic relationship between the NHL and the neophyte 24-team league, Larionov said he doesn't see the KHL as "a threat to the NHL at this moment. Some NHL guys went to play this season (in the KHL) but we're not talking about some big names except (Jaromir) Jagr."

Another one by Globe and Mail . March 31, 2009

Larionov said the economics of the KHL make little sense today, given that some teams in Moscow draw as few as 1,000 or 2,000 fans a game and ticket prices are modest — the equivalent of $5, $10 or $15. At that rate, he does not believe the salaries on offer last season — as much as $10-million to Pittsburgh Penguins star Evgeni Malkin — are sustainable over the long term. Malkin's former team in Russia, Metallurg Magnitogorsk, is one of several clubs struggling to meet its payroll commitments.
"I ask myself: How long is it going to last?" Larionov said. "You want to be wise economically. You want to get ticket sales and apply to the salaries. Now, we have great support from big companies and business people, but how long is it going to last? That is why we have to sit down and talk."

Championat. ru July 2008

- What supposed to be done to get KHL well promoted?
- I believe one day we (KHL) should be as good as the NHL. We are not to copy the NHL but have to implement all the best from there and there is very little "bad" in the NHL...Believe me I know what I am talking about, I played there for 15 years...

VLADISLAV TRETYAK: COMMUNICATION IS OUR MAIN TARGET

2009-08-24T17:48:00.000-07:00

by SPORT-EXPRESS

President of the Russian Hockey Federation Vladislav Tretyak comments on the national team’s preparations for the Olympic Games.

Russian hockey national team will start pre-Olympic training camp on August 29 in Moscow. President of the Russian Hockey Federation Vladislav Tretyak told Sport Express about the team’s preparations for the Olympic Games.

The coaching staff submitted the 38-men roster for the trainings however not all players confirmed their participation in it. In particular Gonchar and Tyutin were said to miss these trainings.

"Both Gonchar and Tyutin said that they would come to preparation session", said Tretyak. "We haven’t received agreement of Volchenkov and Datsyuk as they are out because of family problems. We are hopeful that they will come to Moscow".

"Program of our preparations is not ready now since it is in process of completion. I can say now that we will surely organize a meeting with our supporters, so called a Doors Open Day".

"We also plan to hold awarding ceremony of winners of the previous World Championship. Want it to be held by the Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin but we are to agree this question now".

"Our players will live in hotel “Aerostar” which is situated close to the hockey palace Megasport and CSKA stadium as our Hockey Federation paid for it. The main events of our preparations will take place there".

"But it’s necessary to take into account that several players will prepare for the Euro Hockey Tour Czech Games at that time and they will live in Novogorsk. As for other players we are not against if they decide to live at home".

"Rossgosstrakh company fully insured the whole preparation camp. I can say that there won’t be any serious danger to players’ health because they will be busy mostly with athletic exercises".

"In general the main reason of this training camp is communication between players. Believe me that it’s much better than usual trainings. Moreover we want to set players for maximum result at the Olympics".

RICHARD BENDELL ON BOBBY CLARKE

2009-08-24T07:18:00.000-07:00

Count me in as one of the people who views Clarke as a menace not a top-level player worthy of respect or admiration.

In '72 he showed the world several examples of what kind of player he was, dirty, nasty, backstabbing, egotistical, he unfortunately gained a totally undeserved reputation as the kind of player a team needed to win against a highly skilled team like the Soviets.

I will acknowledge that he had exceptional passing skills and was decent at face-offs especially when he was allowed to cheat which was quite often in the NHL especially for many years after the Summit Series where he gained a reputation as a key player for Team Canada that is quite of out proportion with his actual contributions.

Many people are under the impression that Clarke made Paul Henderson in that series yet interestingly in my Revised Statistics I discovered that Clarke earned only 5 points in 8 games (not 6 as he was given an assist on Canada's 3rd goal in Game 5 that actually should have gone to Ellis) and thus earned points in only 3 of Canada's eight games.

He also gained four of those five points in two of Canada's most disappointing losses (Game 1 and 5) and had NO points at all in the crucial games 6, 7 and 8 of Canada's unbelievable comeback yet again gained this undeserved reputation as a "clutch" performer even though he was nowhere to be found offensively when the games were really on the line.

Meanwhile Henderson had 11 revised points gained in 6 of Canada's games and 2 of those points came while playing with Phil Esposito in Game 8!

Thus, I would argue who actually made who in 1972?

I for one believe that Dave Keon would have greatly outshone Clarke if he had not been passed over for the '72 team as he had not yet signed an NHL contract and had an offer on the table from the WHA's Ottawa Nationals.

Dave was a much better skater than Clarke, a terrific checker, a good face off man, quite familiar with playing with Henderson and Ellis and very capable of putting points on the board. He would have done just as well or better against the Soviets and would never have taken the kind of stupid and undisciplined penalties that Clarke did that only served to inspire the Soviet players against such dirty play.

Richard B.

EUROPEAN INVASION DROPPED THIS YEAR

2009-08-24T06:40:00.000-07:00

Yesterday my friend and well-known online hockey researcher Joe Pelletier, Greatest Hockey Legends author, has published an excellent article which I want partly to quote and comment here.

We North Americans really misjudge just how big of an issue the transfer issue is.

It has the significant potential to greatly reduced the number of new European players coming to the NHL. This is the first summer without a transfer agreement, and we are already seeing a dramatic change. So far this summer the NHL has only signed 23 new European players - 11 of which are Swedes - marking a 46% drop from last year.

The lack of a transfer agreement even scared off teams at the NHL draft table in July. Only 24.9% of draftees were European, by far the lowest such total this decade.

One season is too early to definitively blame the lack of a transfer agreement for declining European content in the NHL. It may be just a weak year for Europeans or perhaps more Europeans are just staying home or going to the KHL rather than risk playing in the American minor leagues. But it is an alarming coincidence to say the least.

By the way, 25 NHL players have signed in Europe this summer. There has never been a reverse transfer arrangement compensating NHL teams.

JOE PELLETIER

Having "long-term" picture to consider I am not sure what would be better for the NHL and Canadian hockey. I am somewhat agree (partly) with Don Cherry - the huge number of European players, flooded the NHL for the last 20 years has damaged our (Canadian) domestic hockey. So this drop of European newcomers to the NHL, you mentioned in this article, is not necessary bad thing. We have a lot of good players here who have no chance to prove themselves sitting whole life in AHL, CHL, OHL...Look up at my favorite Red Wings - sometimes I have impression it's Europe select team. I think no doubt the best decade in terms of hockey progress was the 70s. But why? Because it was strong and EQUAL competition between the NHL and Europe. And the worst? In my opinion - 90s with same but reversed reason.
The NHL like business is straggling, ignore all this G. Bettman crap, straggling in terms of absence of new heard breaking ideas. So may be this will be "the one"?

SERGEI FEDOROV VISITS THE FACTORY

2009-08-23T06:33:00.000-07:00

Pavel Zaitsev, Sport-Express

Sergey Fedorov gets his number 18 jersey from Metallurg Magnitogorsk General Manager Gennadiy Velichkin.

Sergei started his hockey career with Red Army team under number 18. "Choosing number 18 I have closed my hockey career circle", said Fedorov.

Yesterday Metallurg team was visiting the parent company - the workers of the Magnitogorsk steel giant. Sergey Fedorov obviously was the most popular person for factory employees and media. He answered a lot of questions. Sergei has shown deep interest in production technology processes and aggregates.

- To work here one supposed to by real professional - said the famous forward - These people are working really hard. This kind of excursion is unforgettable for outsider. We are lucky to be here and to observe this process "live".

KIND OF JOKE - HOCKEY FUR GLOVES

2009-08-22T14:06:00.000-07:00

Just in case you think it's a joke only you can click this link by hockeymonkey to watch the sale page.
O, people, give me a break!

THE EVER - BEST HOCKEY FANS - WORLD CHAMP 1957. MOSCOW

2009-08-22T09:31:00.000-07:00

Can you imagine - 50,000 fans at soccer stadium watching the Worlds final with -20C outside? It happened on March 5, 1957 in Moscow, Russia

The Soviet team lines up prior to the historic game at the Luzhniki soccer stadium on March 5, 1957.

The Soviet Union shocked the hockey world by winning the 1954 World Championship in their first international appearance. Two years later, the Vsevolod Bobrov-led CCCP team won Olympic gold in Cortina. The decision to hold the 1957 World Championship in Moscow was made by the IIHF in recognition of the instant success of Soviet hockey.

When it was learned that neither Canada nor the United States were coming to Moscow, the hosts were unanimously considered the tournament favourites. Most of the games of the 24th World Championship were held in the newly built indoor Luzhniki Sports Palace. The last game of the round-robin format between the Soviet Union and Sweden was to be the gold medal game. The Swedes, led by players like Sven Tumba, Lasse Bjorn, Roland Stoltz and Nisse Nilsson, had won six straight games, while the Soviets had five wins and one tie, against Czechoslovakia.

Only three years earlier, the Soviet sports fans hade a very vague idea of ice hockey, which the authorities endorsed only in 1946. But after the successes of 1954 and 1956, ice hockey interest grew immensely. With the national team playing in an all-decisive gold medal game against Sweden, the demand for tickets was massive.

The tournament directorate realized that playing in the 14,000-seat Luzhniki Sports Palace would prevent many fans from attending the game. The decision was made to build a rink on the nearby Luzhniki soccer stadium. As this was Moscow in early March 1957 and the world had not yet been subjected to the term ‘global warming’, the organizers were not taking any major risks that it would be cold enough to sustain the ice.

The exact attendance figure will never be known, but as the teams took to the ice there were at least 50,000 (some say 55,000) fans. The game was a classic. The guests took a 2-0-lead in the first period, but the Soviets scored four goals in the second stanza making it 4-2 after two. Sweden got one back early in the third. With twelve minutes to go it was still 4-3 and the gold medals seemed destined to stay in Moscow. But then Swedish forward Eilert Maatta chased a loose puck in the right corner of the Soviet zone and cut to the goal, skating along the goal line.

With no one to pass to, Maatta saw that Russian goalie Nikolai Puchkov, anticipating a centering pass, had left a small gap between his pads and the goal post. The Swede, a right-handed shooter, went for the backhander and the puck found the small opening left by Puchkov.

The Swedes hung on, and the 4-4-tie gave Tre Kronor their second World title. Despite the fact that the Soviets didn’t win gold, they started a streak that would see them go undefeated on Moscow ice in World Championship competition for 41 games during a span of 50 years. The streak was broken on May 12, 2007 when Finland became the first team to defeat the home team in Moscow in a World Championship game.

Unless the IIHF takes its flagship event outdoors again, the attendance record from the Luzhniki soccer stadium will never be broken. It was that game, on March 5, 1957, that established hockey as the sport of the masses in the Soviet Union.

BOBBY CLARKE AND "FRIENDLY" GAMES

2009-08-21T07:45:00.000-07:00

Having read tons of articles and books about Bobby Clarke I clearly have the strange impression as if all of this staff is written about two completely different persons. Don't you have the same test? Here are two more of them

By Jeff Z. Klein. The New York Times

Czech Television gives us this fast-paced compilation of blood-curdling incidents at the IIHF World Championship down through the years. There are many here (which we’ll get to below), but none is more horrifying than one that took place not during a World Championship but rather during a 1972 “friendly” between Canada and Czechoslovakia: Bobby Clarke’s butt-end to the face of Czechoslovak captain František Pospíšil:

That Canada-Czechoslovakia game was played in Prague one day after the famous last-minute Canadian victory over the USSR in the Summit Series. Team Canada were traveling back from Moscow, and you’d figure they’d be happy and triumphant. But instead they were as truculent as they ever were in the Soviet Union, and Clarke, fresh off breaking the ankle of Valeri Kharlamov at the direction of assistant coach John Ferguson, went after Pospisil’s face with what might be the dirtiest play ever captured on film.

By the way, the Czechoslovak referee gave Clarke only a five-minute major for this act, and Canada wound up earning a 3-3 draw on Serge Savard’s goal with 4 seconds left — all in all a perfect reflection of Team Canada in 1972.

Other incidents highlighted on the Czech Television compilation of international aggro since the late 1940s include Canada’s Ryan Smyth hacking at Czech defenceman Jiri Fischer’s ankles at least eight times during the 2005 World Championship; Claude Lemieux and Keith Tkachuk mixing it up during the 1996 World Cup; extended mayhem at the 2001 WC, starting with Italy’s Mario Chitarroni clotheslining and then pummeling a prone Swiss player, followed by a vicious sucker punch by Italy’s Anthony Iob — apt name — that knocked out Jean Jaques Aeschlimann; and Canada’s Owen Nolan dropping a Czech player with a gloved sucker punch while the Czech was surrounded by three Canadians.

BOBBY CLARKE - SAME PERSON, DIFFERENT LOOK

2009-08-21T07:32:00.000-07:00

by Philadelfia Flyers Alumni Assosiation

Bobby Clarke began to play for his home team, the Flin Flon Bombers, when he was eight. In the beginning, he was nothing special as far as his friends were concerned. Hockey in Flin Flon was the only pastime. The Flin Flon Bombers' arena seated 2,000 and was always packed. The Bombers were practically impossible to beat on their home ice. It took 10 hours to get to Flin Flon by bus from Winnipeg. It was such an ordeal to get there that opposing teams were too exhausted to turn in a good performance.

Playing for the Bombers in the 1967-68 season, Clarke racked up 168 points (51 goals plus 117 assists). That was the best performance in the league. By all accounts, Bobby should have been first in the draft, but there were rumors in the NHL that Clarke was a diabetic and most probably wouldn't be able to play in the top league because of that. Pat Ginnell, head coach of the Bombers, didn't waste any time. He made arrangements with the Mayo Clinic, one of the best hospitals in North America, and took Bobby to Minnesota.

The doctors concluded that Clarke could play professional hockey if he looked after his health. The coach asked the doctors to put their statement in writing and returned home satisfied. When the following season began and NHL scouts began to visit Flin Flon, Ginnell showed them the verdict from the Mayo Clinic. On ice, Clarke hardly looked like a man with a serious affliction. He totaled 137 points with 51 goals and 86 assists and was again at the top of the league. Clarke also demonstrated superior leadership skills, which are highly valued in the NHL.

The 1969 draft was ample evidence that there were those in the league who believed in Clarke. Bobby was selected 17th by the Philadelphia Flyers in the second round. Sam Pollock, manager of the Montreal Canadiens, who were 1969 Stanley Cup winners, immediately offered a deal that the Flyers management could hardly refuse. But Philadelphia turned it down. Next in line was Detroit Red Wings chief scout Jimmy Skinner, who offered two veterans for the 20-year-old diabetic. But the Flyers made it clear that Clarke wasn't up for sale.

For Clarke, the start of his professional career was rough. During training camp, he had two serious diabetic seizures. One of the Philadelphia coaches, Frank Lewis, conducted his own investigation and learned that in both instances Clarke had had only a light breakfast before the workout. Lewis drew up a complete dietary plan, which Bobby strictly followed for years to come. Before a game, Clarke would drink a bottle of Coca-Cola with three spoonfuls of dissolved sugar. Between periods he downed half a glass of orange juice with sugar added, and after the game a whole glass. Lewis always stashed several chocolate bars and a tube of 100% glucose in his bag, just in case.

The personal diet plan developed by his coach went without a hitch and Bobby Clarke didn't miss a single game in his first NHL season. At the same time, Clarke didn't put on any spectacular performances either, with 15 goals and 31 assists for a total of 46 points.

The following season, Clarke's 27 goals and 36 assists helped Philadelphia to capture the number three slot in their division, but in the first round of the playoffs the Phillies were KO'd by the Chicago Black Hawks 4-0. Bobby himself felt that he'd made improvements in all the elements of his game during the second season. There was plenty of praise for the young center, but the question remained: How long could a diabetic keep on playing at the professional level?

Diabetics were susceptible to infectious diseases and even a slight scratch could be dangerous. And Clarke played a very physical game and did his share of bleeding. The blood's sugar content was a major source of danger. If the concentration was low, the player could lose his physical coordination. If it was high, his legs would feel as heavy as lead. Gradually Bobby proved to all the skeptics that he was able to deal with his ailment. There were plenty of players out there with injuries that hadn't fully healed. Some with back injuries were compelled to wear a corset under their uniform. Others with knee injuries had to wear tight knee bandages before coming out on the ice. Clarke had diabetes and fought his illness by consuming sugar-laced juices.

By the third season, everyone had forgotten about Clarke's diabetes. Not only did Clarke chalk up the highest number of points in the club's history - 35 goals plus 46 assists for a total of 81 points - he became the uncontested leader of the team, and that at the age of 22. At the end of the season, he was awarded the Bill Masterton Memorial Trophy for perseverance and dedication - a first for the Philadelphia team.

It was no surprise when in the summer of 1972 the head coach of Team Canada, Harry Sinden, named Bobby Clarke as one of the first candidates for the Summit Series against the USSR. Clarke had two wingers from the Toronto Maple Leafs, Ron Ellis and Paul Henderson, and this threesome made a strong impression on observers during exhibition play. In the first game, which ended in a fiasco for the Canadians, Clarke more than anyone else was dissatisfied with the way things had gone. Bobby was named best player among the Canadians, but his efforts weren't enough. Before game two, Clarke reminded his team of the irony of the situation.

It was thought that the Russians had come to Canada to learn how to play hockey. The lesson the Canadians learned from the game in Montreal was that you had to be in good shape for a series where the pride of a nation was at stake and passions ran high. Judging by how they skated, the Russians knew this better than the Canadian team did. "We'll see what they can do after two or three games," said Bobby Clarke. But Team USSR adopted none of the techniques of the supposedly superior pros from the NHL and continued to play their own style of hockey. Before game four in Vancouver, the fans booed their own Canadian players. Bobby was furious. It was one thing if you were jeered by the fans of your club, but this was the national team of Canada!

The series was looking more and more like an embarrassment for Team Canada. The Canadians arrived in Moscow one game down on their opponents. After the first game at the Luzhniki Sports Palace, the gap doubled. A mistake by Clarke in the final minutes of the game cost the Canadians a tie. He was trying to control the puck near the boards and shot a pass to his partner, Rod Seiling. But Valeri Kharlamov intercepted the pass and flipped the puck to Vladimir Vikulov, who beat Tony Esposito at the net. The situation was critical. One more loss and the Canadians, whose considerable prestige was at stake, would blow the series. It was do or die.

At this point, Clarke took a more active role on his team and did his best to inspire the other players. At first he'd felt somewhat uncomfortable in the company of such stars as Phil Esposito and Brad Park. But facing the threat of an impending disaster, all players on the team became equal. The Canadians had to lay out everything they had to win game six, which they did with a score of 3-2. The battle would be uphill all the way, for the Soviets had home ice advantage and still led the series, but a slim chance had opened up for the Canadian team to win the series.

And suddenly Canadians demonstrated support for their players like never before. The team received over 50,000 telegrams. There were even messages from the town of Flin Flon. Bobby, smiling, said that he knew he wouldn't be forgotten. In the end, the Clarke trio was instrumental to the overall win of Team Canada. They won game seven by a score of 4-3. And Bobby's partner, Paul Henderson, scored the winning goal in the dying seconds of the final game to win it 6-5. Canada won the series.

Bobby Clarke could have become a national hero. The merits he accumulated during his career were impressive. As a player, the former Philadelphia captain led his club to Stanley Cup championships in 1974 and 1975. He also captured numerous individual awards, including the Hart Trophy as the league's most valuable player in 1973, 1975 and 1976, and made the All-Star Team four times. But Clarke's behavior on ice was far from heroic. Under the captaincy of Clarke, Philadelphia played a very aggressive game of hockey.

He had a famous, captivating smile - with about a dozen missing teeth. That is how Bobby Clarke will be remembered by those who saw him on ice. One of the best checkers in the entire history of the league, he was also a ruffian and a warrior. And a victor.

HERB BROOKS - DREAMER OF DREAMS

2009-08-20T07:18:00.000-07:00

Today I would like to post an exellent article by Tom Jones first published in 2002

Tom Jones, Star Tribune. Published Feb 6, 2002

Twenty-two-year-old Herb Brooks sat slumped and silent in the living room of the East Side house he grew up in, watching the flickering black-and-white images of a dream. His dream.

Next to him, his father, - Herb Sr., Insurance Man - the man who told his son to stop these silly Olympic dreams and finish college, become something - a lawyer, an accountant, a banker. This is the same man who answered the telephone day after day for a year, his son telling him he wasn't coming home, that the Olympic team still had a place for him. This is the same man who told Herb to get back home and start his real life. And then Herb broke the news that he was the last - the God-forsaken last! - player cut from the Olympic roster, mere days before the 1960 Squaw Valley Games.

Back home and with a pit in his stomach, Herb sat next to his father and watched the guys from the neighborhood, buddies he used to play hockey with on the outdoor rinks and frozen ponds of their youth, win the gold medal. As he sat in his living room watching the American celebration, Herb felt a rush of emotion: happiness for his friends, and jealousy, sour green jealousy, because his dream was someone else's reality. He turned to his father, looking for comfort.

Herb Sr. looked at his son and said the words Brooks, to this day, can hear: "Looks like Coach cut the right guy."

That moment, those seven words lit the fire in Brooks' belly. The dream, the very purpose of Brooks' life, was born. This, you see, was Brooks' defining moment. This was his "Rosebud," the thing he has remembered all his life. That day, Feb. 27, 1960, in that little room in that little house off Queen Avenue in St. Paul, changed his life forever. And it changed the face of American hockey.

Dreamer of dreams

Not long ago, Herb Brooks, now 64 (the article was published in 2002 - A.N), sat in his White Bear Lake home, surfing through television channels when he stumbled on to one of his favorite movies, "Willie Wonka and the Chocolate Factory."

"You know, Willie Wonka said it best: We are the makers of dreams, the dreamers of dreams," Brooks said. "We should be dreaming. We grew up as kids having dreams, but now we're too sophisticated as adults, as a nation. We stopped dreaming. We should always have dreams.

"I'm a dreamer."

HERB BROOKS. 1968 USA OLYMPIC TEAM CAPTAIN

Brooks dares to dream things no one thinks possible. He dreamed of playing in the Olympics, and he did in 1964 and 1968. He dreamed of coaching the U.S. Olympic hockey team, and he did in 1980. He dreamed of taking a bunch of American college boys and beating, perhaps, the best hockey team ever assembled, the mighty Soviets. And the boys did it.

Through it all, Brooks never stopped dreaming.

"I'm still driven by these same dreams," said Brooks when explaining, after all he has accomplished, why he would put it all on the line to coach in the Olympics again. "I'm driven by the pursuit of perfection as opposed to the quick-fix mentality that I think has engulfed our society today. I'm not talking about the dream team, I'm talking about the dreamers. I'm probably a dreamer more than anyone else."

Brooks' dreams these days haven't changed much from the days when he was knocking around Payne Avenue in St. Paul. He dreams of challenges. He dreams about the pursuit of perfection. He dreams of gathering groups of people and making them believe the impossible is possible.

"He makes you believe you can do anything," said Mike Ramsey, a member of Brooks' Miracle on Ice team in 1980.

It's why he is back coaching the U.S. Olympic team. He wants what he calls "one more kick at the can." It's one more chance to dream.

"The dream now," Brooks said, " is no different than it was in 1960 or 1980."

Inspiring the 'Miracle'

Here's something Herb Brooks never dreamed of: coaching at the University of Minnesota. He was grateful for the opportunity. And he was good at it. He took a last-place team in 1972 and seven years later, the Gophers had the nation's Rolls Royce program, having played in four national title games, winning three of them. But coaching at Minnesota simply was a rung on the ladder. At the top? Coaching in the Olympics. For Brooks, it always was - and is - about the Olympics.

"The Olympians, with all the stories and athletes like Jesse Owens, well, to me they were up here," said Brooks, holding his hand above his head. "The Olympics have always captivated my attention. It's a world sport. It's not ho-hum business as usual. It's national pride, it's legacy, it's history. Those are the stories I grew up with. The Olympics transcend the game itself."

Still, it was a miracle that Brooks coached the Miracle on Ice team. He wasn't USA Hockey's first choice to coach the '80 team. Or its second. Maybe not even its third. He was 42 at the time, the youngest college coach in the country. But because of a variety of reasons, some not even fully known to this day, the job slipped down to Brooks.

Immediately, Brooks asked his players to do what he did back in 1960, a lesson he learned when he was the last cut for the Olympic team: "Sacrifice for the unknown." Be willing to give everything you have for something that may never happen. Take a leap of faith.

No one gave his college boys, average age 21, a chance.

"I understood the pragmatics of the situation," Brooks said. "But I wasn't going to leave those dreams on the table. I was driven by this thing as the athletes were driven by this thing."

But it wasn't easy. Brooks needed to push these kids beyond where even they believed they could go. Everything needed to be full-out. Brooks couldn't just screech his tires around the curve, he had to be willing to take out a stretch of guardrail. He shoved. He challenged. He prodded. He yelled. He was part motivator, part teacher, part psychologist. And full-time, well, Brooks said, "I was a bastard a lot of times, no question."

It worked. There was a tie against the Swedes. And Eruzione's goal against the Russians, and the magical Sunday morning against Finland while the world watched. And Brooks' kids had their Olympic gold.

And then that was it. Brooks was supposed to climb onto his white horse, ride off into the sunset, coach a few years in the NHL (which he did), then come back to St. Paul and wife Patti and live out his days as a Minnesota legend, like Paul Bunyan. His name would go down in coaching lore. We would have Bear, and Knute and Red. And right along with those names: Herbie. All went according to plan.

Until three years ago..

The 4 a.m. call

Neil Sheehy tossed and turned in his hotel room in Florida. The former NHL player and current Minneapolis-based players' agent started thinking of all the years and miles during which he became friends with Herb Brooks. He thought of the car rides to North Dakota, to Duluth, to Mankato, to Madison when the two talked about hockey and players and dreams.

The alarm clock in Sheehy's room clicked over to 4 a.m., sending Sheehy to the telephone to track down his shotgun rider. Brooks awoke to the ring of the telephone in his South Bend, Ind., hotel room. Groggily, he answered.

Sheehy didn't identify himself. He just said: "Herb, you got to coach the Olympic team in 2002."

Brooks' reaction? "You're crazy. Or drunk."

After assuring Brooks he was neither, Sheehy concocted the plan to bridge the gap that had grown between Brooks and USA Hockey. Brooks was intrigued, but he wouldn't allow himself to believe that it could come together. After all, even though he coached the U.S. team to its greatest victory - perhaps the greatest moment in American sports of any kind -- Brooks was never asked to coach an American national team after 1980. Brooks is stubborn, headstrong, opinionated. He had his way of doing things, and it was different from the way USA Hockey (read: Walter Bush, president, USA Hockey) did things.

"A lot has been said and a lot has been written that Herb and I don't get along," Bush said. "But it was never as bad as people thought. We have had different thoughts on how to run this. From a hockey perspective, I couldn't agree with Herb more."

Sheehy, patiently and perfectly, set out to close the gap between Brooks and USA Hockey, and found out the gap really wasn't that wide. He began working on USA Hockey to consider Brooks. He then worked on changing Brooks' stubborn ways.

"Herb, you want to change the world," Sheehy told Brooks, "but sometimes to do that you have to change yourself."

It all sounded great. Nothing, though, came easy. During one telephone conversation, a frustrated Brooks told Sheehy to "Forget it! I'm out!" and slammed down the receiver.

HERB BROOKS COACHING MINNESOTA NORTH STARS

That prompted a letter from Sheehy to Brooks that challenged Brooks to reconsider. Sheehy closed by paraphrasing Brooks' speech to his 1980 team before the showdown with the Soviets.

"Herb," Sheehy wrote, "you were born to be here. You were born to coach."

But when one hurdle was cleared, another popped up. Because NHL players would be involved, there was a thought that maybe the team should be run by an NHL coach. That obstacle, though, was overcome when Brooks coached the Pittsburgh Penguins for most of the 1999-2000 season. Brooks' success in Pittsburgh (29-24-5-2) proved he could deal with temperamental and arrogant millionaires.

Meantime, Brooks had other issues. He thought the Olympic job should be passed from coach to coach and he had already had his moment. He wasn't -- and still isn't -- crazy about letting professionals play in the Olympics. Sheehy's words ("Herb, you want to change the world, but sometimes to do that you have to change yourself.") echoed in Brooks' head. Brooks can be bullheaded, but he also believes in democracy. He also knew he was on the losing side of the pros-vs.-amateurs argument. He could either whine to anyone who would listen while someone else kicked the can, or he could get with the program.

The announcement came on Nov. 1, 2001: Herb Brooks would coach the 2002 United States Olympic men's hockey team.

It's about hockey, and dreams

Why? Why is Herb Brooks interested in coaching the Olympic team in 2002? Choosing Brooks makes sense for USA Hockey. Brooks is a masterful coach, an innovative strategist and a brilliant motivator. His hiring conjures up memories of the Miracle on Ice in 1980 as opposed to what the story line could've been going into these Games: Team USA's embarrassing performance on and off the ice in Nagano in 1998. Hiring Brooks seems like a no-brainer .

But why is Brooks doing this? Even he admits there never will be another Miracle on Ice. Why risk damaging the legacy?

"I'm doing it for the cause," Brooks said. "And the cause is this: Hopefully our Olympic team will be an impetus and a catalyst to further the growth of American hockey. . . . I've seen American players go from the apprentice in the game, to the journeyman in the game, to some real masters of the trade. I want to continue to see that growth, and this is a vehicle to do that."

But that isn't all. Brooks remembers that day in 1960, sitting on the couch, hearing his father saying: "Looks like Coach cut the right guy."

"Well, it's the same dream as 1960 and 1980," Brooks said. "We want to win the gold medal. It's the same motivation. We all -- the players, me -- have that little boy in them.

"We should all have dreams. My dream is win a gold medal. My dream is to work with a group of individuals and prepare to do something great."

Tom Jones is at twjones startribune.com

REMEMBERING HERBIE. Q&A

2009-08-20T07:05:00.000-07:00

"You know, Willie Wonka said it best: We are the makers of dreams, the dreamers of dreams. We should be dreaming. We grew up as kids having dreams, but now we're too sophisticated as adults, as a nation. We stopped dreaming. We should always have dreams. I'm a dreamer."- Herb Brooks

HERB 'HERBIE' BROOKS. 1960 PRE-OLYMPICS

Did Herb Brooks really miss his chance to play in the Winter Olympics in 1960?

Yes. Brooks was the last person to be cut by coach Jack Riley from the 1960 gold medal winning U.S. Olympic team. At right is a photo of Herb Brooks in his shortly worn 1960 Olympic attire (click to enlarge). Brooks did however later play in the Olympic games in 1964, and he was the captain in 1968. -ESPN.com

How did the U.S. victory over the Russians and subsequent Olympic Gold Medal at Lake Placid in 1980 become known as the "Miracle On Ice"?

The "Miracle On Ice" catchphrase took hold after sportscaster Al Michaels exclaimed, "Do you believe in miracles?" just after the final seconds winded down in the United States' 4-3 victory over Russia. -Disney

What was the national reaction to the United States 1980 victory?

The Miracle on Ice was a monumental victory on both an athletic and political level. The nation was looking for a distraction from world events, which included the impending threat of nuclear war, the country's hostages in Iran, and the long lines at the gas pumps. With little good in the news, Herb Brooks and his ragtag hockey team of college kids soon became the national focus. Their victory over the Soviet Union, our Cold War enemy, gave the United States a symbol of hope. It also inflicted upon the Russians a scar of defeat. The players became celebrities, and still remain national heroes. Even U.S. coach Herb Brooks enjoyed the limelight a little. He dropped in for an unannounced appearance on the Tonight Show with Johnny Carson on February 27, 1980

Did Herb Brooks ever coach another Olympic hockey team after 1980?

Yes. Herb Brooks first returned to the Olympics in 1998, coaching the French team at the Nagano Games. Then, in 2002, Herb Brooks coached the U.S. Olympic hockey team at the Winter Games in Salt Lake City. To begin the Games, Mike Eruzione led other members of the 1980 Olympic team in the lighting of the Olympic cauldron at the opening ceremony. At Salt Lake City, Brooks led the U.S. team to a silver medal, defeated in the final game by Mario Lemieux and the rest of team Canada, who were coached by hockey legend Wayne Gretzky. When asked why he decided to return to coach at the Olympics, Herb Brooks said the following, "Maybe I'm sort of like the players -- there's still a lot of little boy in me," Brooks said. "And maybe I'm a little smarter now than I was before for all the stupid things I've done." - olympic-usa.org

Did Herb Brooks ever coach in the NHL?

Yes. Following his 1980 Olympic victory at Lake Placid, Herb Brooks coached the New York Rangers (1981-85). There he set a franchise record, reaching 100 wins quicker than any other coach in the organization's history. After leaving the Rangers, Brooks coached the Minnesota North Stars (1987-88), the New Jersey Devils (1992-93), and the Pittsburgh Penguins (1999-00). - olympic-usa.org

What were the details surrounding Herb Brooks' death?

On Monday August 11, 2003, just six days after his sixty-sixth birthday, while on his way to the Minneapolis airport to board a flight to Chicago, Herb Brooks lost control of his minivan and veered onto a grassy area at a highway intersection north of the Twin Cities. Chucke Menke of USA Hockey said that Brooks was coming from a Hall of Fame celebrity golf event. State Patrol Lt. Chuck Walerius said that an inspection of the accident scene (above, right) revealed that Brooks had apparently not been wearing his seatbelt. His body was found about forty yards from the vehicle, which is thought to have rolled several times. Anoka County coroner's office said that Brook's died of multiple blunt-force chest and abdominal injuries when he was ejected from his vehicle (ESPN.com). The State Patrol's report confirmed Brooks wasn't drinking, speeding, talking on his cell phone or having health trouble before the crash. Officials also said that weather and road conditions were ruled out as contributing factors. The State Patrol concluded that he most likely fell asleep at the wheel (news.mpr.org). The following morning after the accident a makeshift memorial could be seen at the site of the wreck. Commuters slowed down to pay their respects, spotting the hockey jersey and the University of Minnesota hat on the side of the road. - olympic-usa.org

Did Herb Brooks know about the Disney movie Miracle before he died?

Yes. Brooks had visited the sets of Miracle around Vancouver, British Columbia. He had spoken with the actor portraying him on the big screen, Kurt Russell. He talked to Russell about possibly watching a game in which Russell's son played, who is a Tier II goaltender. - Post-Gazette.com

HERB BROOKS IS GONE, BUT NEVER FORGOTEN

2009-08-20T06:24:00.000-07:00

by nhl.com

WOODRIDGE, Ill. -- It's pretty rare to attend any USA Hockey event nowadays without the name Herb Brooks popping up at some point.

That's because USA Hockey and Herb Brooks are synonymous, and it's why the entire hockey community mourned the death of the legendary coach in a car accident on Aug. 11, 2003. Brooks’ valuable lessons of life and hockey -- "Herbisms" -- will forever remain a part of the American sports culture.

"I think you can really define it pretty simply -- Herb Brooks was the architect of the single most significant moment in the history of American hockey," USA Hockey Executive Director Dave Ogrean told NHL.com. "His role with that team was clearly one of larger-than-life dominance since we were dealing with players younger than we have now. Herb was the leader, the one who molded them, pushed them and challenged them, and a guy who always insisted on doing things his way. He was never a compromiser, but, at the end of the day, he put his signature on what is the pinnacle moment for hockey in the United States."

Brooks followed up the 1980 Olympic "Miracle on Ice" in Lake Placid with a silver medal at the 2002 Olympics in Salt Lake City.

"In the intervening years between 1980 and 2002, Herb spent most of that time in the NHL," Ogrean said. "He had coached, scouted and gotten more experience in Europe. He absorbed a lot of knowledge of international and NHL hockey, so when the NHL guys entered the Olympic Games, it was a logical fit to bring him back in 2002. And we almost did it again, but Canada was just better that day (in the gold medal game)."

Three of the 34 players invited to the 2009 United States Olympic Men's Orientation Camp had the opportunity to play for Brooks in the '02 Games -- forwards Mike Modano and Chris Drury and defenseman Brian Rafalski.

Each player took some time to provide NHL.com with some of their fondest memories of Brooks during that three-week stretch in 2002.

Mike Modano -- "Just having Herb there in Salt Lake with us and returning to the Olympics was so exciting. We really wanted to do it for Herb and get to the gold medal game and win one more for him. He wasn't really an X's and O's guy because he wouldn't elaborate on systems. He just went out there and asked us to skate hard and work hard and have fun because that's when good things happen. He was a real rah-rah guy and he had some great speeches leading up to some games, some very similar to the things he said in 1980 for Team USA and also when he coached Minnesota and then in New York."

Chris Drury -- "It was a big thrill. We all watched him growing up and to get to see how he handled our team and the veterans and how close we were to winning gold but just fell short was certainly something I'll never forget. He was really pretty casual. I think he knew the talent he had, especially with the older guys in the group that had won World Cup (in 1996). By not pressing too hard, I think he figured he would get the most out of us. He just seemed to have a real good relationship with our core group of guys."

Brian Rafalski -- "It was a great experience and my first Olympics so it's something I'll always remember. We were playing on home soil and skated for a legendary coach. It was great to hear the stories he shared and we wound up doing pretty well -- a silver is good. I'll never forget that summer camp he held in Colorado Springs when he told me "The legs feed the wolf." He wanted you to do this extra weight program after regular workouts and you're like, "Oh man, Herb, I don't know, I'm really tired." I mean, how much work do you need to do? But he certainly got the best out of us, and I feel honored to have played for him."

BERTUZZI SAGA CONTINUES IN DETROIT. SECOND LAP

2009-08-19T13:28:00.000-07:00

FREE PRESS STAFF AND NEWS SERVICES

The Red Wings made another move Tuesday to bolster their offense and put themselves over the NHL’s salary cap in the process.
The Wings signed free-agent forward Todd Bertuzzi to a one-year, $1.5 million contract. Bertuzzi, 34, had 15 goals and 29 assists in 66 games last season with the Calgary Flames. He also had a minus-13 rating.

With the off-season defection of three key players — Marian Hossa (40 goals), Jiri Hudler (23) and Mikael Samuelsson (19) — the Wings lost 82 of their 295 goals — or 28% — from last season. They have added free-agent forwards Jason Williams (19 goals), Patrick Eaves (six) and Bertuzzi (15) and expect increased production from Ville Leino, Darren Helm and, possibly, Justin Abdelkader.

“We lost almost 90 goals,” Wings general manager Ken Holland said. “I read or hear people picking us to be about fourth in the Western Conference.

“Even though a lot of teams have gotten better, I still think we’re a Stanley Cup contender because our defense is as good as anyone’s defense and I like the rest of our team.”

Bertuzzi, who likes to throw around his 6-foot-3, 230-pound body, has changed teams five times since 2006, in part because he has battled back, knee, leg and head injuries. Holland said Bertuzzi’s back problems appeared to be in his past and the team’s medical staff was impressed with his conditioning during a physical.

Bertuzzi played in eight regular-season games and 16 playoff games for Detroit in 2006-07 after he was acquired from Florida.

The Wings wanted to re-sign him and offered a one-year deal in the $3 million range. He took a two-year deal at $4 million per with the Ducks. The Ducks bought out his contract after a 14-goal season, and he signed a one-year, $1.95-million deal with the Flames.

Bertuzzi’s addition puts the Wings’ payroll for next season at $58 million, about $1.2 million above the cap. That can be solved pretty much, for starters, by sending Abdelkader and his $850,000 salary to Grand Rapids of the AHL or putting defenseman Andreas Lilja ($1.2 million) on injured reserve; he has been dealing with the effects of a concussion since February.

Bertuzzi, a 13-year veteran, had his best season in 2002-03, when he had 46 goals and 51 assists.

For most fans, though, Bertuzzi is best-known for his vicious hit on Colorado’s Steve Moore in March 2004. Moore, who suffered three fractured neck vertebrae, facial cuts and a severe concussion, never played hockey again. Bertuzzi, a Canuck at the time, was suspended for the final 13 games of the 2003-04 season and the playoffs. He also faced assault charges for the incident. He pleaded guilty and received a conditional discharge, meaning no jail time or criminal record.

DANY HEATLEY TALKS TO "HOCKEY CANADA"

2009-08-19T07:21:00.000-07:00

Ken Warren, The Ottawa Citizen; with files from Canwest News Service.
Published: Wednesday, August 19, 2009

Bob Nicholson, Hockey Canada's President and CEO, speaks at a news conference to unveil Canada's 2010 Olympic and Paralympic hockey sweaters in Vancouver, British Columbia, August 17, 2009

At least Dany Heatley is talking to the president of Hockey Canada. Heatley talks, if only to Nicholson.
"I talked to Dany Sunday and I will talk to him again later this week about our camp," Hockey Canada president Bob Nicholson wrote in an e-mail to the Citizen on Tuesday, in response to questions about whether Heatley could become a distraction at next week's Olympic orientation camp in Calgary.

"Hockey Canada will do what is best for Dany and Hockey Canada."

Heatley hasn't uttered a word publicly since his demand for a trade away from the Ottawa Senators leaked out two months ago. It's believed Nicholson will ask Heatley to addre ss the issue before the opening of camp.

Heatley has five years and $33.5 million U.S. remaining on his contract ($4 million of his $8 million salary for 2009-10 was paid out on July 1), but he will face more concerns the longer the situation drags out. If he's not traded before the start of the regular season and holds out, he won't be paid. If he stayed away long enough, his chances to make the Olympic team would also dwindle because he wouldn't be at the competitive level of his peers.

Considering all of the above, why did Heatley choose to use his no-trade clause to prevent a potential deal to Edmonton? It's one of many questions Hockey Canada doesn't want being asked at camp next week.

JIRI HUDLER MAKES DYNAMO DEBUT

2009-08-19T07:14:00.000-07:00

by SPORT-EXPRESS

HC Dynamo Moscow played their first match at pre-season training camp in Switzerland.

Dynamo Czech newcomer and Detroit former forward Jiri Hudler played his first match in the Moscow club. The match against Bern ended in 4-4 draw and Dynamo clinched victory in shootout series only thanks to accurate strike of another new man Linus Umark.

Umark, Juhan Harju, Leo Komarov and Ivan Nepryaev scored one goal each.

"I am satisfied with Hudler’s debut", said Dynamo head coach Sergey Kotov. "This player always creates danger in front of our opponents’ goal".

"Unfortunately we couldn’t do without losses in Switzerland. Saprykin and Kalyuzhny will have to miss some time because of minor injuries".

ILYA BRYZGALOV: UNCERTAINTY IS THE HARDEST THING FOR LADA

2009-08-19T07:09:00.001-07:00

by SPORT-EXPRESS

Vasiliy Koshechkin (L) and Ilya Bryzgalov with the World Champions Cup Photo SPORT EXPRESS

Russian hockey goalkeeper Ilya Bryzgalov is hopeful that Lada won’t be eliminated from the KHL championship.

Phoenics Coyotes and Russian national team goaltender and the World champion-2009 Ilya Bryzgalov is currently preparing for the new season in his home city Togliatti. He started training with Lada squad this week.

The goalie visited Togliatti with the World Champions cup in a very tough moment for Lada as this club faces elimination from the KHL championship because of financial problems.

"This situation is difficult and not very pleasant", Bryzgalov told Sport Express. "On the one hand the team is training and preparing for the coming season but on the other hand it could be eliminated from the league".

"To my mind the most difficult thing for coaches and players is to be uncertain of their future. Vasiliy Koshechkin and I brought the champions cup to our home city to make people happy but we see that they are in awful mood".

"Vasiliy is a grown-up person and he will decide his future himself. I am hopeful that Lada will stay in KHL roster and Vasiliy will continue his career in Lada".

"Togliatti is a good city with perfect hockey school and faithful supporters. Don’t forget that Lada is the first non-Moscow club which won the Russian championship".

"Our success at the World championship in Switzerland was a big pleasure for my family and me. However it happened so long time ago and I don’t watch videotapes again now. We need to continue our life and move forward".

"Ahead of the 2009 World Cup many people said that it would be difficult to repeat our success in Canada. Ill-wishers always exist and even now they will say that it will be hard to win the title for the third consecutive time. So we will try to disappoint these people again".

"We just need to believe in our team. We went to Switzerland with only one target to win and we fulfilled it".

"All players dream of winning the Olympic Games. I know that it will be impossible to win three tournaments – the Stanley Cup, Olympic Games and the World Championship – in one season. So it’s necessary to wait for the Olympics and perform successfully there".

"I like everything in America. I have two-year contract with Phoenics and I am not ready to tell you what I will do after it".

"Many NHL players move to the Kontinental Hockey League and it cannot but prove this league’s strength. These experienced players are provided with good financial conditions in Russia".

"At the same time we shouldn’t forget that the most talented youngsters still play in NHL".

TODD McLELLAN: "AS OF NOW NOBODY IS OUR CAPTAIN"

2009-08-18T13:08:00.000-07:00

by Mark Purdy, Mercury News Columnist

Patrick Marleau is no longer the Sharks' captain. The team made it official Monday.

If you are stunned or surprised, you must be either a pure Marleau enthusiast who doesn't believe in consequences, or a pure baseball fan who doesn't believe in hockey.

Here's a bigger question: Will Marleau be with the Sharks at all by the season-opening face off?

The answer remains very much up in the air. Rumors still gurgle that Marleau could be traded, perhaps as part of some three-way deal that would bring Ottawa's Dany Heatley to our beloved Los Tiburones.

However, if Monday's news does anything in that regard, it probably pushes the needle more toward Marleau staying. Otherwise, why would the Sharks even bother to make the announcement? Marleau could have simply dropped the no-trade clause in his contract and been dealt to another team, and the captaincy of the Sharks would automatically become vacant.

Instead, it appears Marleau will be granted the wish he expressed at the postseason "State of the Sharks" question-and-answer session with fans. Marleau said his primary desire was to stay in San Jose and "prove all the naysayers wrong."

Speaking as one of those sayers of nay, I wish Marleau well in his quest. He was never a disruptive force. Yet as captain of the team since January 2004, he just couldn't ratchet up his climate-control personality to a higher level when the stakes were raised in the springtime. Monday was the result.

What you need to know is this: Marleau was never going to be the captain of the Sharks in 2009-10, not after another early playoff elimination. Sometime in July, he was informed by team management that the "C" on his uniform would have to be removed.

Marleau gave a hint about all of this a few weeks ago when he said that he would give up the captaincy if necessary to improve the team. By then, Marleau had to know it was a done deal, anyway. The only variable, really, was how the information would be handled.

We discovered the answer Monday in an almost casual fashion, courtesy of Sharks coach Todd McLellan. The Mercury News' hockey guru, David Pollak, stopped by the team's practice rink to check on the team and McLellan offered the demotion bulletin.

"At this point," McLellan said, "nobody's our captain."

McLellan then said the captaincy would stay vacant — sort of like a temporarily unoccupied condominium — until at least the middle of next month. That's when training camp opens. Between now and then, McLellan and general manager Doug Wilson will continue to take the roster's temperature and jointly make the decision.

McLellan, it should be noted, did not rule out Marleau being renamed captain when the choice is announced. But to believe that will actually happen, you would also have to believe that Mike Vernon will be returning to play goalie.

Who will be the captain instead? Three names come to mind. The most likely candidate is Dan Boyle, the defenseman who arrived a year ago in a trade from Tampa Bay, where he won a Stanley Cup. Boyle quickly set an example of intensity on the ice and wasn't afraid to call out his teammates in public when necessary.

That doesn't mean Boyle's ascendancy is automatic. If the Sharks' hopes to win a Stanley Cup rest most firmly on the shoulders of former league MVP Joe Thornton — and they do — then it might be time for him to wear the "C" as he did earlier in his career with the Boston Bruins. That would be my vote.

The final possibility is Joe Pavelski, the young second-line center who was among the most visibly angry Sharks following the playoff loss to the Ducks. He won an NCAA championship at the University of Wisconsin. Pavelski, 25, would be a bold selection, though not an utter shock.

A captain in hockey does not have to be outspoken and loud. But he absolutely must be the gravitational center of the dressing room, setting an elevated tone when necessary. The recently retired Joe Sakic of the Colorado Avalanche was the perfect example of all those qualities.

Marleau is a soft-spoken, beyond-decent human being who has done much good community work in San Jose without tooting his horn. But as a team leader, he never made it into Sakic territory. In the five playoffs of Marleau's captaincy, the Sharks won five series — but they also lost five series, two of them after taking a lead in games won.

Marleau personified the Sharks' postseason malaise. He could look spectacular one night, be a vapor the next night. Some excused his inconsistent play against the Ducks because he was nursing a knee problem at the time, although the injury wasn't bad enough to require surgery after the season.

As it turned out, the only thing that Marleau had cut out was the letter from his sweater. Let's see how he — and the team — respond.

SERGEI SHIROKOV SPEAKS ABOUT HIMSELF

2009-08-18T09:50:00.000-07:00

You all probably know Sergei Shirokov, who has been signed by Vancouver today, is currently under KHL and Red Army team suspension for not signing contract extension and refusing to play with CSKA.
There are a lot of articles on this case but surprisingly close to nothing about Sergei as a player and a person. So I was able to find only one old interview with him taken by "Boevoe Bratstvo" that was published in Russian. I have translated it roughly, so sorry for mistakes and bad English.

SERGEI SHIROKOV: "WENT TO THE PRACTICES FOR HUNDRED AND TWENTY KILOMETRES"

USUALLY SLEPT ON MY WAY

- Sergei, you were born and lived as a child in the near Moscow city Ozery. This is quite far from the capital. How you managed to ride to practices to Moscow?
- Yes, my little birthplace is located approximately 120 kilometres from Moscow. I was signed up to CSKA junior hockey school by my parents. At training and matches had to travel by car or by bus. Usually slept on the road. And from the seventh grade I began to live and learn in the army sportinternate (sport-and learn campus -A.N). And so far I am with CSKA.
- And how did you combine such a long trips with school? Or have you often skip classes?
- Of course, often missed my classes in a secondary school. But it changed when I joint Red Army sport-and-learn campus, the situation has certainly changed. There were eight children born in 1986. We all learned in the same class. And the coach tried to do so as we can rarely missed lessons.
- When did you first skate?
- I was very little. Parents told that I was running inside our apartment wearing figure skates. When I was three years, father put me on ice. And, as the saying goes, it went on. My father was a sportsman, at one time played on the regional level in hockey and soccer. Interestingly, as a child, I first took the left-side stick. But my dad re-taught me to the right-side. Apparently, he believed that it would be more difficult to stop me this way for my oponents.

MANY THANKS TO ALL MY COACHES

- In what age did you join the army SPORTSCHOOL?
- I was six. A few years in conjunction with the guys that were older than me for a year. Then I joint the same-age group. My first coach was Valery Stelmakh - the kingdom of heaven to him (he passed away – A.N). He trained CSKA-85. And then I got to Andrey Parfenov. He worked along with Alexander Biriukov. Thanks to great SPORTSCHOOL CSKA, my mentors for the fact that gave me a tour of great hockey.
- Did Trainings always be happy?
- Always with a great desire to go out on the ice. Tried not to miss any training.
- What do you particularly remember from childhood?
- You can say I have a lifetime in sport. Perhaps the most memorable, when we were a team in 1986 we won the Soviet Union championship of our age group. And still vividly etched in the memory - the World Junior Championships, which I was lucky to win with the national team of Russia.
- Since the age of thirteen, you were living separately from your parents. How is it to be a child in campus with no parents?
- We had a good, friendly company of peers. I don’t account for been particularly sad.
- Have you taken some additional ice practices to improve your particular skills or the regular ones were quit enough?
- In early childhood, with my dad during the evenings, I used to go in Ozerki to the open ice. He has explained and shown something to me. When I moved to CSKA Sportschool we also worked in addition with my teammates. The coaches tried to make sure that we do not loiter.
- Do you ever play in attack?
- That’s true. From the very beginning of my sports biography I was the attacker. Sometimes the coaches put me in the center of attack. But for me it’s much better to play on the left edge.
- When did you realize that hockey has become your profession, and decided to play “for bread” (make living as professional - A.N)?
- Fifteen years old, sixteen, I think. Then I understood that in future I have to do my bat on hockey. Especially since I had knowledge gaps, for obvious reasons, in school.

I was lucky to join the excellent team as a group of people (collective)

- It is very difficult moment for the player - the transition into adult hockey. How was the way to become the member of the main CSKA roster? How difficult was it? Who helped you at that time, in particular?
- I was caught into the first team when Vyacheslav Bykov became a coach of CSKA. I got into a good team. No nobody «choked» me (pushed me done – A.N). Instead, senior teammates helped, cheered me up. In general, I have passed this phase quite smoothly.
- What was your nickname in kid’s hockey and now?
- The name did not change – “Shirok”.
- Could you give any suggestions, tips to young hockey players who dream of becoming a great master?
- I think that first of all one needs to work in the sweat of, try to insist to go to the intended purpose, despite the difficulties.
- Of those people with whom you have studied together in CSKA sportschool, someone else did break into high level?
- Yes. Dmitry Shitikov plays for «Dynamo», Michael Yunkov - with «Spartac». One guy plays in Chelyabinsk, the other - in Penza.
- Who is your friend in CSKA?
- I have all normal friendly relations. During our trips we are sharing the room with Denis Parshin. We are peers with him, so there is always something to talk about.
- Did you study somewhere in addition to school?
- Recently graduated from the Moscow State Academy of Physical Culture in Malakhovka. I studied by correspondence.

ALWAYS GO FORWARD

- Do you have some vital rules that try to adhere to?
- I do not know whether to call this rule, but I always try to go forward to achieve my goals, no matter what.
- In this season what are you going to achieve together with CSKA?
- I would like to win the championship of Russia. Although, of course, I understand that this is a difficult task. After all, in the Super League a lot of strong teams. We will fight in every game. Anyway, the team spirit is very strong.
- Do you plan to try to break into the team of Russia?
- Of course, the desire is to do so. To play in the national team – is the highest honour.
- And do you think about the NHL?
- Of course, it would be interesting to try myself overseas. NHL is the strongest league in the World. But the level of hockey in the Super League is very high. I hope our local hockey clubs will gradually approach to the NHL level of the game.
- Recently, controversy discussions were held about whether or not our hockey to change our rinks dimensions to adjust it to the NHL standards. Would be interesting to know your views on this issue.
- Canadian hockey is more fast and dynamic. There are more one-on-one battles and scoring opportunities, but the big and wide ice of the European arenas provides more opportunities for combination style of hockey. Both styles have their positive sites. Hockey is interesting if the players are skilled and talented - high-class masters, never mind the rink size.
- Fans are interested to know what kind a person are you in everyday life. What is the nature of the man Sergei Shirokov?
- You never can tell. But perhaps most of all, I quiet, staid. Although sometimes I can get angry. Maybe I am funny.
- In addition to hockey, that you're looking for?
- During the season, all subject to ice hockey. Calendar is very busy. In the travel I like the books of different reading, movies on DVD’s. During summer time, I like to play tennis and soccer with my friends. So me and sports are not separated.

OLYMPIC DREAM

- Your parents are still living in the Ozerki?
- Yes, my mother and my dad live there. On weekends, I used to go to Ozerki. It’s 120 kilometres by car - it is not so far. Parents are trying to visit every home game for CSKA. So I see them often.
- If not a secret, what is your marital status?
- Single. I have a girlfriend. Meet with her more than two years from now.
- What is your dream?
- Would be great to win with Russia the winter Olympics or World championship. Beside hockey I wish to all my family, to relatives and friends to be alive and healthy.
- Sergei, thanks for the interview. Health and luck!
- Thank you. I will try.

Andrey SOROKIN (log «Combat Brothers»)

SERGEI SHIROKOV IS HAPPY...

2009-08-18T07:33:00.001-07:00

SERGEI SHIROKOV. RED ARMY TEAM

VANCOUVER -- The Vancouver Canucks signed right-winger Sergei Shirokov to an NHL contract Monday.

Shirokov, 23, had 17 goals and 41 points in 56 games with CSKA Moscow of the KHL in 2008-09. He has also played in two world junior championships with Russia in 2005 and 2006. In 12 tournament games he had seven goals and six assists.

Shirokov, a five-foot-10, 176-pound native of Moscow, was selected 163rd overall by the Canucks in the 2006 NHL draft.

... JONATHAN ROY IS NOT

2009-08-18T07:03:00.000-07:00

QUEBEC -- A former Quebec junior goaltender facing assault charges for an on ice incident believes police unfairly targeted him because he has a famous father.

A lawyer for Jonathan Roy, son of hall-of-fame goaltender Patrick Roy, is seeking to have the case dismissed.

At a hearing Monday, Saguenay police investigator Larry Boudreau admitted other players committed violent acts during the game but that only Roy caught the attention of police.

During the incident in question, the ex-Remparts player skated the length of the rink and pummelled opposing goalie Bobby Nadeau during a March 2008 game.

Footage of the beating was widely broadcast on television and the Internet and was the impetus for changes to how punishments are doled out in the Quebec league for extreme violence.

Roy received a seven-game suspension, while his famous father, who is the head coach and part owner of the Remparts, got a five-game suspension for encouraging his son to fight.

In a motion filed in court last month, Roy's lawyer Steve Magnan, alleged Quebec's director of public prosecutions issued a directive four months after the incident regarding how charges should be levied following sports brawls.

He argued the directive was issued just three days before charges were laid against his client.

During the hearing Monday, Nadeau himself testified he suffered no injuries as a result of the beating and that investigators called him days before the charges were laid to find out if he'd been hurt.

Roy's lawyer revealed the investigator urged Nadeau to admit he was injured in the fight.

"ROY GETS SEVEN GAMES FOR WEEKEND BRAWL"
Marianne White, Canwest News Service
Published: Tuesday, March 25, 2008

Roger Gagnon photo for Canwest News Service
Quebec Remparts goalie Jonathan Roy (left) rains down punches on Chicoutimi Saguenéens goalie Bobby Nadeau during a second-period brawl in Chicoutimi March 22, 2008.

QUEBEC - Former Habs goaltender Patrick Roy and his son have both been suspended for their part in a brawl during a Quebec Major Junior Hockey League playoff game Saturday night.

The elder Roy - who coaches his son's team - is suspended for five games for his prejudicial conduct. He was caught on camera gesturing to his son, but denied he encouraged him to fight.

Jonathan Roy, who plays goal for the Quebec Remparts, will sit out seven games. He was also fined $500.

Tuesday a chief prosecutor asked the Quebec Public Security department to launch a police inquiry into the incidents.

Breaking his silence Tuesday Patrick Roy apologized for the incident, in particular to Chicoutimi netminder Bobby Nadeau, who was struck repeatedly by his son during the incident.

"If I had better controlled the situation Jonathan would not have had to live what he lived through in the last 48 hours," he said.

Roy said he has sought to properly supervise his players so they could become "better persons" but added he "wasn't perfect."

"I have always sought to give them the best I could and know that I sometimes made mistakes," he said. "My objective is to not repeat these types of mistakes."

Both teams, the Remparts and the Chicoutimi Sagueneens, are fined $4,000.

Richard Martel, the Sagueneens coach, received a two-game suspension.

Remparts defenceman Maxime Lacroix was also suspended for three games after hitting an opposing player while he was still down. His teammate, Marc-Oliver Vallerand, received a two-game suspension for his role in the melee.

Sagueneens winger Antoine Roussel received a one-game suspension for being the instigator in a fight, while his teammate Charles-Antoine Messier was suspended for two games. Another player, Sebastien Rioux, will miss his team's next six games for leaving the penalty box to enter the brawl.

The league's commissioner and the disciplinary committee made the decisions Tuesday after reviewing the incident.

The Commissioner of the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League, Gilles Courteau, said the organization was deeply troubled by the weekend's events.

"I'd like to warn organizations that these types of incidents will not be tolerated and that should any more occur, steep fines will be handed out," he said in a statement.

During the second period of the game, with the Remparts facing a six-goal deficit, Roy skated across the ice to deliver a pounding to Nadeau.

Following the melee, which involved almost all players from both teams, Roy also gave the crowd in the packed Chicoutimi arena the finger before leaving the ice. On Monday, he apologized for that but did not express remorse for fighting with the rival goalie.

The Sagueneens went on to win Saturday's game 10-1, tying the series at 1-1. The series was continuing Tuesday night.

Quebec Premier Jean Charest was to attend the game at Quebec's Colisee, along with Health Minister Philippe Couillard.

On Monday, Quebec Education and Sports Minister Michelle Courchesne said that she will get in touch with the league's commissioner and other provinces' counterparts to discuss trying to put an end to fighting in junior hockey.

The minister, whose son once played for the Remparts, didn't give any details on the actions she could take but said the violence had to stop.

There is a great rivalry between the Remparts and the Sagueneens and many incidents have occurred in the past, but never as ugly as Saturday.

HOCKEY HISTORY - HARRY WATSON SCORES AT WILL IN OLYMPICS CHAMONIX

2009-08-17T06:30:00.000-07:00

Harry Watson scores at will in Olympics Chamonix, France January 25 - February 5, 1924

Harry Watson (centre) scored 36 goals in five Olympic games in 1924.

Imagine a hockey player at the highest level of play who was so good that he scored practically whenever he wanted. Such was the skill of Canada’s Harry Watson at the 1924 Olympics in Chamonix, France. Watson played just five games that year, but he scored a preposterous 36 goals!

He went by the nickname “Moose”, and, to be sure, Watson was one of the biggest players on ice in any game he played, even in Canada. But he was immensely skilled with the puck and could also skate as well as anyone, making him a threat every time he had the puck. To wit, in Canada’s first game of the 1924 tournament, against Czechoslovakia, Watson scored three goals in the first period, six goals in the second, and two more in the third — a total of eleven goals. And, remember, this was when games were only 45 minutes long (3 x 15). Final score — Canada 30, Czechoslovakia 0.

HARRY WATSON. photo by GREATES HOCKEY LEGENDS
by Wikipedia:

Harold Ellis "Moose" Watson (July 14, 1898 – September 11, 1957) was a Canadian amateur ice hockey forward who played for the Toronto Granites and the 1924 Canadian Winter Olympic hockey team.

Born in St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador, Watson also lived in England and Winnipeg, Manitoba before moving to Toronto at the age of 15. He played for the Whitby Athletics in the Ontario Hockey Association. He then played for St. Andrews College and was a first team all-star in 1915. Watson played for the Toronto Aura Lee before serving in the Canadian military during World War I.

After the war, Watson joined the Toronto Dentals in a playoff series against the Hamilton Tigers, which the Tigers won. For the 1919-20 season, he joined the new Toronto Granites, the OHA team from the Toronto Granite Club. Led by Watson, the Granites won the Allan Cup in 1921-22 and 1922-23, with Watson named a first-team all-star in both seasons. They then represented Canada at the 1924 Winter Olympics, winning the ice hockey gold medal. At the Olympics, Watson scored 37 goals in five games as the Canadian team outscored the opposition 132-3 over six games.

He turned down several lucrative offers to play professionally in the National Hockey League. Charlie Querrie, manager of the Toronto St. Patricks, offered Watson $10,000 to join his team for the 1924-25 season, but Watson declined. His Granites teammate Hooley Smith would have a 17-year NHL career, but Watson wanted to enter the business world and retired as a player in 1924.

In 1930, he became coach of the Toronto National Sea Fleas senior amateur team. During the 1931 playoff season, Watson refereed several OHA games. In December 1931, during his second season behind the bench for the Sea Fleas, Watson made a brief comeback as a player at the age of 33 after one of his players was unable to make a road trip. As coach, Watson guided the team to the Allan Cup in 1932.

Watson was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1962 and the IIHF Hall of Fame in 1998.

MARK MESSIER JOINS RANGERS STAFF

2009-08-17T06:22:00.000-07:00

NEW YORK -- The Captain is back with the New York Rangers.

Mark Messier, who in 1994 led the Rangers to their first Stanley Cup title in 54 years, is returning to the club as a special assistant to general manager Glen Sather, the club said Sunday. Messier, a six-time Cup champion as a player, has not been shy in recent years about his desire to eventually run a team as GM.

This could be the first step in the process that might lead Messier replacing Sather when the current GM's tenure with the Rangers is over.

In a statement, Sather called Messier one of the greatest players in the NHL and is "looking forward to him joining the organization and learning a whole new part of the hockey business."

Messier played his final game with the Rangers on March 31, 2004 -- during his second stint with the team -- and scored his 694th goal. He officially announced his retirement on Sept. 12, 2005, after the year-long NHL lockout.

His Rangers' No. 11 was retired by the team and raised to the Madison Square Garden rafters in January 2006.

Messier expressed some interest in the job of New York's assistant general manager after Don Maloney left to become the GM of the Phoenix Coyotes in May 2007, but didn't return to the Rangers then.

"I am looking forward to joining the Rangers organization and having the opportunity to learn a new part of the business, working closely with Glen," Messier said in a statement. "I have felt a strong connection to the Rangers, Madison Square Garden and the city of New York from the moment I arrived in 1991. I am honoured to begin this new chapter of my career here."

The 16-time NHL all-star came to New York on Oct. 4, 1991, in a blockbuster trade with the Edmonton Oilers -- where Sather served as Messier's coach and GM. Messier was named Rangers captain in his first home game three days later after making his debut with the team on Oct. 5.

The Rangers posted the NHL's best record in Messier's first season when he had a team-high 107 points and won the Hart Trophy for the second time as league MVP.

During the Rangers' run to the 1994 Stanley Cup title, Messier set a team-playoff record with 12 goals -- including the Cup winner in Game 7 against Vancouver.

Messier ranks second behind longtime teammate Wayne Gretzky on the NHL career scoring list with 1,887 points. He is seventh in goals and third in assists (1,193).

Messier was the first player to captain two franchises to the Stanley Cup, first leading the Oilers to the title in 1990.

MAX BIRBRAER - FIRST ISRAELI DRAFTED BY NHL

2009-08-15T16:23:00.000-07:00

Max Birbraer. Photo by "Okna" Tel-Aviv 2000. Nikale1 Archives

I happened to know Max Birbraer and his dad years ago when they came first to Israel and Maxim was only sixteen. They moved to Canada, so did I. As result we have lost contact. This week I was more than glad to find this article published by International Hockey Net.
NIKALE1

The first Israeli ever selected in the NHL Draft sits down with Internationalhockey.net to discuss his career. Birbraer has played professionally in the American Hockey League, the ECHL, the Central League, the British Elite League, the Russian Vyshaya League (second highest pro league in Russia & the former Soviet Union), and Germany’s Bundesliga (second highest pro league in Germany).

Israeli international Max Birbraer was the first Israeli citizen ever selected in the NHL draft (New Jersey Devils, 3rd round, 2000; the second, Ethan Werek, is a dual Canadian-Israeli and was selected in the second round, 2009, by the New York Rangers). Birbraer has played professionally in the American Hockey League, the ECHL, the Central League, the British Elite League, the Russian Vyshaya League (second highest pro league in Russia & the former Soviet Union), and Germany’s Bundesliga (second highest pro league in Germany).

Birbraer is a Russian Jew, born in Kazakhstan, who originally came to love hockey as a young boy due to his grandfather’s involvement with, and passion for, the sport. Birbraer trained as a youngster in the Torpedo club’s system in his native Ust-Kamenogorsk, the hockey capital of Kazakhstan. He moved with his family to Israel as a teenager, and, after having played for Israel’s junior & senior teams in various events, moved to Canada to further his hockey career. He was drafted, as indicated, by the NHL’s New Jersey Devils in 2000, and, while he never played in the NHL, has forged an interesting and varied professional career in hockey spanning the globe. Although Russian, Birbraer plays a Canadian power forward style of hockey.

Internationalhockey.net: Max, thanks for taking the time to speak with me today. The first question I have for you concerns Kazzinc-Torpedo Ust-Kamenogorsk. You started this past season (2008-2009) with your hometown club, leaving the British Elite League’s Cardiff Devils, where you were a league star for two seasons and very popular with the fans. What led you to make the move?

Max Birbraer: Always a pleasure to speak to you, Marc. I made the move for several reasons. I felt, professionally, that it would be a challenge to play in the Vyshaya League. It is a very high level of play. Also, Torpedo is my hometown team, as you know. I followed Torpedo as a boy. My father and grandfather are friendly with one of the owners of the club, who happens to be Israeli (Editor’s Note: with a similar background to the Birbraers in that he is a Russian Jew from Kazakhstan), so I had a connection there. Finally, the money was too good to turn down. Hockey is my career, and I’m not getting any younger (Editor’s Note: Birbraer is 28 years of age), so I need to make the most of my chances to make a living from it.

IHN: What were your impressions of the Vyshaya League compared to leagues that you have competed in during prior seasons? How could you describe it to North Americans & Britons who are completely unfamiliar with it in terms of level of play?

MB: As I said, the players are all very skilled. The hockey is a completely different style than what is seen in North America and in the British Elite League, which also has a style similar to North America. It is much more technical, and less physical. There is less dump and chase and it is more of a puck control game. As far as level or strength, I’d say it is above the ECHL & British Elite League by a fair amount. It’s definitely not as strong a league as the AHL, but it’s not far behind, in my opinion.

IHN: It is well documented that your family experienced anti-Semitism in Kazakhstan during your childhood, and that it was a major factor in your family’s leaving for Israel. With that in mind, were you given trouble by the Torpedo fans, or were you welcomed by them? Did you experience any anti-Semitism during your time with Torpedo?

MB: We did experience it when I was younger, before we left for Israel. However, the media has always overblown the amount of prejudice that I and my family encountered. It wasn’t minor, I don’t want to minimize it, but it also wasn’t so bad that we had to leave Kazakhstan over it. We basically left for Israel because Jews have a right to get citizenship there, and it offered my family a better life. As for my return, I was welcomed with open arms by the Torpedo fans, management, the media, and the public in general. In fact, I was treated very, very well, and my return was treated like a big story. Everyone knows I’m Jewish, but I didn’t encounter a single problem because of that last season. Kazakhstan still has some anti-Semitism, I’m sure, but it has gotten a lot better. The government there actually protects and helps the Jewish community. My experience with everyone was totally positive. And the standard of living is much better than it was before I left. It’s still not like in the West, but it’s getting close.

IHN: You seemed to struggle quite a bit in the early stages of the season with Torpedo – why was that?

MB: It took a while for me to adjust to the Vyshaya League’s style and level of play. As I said, it’s the highest level I’ve played since my time in the AHL, and the style of play is completely different than North America and Britain, and to be honest, it didn’t suit my game very well.

IHN: But you did adjust. In fact, you went on a hot streak for a bit (Editor’s Note: Birbraer finished with 20 points on 5 goals & 15 assists in 34 games, with a +1 rating), and then, only 34 games into your time with Torpedo, you left the team. What happened?

MB: The global economic recession was felt even in Kazakhstan. The team’s corporate sponsors wanted all of the team’s imports, including me, to take a huge paycut of much more than 50%. Most of the imports left. I did too. I couldn’t afford to stay and play based on what they wanted to pay me if I had accepted the pay cut. Hockey is my career; I have to make a living. I wanted to stay with the team, but, like the other import guys, I couldn’t afford to take that kind of cut.

IHN: After leaving Torpedo, you finished the season with the Heilbronner Falken in the German Bundesliga. How did the offer from Heilbronner come? Why the German Bundesliga?

MB: Heilbronner was one of the teams my agent talked to after I had decided to leave Cardiff and try out other leagues. When I left Torpedo, they were still interested, so I went to Germany.

IHN: What were your impressions of the team, and your impressions of life in Germany? How were you welcomed there?

MB: Even though I joined the team late in the season, I was welcomed into the locker room right away by everybody. I like to think of myself as a guy who is easy to get along with, and as a hard working professional. So it definitely was easy to fit right in, and I did. Plus, the team had a bunch of really good guys, so that made it easy as well. Life in Germany is amazing. Everything is so clean and neat and well maintained. Everything is high end; the food, the accommodations, the medical care is the best I’ve experienced anywhere in the world. Plus, it is absolutely beautiful, and the people were very welcoming. I was actually pleasantly surprised. In fact, at one playoff game, there were these two random Falken fans – one was waving an Israeli flag, and one at the other end of the rink was wearing an Israeli national team jersey from Ron Soreanu that must have been game used (laughs); where else would she have gotten that? She was trying to get my attention during warmups; I smiled at her, what else could I do (laughs)? Believe me, I didn’t expect to see that in the middle of Germany! But again, it was nice to see and I was pleasantly surprised.

Israel is a member of the IIHF since May 1, 1991

IHN: You produced pretty well in the Bundesliga (4 goals, 5 assists for 9 points in 16 games). Why not go back to Heilbronner for 2009-2010?

MB: The team didn’t offer me, or any of the other imports, a new contract. Ultimately, they didn’t think we did enough. To be honest, I think I could have played better than I did. It’s a shame, really. Germany is awesome, and the league is high quality – maybe a tiny bit below the Vyshaya League. Much more physical, though, more like what I’m used to.

IHN: You’re not playing for Israel at the 2009 World Jewish Cup. Why not?

MB: Once again, I got hurt and needed surgery. I actually had two surgeries: one for a double sports hernia, and arthroscopic knee surgery. They both went well, and I should be fine for the start of the new season.

IHN: Speaking of the new season, British fans – specifically Cardiff fans – are pretty excited about 2009-2010.

MB: Yeah, I re-signed with the Cardiff Devils. I loved my two seasons there. I played very well there. I really enjoy the team there, and the fans, and just the whole city of Cardiff. It’s like a second home to me. Plus, my girlfriend is there. She was a big factor in me coming back. She wasn’t too thrilled with me going to Kazakhstan (laughs). In Germany it was a little easier to see her, but…..like I said, Cardiff is home to me.

NIKLOLAI ZHERDEV SPEAKS OUT

2009-08-15T08:10:00.000-07:00

This Interview was given by ex-New York Rangers forward Nikolai Zherdev who has recently become unrestricted free agent to Russia media one week ago.

Nikolai Zherdev, whose contract with the Rangers ended after the end of the season, insisted salary 4,7 million dollars, while the club was ready to offer Russian, only 3.2 million. In the end, it came to arbitration, which awarded Zherdev the annual salary of 3.9 million. But New York doesn't want to offer such contract to our legionnaire, as result he became unrestricted free agent.

- Maybe it is better that the initiative of "Rangers" did not go back down and abandon you? Now you are free in their choice.
- While I do not even know how all this is assessed. I do not know well what I have to change the team or not. I must confess: I have believed until recently that, Rangers agree with my contract conditions. Perhaps, only time will put all points on the i.

- Negotiations with other clubs, you must believe in the midst?
- So far has not been definitively resolved the issue with Rangers, we do not talk with anybody. I'm permanently in touch with my agent, we discuss emerging options. Called many clubs have already expressed interest in my services.

- There are KHL teams interested as well?
- Yes, but, as I have repeatedly emphasized, I would like to continue my career in the NHL - this option is for me a priority. Although the chance that will come back to play in Russia, does not rule away.

- Not so long ago appeared information that you plan to begin preparations for the season along with the Moscow "Atlanta." Does this mean that you can go back to the club, the colors which have once defended?
- It was no negotiation with "Atlanta" at all.

- And how realistic your appearance in "Salavat Yulaev"?
- I will not hide: it is one of the options.

- In Ufa team you have more friends than any other KHL club.
- Judging by those players who are invited to the national team, then yes. But this does not mean that my future club becomes "Salavat". Active negotiations would begin as soon as possible. Let's see who will have more need of me and who will offer the best conditions.

- So you do not hurry?
- Yes, I cannot determine any specific dates.

- Recently it was a list of participants published by FHR for pre-Olympics camp, which will be held in Moscow in late August. Surprisingly, you are not among the 38 hockey players, caused by Vyacheslav Bykov.
- Frankly, this surprised me too. Because some time ago I have already seen myself on the Internet list of candidates.

- That list, as it turned out, was a "duck." What, in your opinion, the reasons may be in the national team coaches do not call you?
- Do not even imagine that on this occasion to think.

- I believe, the last time you chatted with Bykov was at the World championships in Switzerland, did you?
- No, we were in touch with him just two weeks ago. But the theme of the pre-olympic camp wasn't affected.

- According to some reports, coaches seem to have been unhappy with the fact that you couldn't finish playing until the end of the World Championship ...
- But I also played in Switzerland, two games with a broken finger! I just could not play any more!

- Perhaps you will come in later list. Do you think you have a chance to go to the Olympics?
- I do not know. But to me, of course, I would like to play at the Games in Vancouver. I dreamed about it long ago.

- If you are going to play in the KHL, but even more so in the "Salavat", the chances will increase for sure.
- Who knows. I think the main thing in this matter - show a decent game.

LEAFS LEGEND TEEDER KENNEDY DIES

2009-08-15T05:33:00.000-07:00

Teeder "Ted" Kennedy, who helped lead the Toronto Maple Leafs to five Stanley Cups in seven seasons beginning in the 1940s, has died. He was 83.

Kennedy's death was first reported by Toronto's FAN radio.

The forward recorded 231 goals and 329 assists and 432 penalty minutes in 696 games, a career spent entirely with Toronto between 1943 and 1957.

He was named Maple Leafs captain at just 23.

While his most productive year was 1950-51 (61 points), it was four seasons later that he was named Hart Memorial Trophy winner as league most valuable player.

It was a season that almost never happened.

Beset by injuries, Kennedy was leaning toward retirement but was talked out of it by general manager Conn Smythe. A contemporary newspaper account of the announcement indicated Smythe was giving Kennedy a raise above his $25,000 salary.

Kennedy scored 29 goals and 31 assists in 78 playoff games, with the Leafs winning the Stanley Cup five times during his tenure.

He had seven in the 1945 playoffs as the Leafs defeated Detroit in seven games to win the first Cup of his career.

His last Cup with the club was in 1951, a season in which he and linemates Sid Smith and Tod Sloan all finished in the top 10 of NHL scoring.

The Maple Leafs won it all that year on the famous overtime goal courtesy of low-scoring defenceman Bill Barilko, who would die just weeks later.

The first four Cups of Kennedy's tenure came under Hap Day, with the final one with Joe Primeau behind the bench.

The MVP season would essentially be Kennedy's last as his body broke down. He missed the next season and played 30 games in 1956-57 before retiring for good.

Synonymous with the Leafs, Kennedy's rights were actually first held by Montreal but they traded the teenager to Toronto.

He was born in Port Colborne, Ont., and is honoured there with the Teeder Kennedy Youth Arena.

Kennedy tried his hand at coaching junior hockey after retiring, worked in the trucking industry and was heavily involved in thoroughbred racing.

He was inducted in the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1966, part of a stellar class that also included Elmar Lach, Ted Lindsay, Babe Pratt, Toe Blake and Clarence Campbell.

ILYA KOVALCHUK: NHL RESPECTS RUSSIAN HOCKEY

2009-08-14T07:33:00.000-07:00

The Russian national team forward and Atlanta Thrashers forward Ilya Kovalchuk visited the Sport Express office.

The two-time World champion Ilya Kovalchuk visited the Sport Express office last Friday and talked to journalists from hockey department.

"NHL and KHL hold transfer wars this season as many Russian stars return to their homeland and two league exchange players. To my mind it’s normal situation and I think that some kind of a war is necessary for them", said Kovalchuk.

"NHL used to be the only one leading hockey league and nobody could oppose anything to it. Today they have some relations with KHL and it’s very good".

"And moreover players are free to choose between these two leagues. I look at it as a player and I see positive moment in KHL and NHL rivalry".

"Nobody discuss Kontinental Hockey League openly in North America but in reality everybody talk about KHL and respect it. Russian national team won two latest World Championship and many strong players moved to Russia and people can’t but discuss this hockey league".

"I have an acting contract with Atlanta for one more season. So I will be able to tell you whether I got offers from Russia only when I become a free agent".

"It’s hard to say if these leagues find a common language with each other someday. It’s clear that 150-200 thousand dollars for a transfer of young player to NHL is a too little sum of money".

"I mean that coaches put much energy, nerves and emotions to educate players and they need to get worthy compensation for their work".

"American mass media rumour that I have already started negotiations with Atlanta on my new contract but don’t believe these rumours. I got no serious offers yet and don’t forget that I have one year of contract with the Thrashers".

"I really want to stay in Atlanta so I need to see this team next year. Our management reinforced the roster this summer and signed Antropov, Kubina and several other players. I think our performance will be more interesting this season".

"KHL is very good and interesting hockey league. Everybody sees that many top-level players return to Russia and it’s a perfect alternative to NHL".

"At the same time it’s necessary to understand that NHL is rich history. If KHL keeps on progressing this league will catch up with their competitors in several years".

"Comeback of Zubov and Fedorov to Russia was not surprising for me. They played in NHL for a long time and they proved their worth to everyone".

"I have no doubts that Zubov will surprise many people in Russia because he is in perfect form despite he is 39 now. He is a very good acquisition for SKA".

"Our victories at the World Championships were absolutely different. Last year we clinched a long-awaited victory as we hadn’t won the title during fifteen years before it. One year before we hoped that Russia would win the home championship but we were only the third. And victory in overtime was more entertaining which will be remembered forever".

"In Switzerland we had many injured players and this victory was much tougher. Our main achievement is that Russian team made Russian supporters happy".

BEHIND THE CURTAINS - LEAFS OWNER RICHARD PEDDIE

2009-08-14T07:19:00.000-07:00

PHOENIX (AP) — Toronto Maple Leafs owner Richard Peddie will not have to answer questions in the court fight over the sale of the Phoenix Coyotes.

Toronto Maple Leafs Owner Richard Peddie

Attorneys for Canadian billionaire Jim Balsillie and Coyotes owner Jerry Moyes had wanted to question Peddie over what role the Maple Leafs might play in the proposed relocation of the Coyotes to Hamilton, Ontario.

U.S. Bankruptcy Court Judge Redfield T. Baum denied that request on Thursday in an order naming officials who will give depositions in the complicated Chapter 11 bankruptcy case.

NHL commissioner Gary Bettman and deputy commissioner Bill Daly—who have already been deposed once—will answer questions, as will Boston Bruins owner Jeremy Jacobs and Minnesota Wild owner Craig Leipold. Balsillie also will be deposed, along with his aide Richard Rodier and Moyes.

The judge also authorized a deposition from “an unnamed, but to be disclosed, NHL representative regarding the impossibility of relocating the Coyotes for the current season.”

Balsillie has offered $212.5 million to buy the team contingent on moving it to Hamilton for the coming season, but he has indicated he would withdraw his bid if he can’t move the team immediately.

Meanwhile, Baum ordered the NHL, over the league’s objections, to provide numerous documents related to relocation—material that Balsillie’s attorneys say is necessary for his bid to proceed.

Baum said the league must produce any NHL study of expansion into the Hamilton market in the past 10 years, and it must disclose all expansion and relocation fees it has charged since 1999.

The league contends the relocation issue is moot because its board of governors rejected Balsillie as an owner.

Meanwhile, the judge set up bid procedures and a schedule leading up to the Sept. 10 auction. Friday is the deadline for applications from bidders to keep the team in Glendale.

The NHL wants to find an owner to keep the team in Arizona, where it has lost tens of millions of dollars in recent years. A group headed by Jerry Reinsdorf has bid $148 million and is working on an agreement with the city of Glendale for new terms on a lease.

Ice Edge Holdings has also been preparing a bid to keep the team in Glendale.

In a separate order on Thursday, Baum denied a motion by the Goldwater Institute, on behalf of eight Glendale taxpayers, to file a conditional bid objection.

The Goldwater Institute had argued that the taxpayers have a right to know the details of Glendale’s arena lease renegotiations with Reinsdorf’s group, but Baum ruled that they “do not have a direct financial stake in the outcome of this case.”

ANAHEIM DUCKS ADD EVGENY ARTYUKHIN TO THEIR ROSTER

2009-08-14T07:09:00.000-07:00

ANAHEIM, Calif. – The Anaheim Ducks announced today that the National Hockey League club has acquired right wing Evgeny Artyukhin from Tampa Bay in exchange for left wing Drew Miller and a third-round selection in the 2010 NHL Entry Draft.

EVGENY ARTYUKHIN. MONCTOM WILDCATS

Artyukhin, 26, appeared in his second NHL season with the Tampa Bay Lightning in 2008-09, scoring 6-10=16 points with a +1 rating and 151 PIM in 73 games. Artyukhin set career highs in goals, appearances and PIM while leading the team in hits (249) and PIM. The 6-4, 254-pound winger also averaged 10:40 time on ice (TOI) per game and 14.8 shifts per game.

Originally selected by Tampa Bay in the third round (94th overall) of the 2001 NHL Entry Draft, Artyukhin has played two seasons with the Lightning (2005-06 and 2008-09). In 145 career NHL games, Artyukhin has collected 10-23=33 points with 241 PIM. He made his Stanley Cup Playoffs debut with Tampa Bay in 2006, earning 1-0=1 point in five games during the Eastern Conference Quarterfinals vs. Ottawa. He has also appeared in 102 career American Hockey League (AHL) contests with Hershey (2003-04) and Springfield (2004-06), scoring 14-23=37 points with 257 PIM.

A native of Moscow, Russia, Artyukhin has played five seasons in the Russian leagues since debuting with Podolsk of Russia-2 in 1999-00. In January 2003, he helped Team Russia capture gold at the 2003 World Junior Championships in Halifax and Sydney, Nova Scotia, recording 1-0=1 point and 10 PIM in six games.

Miller, 25, appeared in 27 games with Anaheim last season, scoring 4-6=10 points with 27 PIM. He played in all 13 Stanley Cup Playoff games with the Ducks, earning 2-1=3 points with two PIM. Originally selected by Anaheim in the sixth round (186th overall) of the 2003 NHL Entry Draft, Miller has collected 6-9=15 points with 23 PIM in 53 career NHL games. He won his first Stanley Cup championship with the Ducks in 2007.

ARTURS IRBE IS HIRED AS A NEW CAPITALS GOALIE COACH

2009-08-13T12:50:00.000-07:00

ARTURS IRBE. DYNAMO RIGA

By: THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

The Washington Capitals have hired former NHL all-star Arturs Irbe as their goaltending coach.

The Capitals made the announcement on Thursday. Irbe replaces Dave Prior, who resigned after 12 years with the Capitals. Irbe was an NHL goalie for 13 seasons with San Jose, Dallas, Vancouver and Carolina, compiling a 2.83 goals-against average and .899 save percentage. He appeared in the 1994 and 1999 NHL All-Star games.

Irbe last was in the league in the 2003-04 season, then played professionally in Europe.

He was the goaltending coach for his hometown Dinamo Riga in Latvia in the Kontinental Hockey League last season.

MY COMMENT: AT LEAST SOMEBODY IS COMING BACK FROM KHL!

SERGEY ZUBOV: I WANT TO PLAY ON HIGH LEVEL IN RUSSIA

2009-08-13T07:18:00.000-07:00

Press-conference of SKA St. Petersburg newcomer and one of best Russian defencemen, who played 16 seasons in NHL, Sergey Zubov was held at KHL office yesterday.

KHL president Alexandr Medvedev and HC SKA general director Vadim Fisko also took part in this press-conference.

"We are happy that one of the best our players return home", said Medvedev to start the meeting with journalists. "Zubov is Olympic champion, two-time Stanley Cup holder and the most effective Russian and Soviet defencemen who played in NHL".

"We will make for St. Petersburg after this press conference, said Fisko. As a result of medical tests we will put our signatures under the contract and then he will join the team".

"Ceremony of presentation with the club sweater was a surprise for me", said Zubov. "Nobody let me know about it beforehand and I am very excited".

"I don’t want to look ahead but when I accepted an offer to play in KHL I planned to play on a high level. I feel that I can regain my best form until the start of the new season".

"Frankly speaking I thought about my career in KHL during past couple of weeks. I am a little bit frightened about it because it’s really a hard stage in my career. But I promise to cope with my excitement and impress our fans".

"I discussed my possible move with my family and we decided that Russia would be the most appropriate place for continuing my career. It was a tough decision and I am thankful to my family for their support".

"I watched Russia playing at the World championship with great interest. I should say that I move to an absolutely different country that that which I left many years ago".

"I can’t but being glad that players in Russia progress and become stronger with creation of Kontinental Hockey League".

RAY EMERY CANNOT WAIT TO COME BACK

2009-08-13T07:04:00.000-07:00

Ray Emery is already sporting the Philadelphia Flyers orange and black. His mask, however, is still a blank canvas; perhaps a symbol of Emery's fresh approach to being back in the National Hockey League.

''I went through a point there where I didn't appreciate the game and I had it taken away from me,'' Emery said following a morning skate with his newest teammates. ''I realize that the game is a big part of my life and I want to embrace that part of my life. I've learned from what I went through and it's a growing process.''

Just one short year after backstopping the Ottawa Senators to the Stanley Cup finals, the Sens washed their hands of the talented and flamboyant goaltender. Questionable work habits, alleged road rage, and violent outbursts on the ice - including a scrap with teammate Brian McGratton - all led to his eventual exile.

''Little distractions take away from the team and there were definitely little distractions around,'' said Emery of his time in the nation's capital. ''I realize that now, so hopefully that's in the past. I (just) have to make sure I'm a good teammate and keep my nose clean and stay out of trouble''

No other NHL teams took the risk of picking up Emery last year, so the 26-year-old played in Russia last season. There was a rough patch or two for the Cayuga, Ontario native but most importantly he proved he could still play the game at a high level, which is why the Flyers came calling.

''I didn't realize how much I liked the game,'' said Emery. ''It's not that exciting not being at the highest level I can play at.''

It looks like Emery will have every opportunity to carry the lion's share of games this season. Goaltender Brian Boucher will be pushing for the starting job as well, however Boucher has mainly been a back-up goaltender since the lock out. And just because Emery has matured does not mean he's lost his competitive edge.

''I'm a fiery guy,'' said Emery. ''That's not going to change and I don't want it to.''

FRED KOREY, "HASEK's HEROES" PROGRAM FOUNDER DIES

2009-08-13T06:28:00.000-07:00

FRED KOREY AND DOMINIK HASEK

Fred C. Korhummel Jr., who joined with former star goalie Dominik Hasek to found the Hasek's Heroes youth hockey program, died on Monday at the age of 50 after a battle with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, better known as Lou Gehrig's Disease. He is the 25th member of his family to succumb to the degenerative nerve disorder,

Popularly known as Fred Korey, the Buffalo native was a hockey fanatic. Korhummel was captain of the Canisius College squad before graduating in 1981. He also coached youth hockey in Buffalo and its surrounding areas.

After Hasek donated $1 million to bring organized hockey to inner-city youngsters, he and Korhummel established the Dominik Hasek Youth Hockey League. Korhummel was the executive director until his illness forced him to step down three years ago. More than 2,000 kids have taken part in the program.

Earlier this year, the Sabres honored Korhummel with the J. Michael Duffett Memorial Award for his contributions as a coach to amateur hockey. Hasek’s Heroes has announced plans to present an annual award in his memory.

Korhummel is survived by his wife, his mother, two sisters and a son.

By DOMINATOR:

Since 2001, Korey has worked tirelessly to build Hasek's $1 million endowment for inner-city youth hockey into a thriving program that has leveled the playing field for countless kids. Now, Mr. Korey, is faced with a very different challenge; the battle against Lou Gehrig's disease.

Korey sat quietly below the podium in HSBC Arena, aided by a ventilator but firmly holding a marker and a dry-erase board. Throughout the evening it was apparent that this degenerative nerve disease has stolen a lot from Korey's life, but his sense of humor is still very much intact. At one point, when Hasek's Heroes board member Mark Mendel was trying to quiet the crowd, Korey wrote a message on his board; "Yell like you do on the bench at a game."

Mr. Korey is the 25th member of his family to develop Lou Gehrig's disease. This fact alone would cause many to live life in fear, but that is not Fred's style. He says that he is living his dream, teaching his kids. His sister, Janice Curatolo, shared, "Freddie has so many more things to live for, and we are so thankful he has chosen life. He's still the same Freddie."

During the evening's events, many supporters shared their admiration for Mr. Korey. Long time friend, Dominik Hasek was one of them.

"Fred Korey is a man who means so much to my family and to this community," Hasek began. "This community has always been so great to me and my family. I wanted to give something back, and [Hasek's Heroes] is helping young people build confidence and self-esteem in life.

"It needed strong leadership," he added. "The common thread to tie all our efforts together has been Coach Fred. He wasn't just coaching hockey -- he's been investing in the future leaders of this community…He knows what it means to be a dominator."

TODAY's TOPIC: FIRST NON-NORTH AMERICANS WIN STANLEY CUP

2009-08-12T05:53:00.000-07:00

Swede Stefan Persson, in 1980, was the first European-trained player to hoist the Stanley Cup.

Hockey has always been a sport of myths and preconceptions. Before 1972, one of these fixed ideas was that world class hockey could be played only by “NHL professionals”. The Soviet national team changed that view in September ’72 during the Summit Series. But that begged another question -- could European players really sustain the rigors of a long NHL season and still be effective? Swedes Thommie Bergman and Borje Salming showed in 1972-73 that the answer was a resounding “yes”.

To pursue the matter further, though, one wondered whether an NHL team could then win a Stanley Cup if it relied on Europeans for success? Salming and Bergman couldn’t help their respective teams to the Cup in the 1970s. Indeed, since 1893 there had been no Stanley Cup winning team with players who had developed their hockey skills in Europe.

Finn Matti Hagman was the first European to play in the Stanley Cup finals, but Hagman’s Boston Bruins lost to the Montreal Canadiens in 1978 and the next season, the New York Rangers – with Swedes Anders Hedberg and Ulf Nilsson – lost to the same Canadiens. But stocking an NHL team with Europeans started to be common practice at the turn of the 1980s, and the emerging New York Islanders were at the forefront of that trend.

Finn Matti Hagman was the first European to play in the Stanley Cup finals, but Hagman’s Boston Bruins lost to the Montreal Canadiens in 1978 and the next season, the New York Rangers – with Swedes Anders Hedberg and Ulf Nilsson – lost to the same Canadiens. But stocking an NHL team with Europeans started to be common practice at the turn of the 1980s, and the emerging New York Islanders were at the forefront of that trend.

When the Islanders began their quest for the Cup in 1980, they were led by stars such as Mike Bossy, Bryan Trottier, Denis Potvin and Clark Gillies, but two Swedish players – defenceman Stefan Persson and versatile forward Anders Kallur – were an integral part of the Islanders’ emerging dynasty.

The Isles reached the 1980 Stanley Cup finals against Philadelphia after beating Boston in five games in the quarter-finals and Buffalo in six in the semis. The Islanders dominated the final series. They built a 3-1 series lead, but Philadelphia prolonged the finals by winning game 5, setting up game 6 at the Nassau Coliseum on Long Island. In one of the most memorable Stanley Cup games ever, the Islanders won their first championship after a sudden-death goal by Bob Nystrom, 7:11 into overtime. It was ironic, indeed, that the scorer of the winning goal for the first Stanley Cup team with Europeans was born in Stockholm, Sweden, and still carried a Swedish passport, although Nystrom got his hockey schooling in Kamloops, British Columbia.

Kallur and Persson were members of all four Cup wins by the Islanders between 1980 and ’83. Tomas Jonsson made it three Swedes on the team and when the Islanders won their fourth championship they were a quartette of Europeans as Mats Hallin, another Swede, was on that ’83 team.

For Europeans to be part of a Stanley Cup winning team was one of the defining moments in hockey’s globalisation process. Even the most conservative hockey people in North America realised that players could no longer be categorised by nationality, only by quality. NHL general managers and coaches recognised that not only could you win championships with Europeans, but with the skill element that those players contributed, their presence became a necessity.

Of the following 27 Stanley Cup winning teams there have been Europeans on every one with the exception of the 1993 Montreal Canadiens.

WHO - Swede Stefan Persson
WHERE - Long Island, New York, USA
WHEN - May 24, 1980

JASON SPEZZA REPLACES RYAN GETZLAF

2009-08-12T05:42:00.000-07:00

CALGARY - Jason Spezza will take part in the national men's Olympic team orientation camp, Hockey Canada announced Tuesday.

The Ottawa Senators sniper will replace Anaheim Ducks forward Ryan Getzlaf, who is recovering from off-season surgery.

Spezza is no stranger to the national team, having played for Canada at five IIHF World Championships. He was initially passed over in July when executive director Steve Yzerman announced the invitation list.

Joe Sakic, who just announced his retirement from the NHL, will also not be attending.

The camp will take place from Aug. 24 to 27 and now includes five goaltenders, 16 defencemen and 25 forwards.

by HOCKEY HALL OF FAME:

Jason Spezza was born June 13, 1983 in Mississauga, Ontario. The first round, 2nd overall selection of the Ottawa Senators in the 2001 NHL Entry Draft, Spezza is a graduate of the OHL where he had stops with Brampton, Mississauga, Windsor and Belleville.
An offensively gifted player, Spezza is one of the most highly touted prospects in recent years, often compared to NHL Superstar and Hall of Famer Mario Lemieux, Spezza size and offensive ability have made him the talk of the hockey world from the age of 14 when he played his game in the OHL for the Brampton Battalion. Throughout his illustrious junior career, Spezza accounted for 131 goals and 222 assists for 353 points in 223 games before joining the Ottawas AHL affiliate in Grand Rapids for the 2001-02 post season.

Spezza returned to the AHL in 2002-03 after the Grand Rapids franchise relocated to Binghamton. Even though he spent the majority of the season in the AHL with Binghamton, Spezza saw action in 33 games with the Senators in 2002-03, registering 21 points (7-14-21) before becoming a regular in the Ottawa lineup in 2003-04.

In his first full season with the club, Spezza recorded 55 points (22-33-55). The following year Spezza returned to the AHL due to the NHL lock out and simply dominated. He recorded a staggering 23 goals and 85 assists (second highest assist total in AHL history) for 117 points. When the NHL returned to action, the Spezza-Heatley-Alfredsson line led the club's offensive output all season long. During the subsequent playoffs, Spezza and the Sens captured the Eastern Conference championship after defeating the Presidents' Trophy winning Buffalo Sabers.

Over the summer of 2007, Senators owner Eugene Melnyk dramatically changed the club's management by firing General Manager John Muckler. He was quickly replaced by Bryan Murray who in turn promoted assistant coach John Paddock to head coach. Murray promtly signed Spezza to a seven-year $49 million contract extension with the Sens, and went on to lead the club in points with 92 and match a career best 34 goals. However, the Senators struggled through January and February and were ousted in the first round of the playoffs by the Pittsburgh Penguins.

On the international stage, Spezza has represented his country at the 2000, 2001 and 2002 World Junior Championships where he collected a silver and two bronze medals. He also was a member of Canada's 2008 World Championship club which was defeated in the finals by Russia.

ZHERDEV MOVES TO KHL, REPORTS RDS

2009-08-12T05:31:00.000-07:00

Nikolai Zherdev has apparently become the latest NHLer to jump to the Kontinental Hockey League, with the French-language sports television network RDS reporting that the Ukrainian has signed with Russia's Salavat Yulaev Ufa.

ALEX OVECHKIN: "SEE YOU, NIK!" Photo by NIKALE1

The reported signing comes a week after the New York Rangers walked away from an arbitration ruling that awarded Zherdev $3.9 million US next season.

The 24-year-old finished with 23 goals and 35 assists and a plus-6 rating last season for the Rangers, appearing in all 82 games for the second straight season.

Zherdev will join former NHLers Alexander Perezhogin and Alexander Radulov on the KHL team.

He appeared to be on target to reach career highs after a strong first half last season but fizzled down the stretch. Zherdev had just four goals and four assists in the last 16 regular-season games and was held without a point in seven playoff contests.

"With the additions we've been able to make this summer, we feel we've been able to add scoring and offence from the wing position," Rangers general manager Glen Sather said in a statement after the team's decision to walk away from the ruling.

"Following the arbitration process and subsequent award given, we feel it is in our best interest to walk away and continue to explore all available options to improve our roster."

Zherdev was traded to the Rangers from Columbus just 13 months ago in a four-player deal. He earned $3.25 million last year, and has scored 99 goals and 140 assists in 365 NHL games over five seasons. The Blue Jackets selected him fourth overall in the 2003 NHL entry draft.

The six-foot-two, 203-pound winger was recently left off an invitation list announced for Russia's Olympic hockey camp later this month in Moscow.

FEDOROV: KHL BETTER THAN NHL IN MONEY TERMS

2009-08-11T07:36:00.000-07:00

by SPORT EXPRESS

The legendary forward, who returned to Russia after 20 years in NHL, Sergei Fedorov visited the Sport Express office yesterday.

"Moscow remains as it used to be," said the 39-year old former player of Washington. "Everything is still beautiful and majestic."

"I have not tried the famous Moscow traffic jams yet, but probably because I arrived on Sunday. In principle after departure to the US I visited Moscow for many times, but one thing to come for a couple of weeks and quite another to return for permanent place of residence."

"Such a returning is always exciting. And I am thankful to the management of Metallurg Magnitogorsk in particular to the president of the club Viktor Rashnikov and general director Gennady Velichkin for an opportunity to play with me brother."

"The reason for my coming back to Russia is probably the recession in demand for aged players in NHL. Most important for NHL clubs now is to sign young players for the future and with aged ones they handle after all the others."

"At some moment I understood that I was not the main goal for the club management. And because the season in KHL starts six weeks earlier than in NHL I must have made a decision and I made it."

"But at the same time I closely communicated with the Washington management and they knew about my every step."

"What concerns Metallurg I got there because of my father’s help for he has good relations to Velichkin. We reached an agreement quite easily. I am thankful to my agent for he managed to settle all the formalities in two weeks."

"Immediately after the end of the season Ovechkin and Semin started asking what I was going to do and I did not know the state of affairs then. In Washington they offered different contract sums."

"I think it will be interesting to recall the old days and play on Russian arenas. You know, in NHL not everything is comfortable. Especially on the ice."

"So every comparison is disputable. In NHL not all arenas are comfy – every player I assure you like some arenas and don’t like others."

"About the problems between NHL and KHL I think that business is successful when both sides set their conditions. And when both partners are ready for compromises. Probably at the moment there is no such equilibrium in the world ice hockey."

"It is easy to understand that it is not a good situation when such players as Malkin and Ovechkin go to NHL for free but on the other hand in my time I left the Soviet Union also for free. So I am not the one to judge the situation."

"I have been in Russia for only a day and a half so I am not ready to suggest any global ideas about the peace. I think that at first they should meet and disclose the problematic points."

"For both Leagues need the agreement and I think that NHL needs it even more for they start seeing competition from the Russian League."

"And I am not exaggerating saying that there is competition. For example in financial matters the Kontinental League got ahead a lot while NHL is still pure business where you must combat for a single spectator and this combat proceeds with mixed success."

"Moreover in the USA there is a new president and that almost surely means new tougher taxes. As a result the situation in NHL becomes more and more difficult."

"Reasoning objectively I think I will be able to play on a high level for two more years. I hope to stay uninjured. What will be next we will see. I never liked to propose and don’t want to do it now."

"I had no time to think about my last match in NHL while preparing for Russia. But after our last match in the play-off series I understood that it is all over for me in NHL."

NUMBER AND % OF TOTAL POPULATION OF REGISTERED PLAYERS BY COUNTRY

2009-08-11T06:54:00.000-07:00

Number of registered hockey players, provided by the respective countries' federations. Note that data is not available for every country.

For me the percentage numbers for some country are astonishing. To discover that these numbers for Denmark and Austria are higher and for Slovenia is equal to Russia is kind of unpleasant surprise.

SLOVAKIAN ICE HOCKEY HISTORY. SHORT REVIEW

2009-08-11T06:21:00.000-07:00

MIRO SATAN HOLDING THE 2002 WORLD CUP

Although there were similar games played around the globe, Canadian ice hockey was the one to achieve dominance.

For example: bandy hockey -- a game very close to modern ice hockey and native to Europe -- was modified and later fully replaced by ice hockey. When the first European Championships took place in 1910 the game was a mixture of elements of both bandy and ice hockey. The difference between the two was mainly the rules and the equipment used by players. Bandy hockey used shorter sticks and the protective equipment was also rather modest. The Canadian form of the game had fully replaced the other variations on the European continent during the Olympic Games in Chamonix in 1924.

In 1908, the International Ice Hockey Federation, an international organization that still runs most of the international hockey tournaments today, was established. In Slovakia (as a part of former Czechoslovakia), Canadian ice hockey was popularized during the European Championships in High Tatras in 1925.

In 1929 the first official tournament took place in Slovakia. The Tatra Cup is the second oldest tournament in Europe, after the Spengler Cup in Switzerland. The first organization of Slovak ice hockey was established under the name of Slovenská župa kanadského ľadového hokeja as a part of the Slovak Ice Hockey Federation in what was then Czechoslovakia.

The first organized competition was held in 1930. Subsequently, the first Slovak team who were able to compete with the stronger Czech teams was HC Tatry in 1936. Another team from Slovakia joined the common competition in the following year.

Throughout the course of ice hockey history in Czechoslovakia, many Slovak players became eligible to play for the Czechoslovakian national team. Among those who were able achieve this was Ladislav Troják; A native of Košice who left for Prague to play for the LTC Praha -- at those times considered to be the best ice hockey team in the country -- in 1934. From there he was only a step away from playing for the national team.

SLOVAKIA vs. CZECH REP. ST. PETERSBURGH 2000

There are many others who also made Slovakia famous for ice hockey around the world. Some examples are:

Matej Buckna, a Canadian coach of Slovak origin, who helped to develop ice hockey in Czechoslovakia.
Vladimír Dzurilla, a goalkeeper who helped Czechoslovakia to achieve a number of remarkable international triumphs and a player of an older generation.
Ján Starší, highly respected coach and team manager, also from an older generation.
Similarly to the Czech Republic, Slovakia is internationally considered to be a breeding ground for talented players, many of whom are playing in the best leagues in the world, of which the NHL is the most prestigious.

Czechoslovakia and its successor states are rated as being among the leading nations on the international scene, thanks to their triumphs in the Winter Olympic Games and the World Championships.

However, the Slovak national team had to face a difficult challenge in 1993 after the dissolution of Czechoslovakia. According to the IIHF regulations it had to compete with countries with little or no ice hockey tradition at all to prove being worthy to compete at the highest level. Many ice hockey experts and journalists found this rather humiliating for Slovakia. It has since found its way all the way back to the top. Within only a few years of independent existence as a young nation it would mark its biggest triumph ever by winning the world championships in Sweden in 2002.

Peter Stastny (right) ended his magnificent NHL-career in 1995 at the age of 39 and made sure to promote his native Slovakia to the A-pool of the IIHF World Championships later the same season. A wonderful ending to an outstanding career.

ALEXEI CHEREPANOV's DEATH INVESTIGATION CASE REOPENED

2009-08-10T10:33:00.000-07:00

MOSCOW -- Prosecutors will reopen the investigation into the death of New York Rangers draft pick Alexei Cherepanov, who collapsed during a Continental Hockey League game last year in Russia.

The federal prosecutor's Investigative Committee ruled last month that team doctors were not to blame for Cherepanov's death and would face no criminal charges. Investigators said doctors with Siberian team Avangard Omsk had no reason to suspect the 19-year-old suffered from a chronic heart problem and therefore did not prescribe the medicine he was taking.

But the committee on Monday reopened the case and ordered that new medical tests be carried out in a federal centre for forensic medicine.

Cherepanov, a first-round pick in 2007, died after collapsing on the bench during an Oct. 13 game in Chekhov, a town outside Moscow. Authorities say an autopsy showed he suffered from myocarditis, a condition that obstructs blood flow to the heart and other organs.

The investigators' initial conclusion seemed to lay more blame on Cherepanov than anyone else. They said Cherepanov most likely felt unwell but hid his condition from team doctors for fear of being pulled from games.

Cherepanov's mother, Margarita, rejected the conclusions, and insisted that her son was healthy.

In December, the Investigative Committee said medical experts had concluded from analysis of blood and urine samples that Cherepanov "engaged in doping" for several months before his death.

But in their July ruling investigators said he had been taking cordiaminum, which apparently stimulates circulation and breathing as well as the central nervous system, suggesting he may have been taking it to treat his condition.

Avangard's president, general manager and a team doctor were suspended indefinitely from positions in the league, and another Avangard doctor was suspended for two years.

The president of the host club, Vityaz, also was suspended indefinitely amid complaints about medical services at the arena.

NHL STARS SHOWCASED IN COPENHAGEN

2009-08-10T08:58:00.000-07:00

While we all are waiting 'the-miserable-Kane's-story" to be continued and, hopefuly, ended up as a perfect lesson to Chicago uprising star, some Swedish NHLers managed to find spare time (and money) to play charity game in Copenhagen, Danmark, not to beat taxi drivers instead...

Danish hockey fans had a rare opportunity to watch a parade of the biggest Swedish NHL stars when the Icebreakers visited Copenhagen 5-6 August 2009.

On 5-6 August, the Icebreakers, a charity team formed by Peter Forsberg and Markus Näslund in 2002, visited Copenhagen to play two games against an All-Star Danish teams and the local team of Rødovre. It was the first time in its history, the Icebreakers played outside Sweden and Finland.

Icebreakers' featured an impressive lineup of some of the biggest Swedish NHL stars: Peter Forsberg, Markus Näslund, Henrik Zetterberg, Nicklas Bäckström, the Sedin twins,. Indeed, in both games, the Icebreakers played with a superline centered around Forsberg with Bäckström, Näslund and Zetterberg, and this line received plenty of icetime. The Danish Allstar team included NHL'ers Frans Nielsen (NY Islanders) and Peter Regin (Ottawa Senators) as well as North American legionars Sebastian Dahm and Morten Madsen. Unfortunately, the Danish teams missed some of the biggest NHL prospects, Mikkel Bødker (Phoenix Coytotes), Lars Eller (St. Louis Blues)and Philip Larsen (Dallas Stars). If available, Bødker and Eller would have played both games as they grew up with Rødovre.

The Icebreakers games nevertheless featured the biggest contingent of NHL stars on Danish ice since a starpacked Slovakian national team played a IHWC warmup game in the same arena during the NHL lockout in April 2005--a game that Denmark won 2-1.

Forsberg's comeback?

In the Swedish media there was much hype about the possible comeback of Peter Forsberg who hasn't played since February when he made another attempt to relaunch his career. Forsberg has been suffering from a foot injury ever since his time at Philadelphia Flyers. Over the years, he has visited nearly every single specialist on the planet. He has undergone surgery several times and used special designed skates, but the injury won't heal. After another surgery earlier this Summer, Forsberg plans to make one final attempt to make a comeback, but a few days before the Icebreakers games, he announced that it was not likely that he would play in Copenhagen. To everyone's surprise, Forsberg not only dressed for the games, he also logged more than 20 minutes in each game. If things finally works out for Forsberg, he will likely play for MODO with a view to make a NHL comeback later this season.

Curiously, both games in Copenhagen ended 10-6 for Icebreakers

Lineups:

BT All Stars: Peter Hirsch (41:00 - Sebastian Dahm); Rasmus Nielsen, Jesper Duus (2); Morten Madsen-Frans Nielsen-Thor Dresler / Mads Bødker, Jesper Damgaard; Nicklas Hardt - Morten Green - Kim Staal / Kasper Pedersen,Simon Grønvaldt; Jesper Jensen - Lasse Degn - Mads Christensen / Thomas Johnsen; Jeppe Linander Henriksen - Thor Dresler - Mads Christensen.

Icebreakers: Johan Backlund; Mattias Timander, Markus Näslund; Nicklas Bäckström - Peter Forsberg - Henrik Zetterberg/Hans Jonsson; Per Svartvadet; Andreas Salmonsson - Per Åge Skröder - Niklas Sundström / Jan Öberg, Tobias Enström; Henrik Sedin -Samuel Påhlsson - Daniel Sedin.

PATRICK KANE - SCANDAL IN CHICAGO

2009-08-09T09:55:00.000-07:00

Chicago Blackhawks forward Patrick Kane and his cousin were arrested early Sunday morning for assaulting and robbing a cab driver in Buffalo, according to several news sources in that city.

According to a police report, the 20-year-old Kane and his cousin James M. Kane, 21, were arrested around 5am et after allegedly punching the cabbie after he said he did not have proper change for their trip fare.

The report says the cab fare was $13.80 and the Kanes handed the driver $15. He claims he had only $1 change and was not in possession of another twenty cents to give back. According to the police report, both Kanes took their money back and punched the cabbie in the face and head.

Both men have been charged with second-degree robbery, fourth-degree criminal mischief and theft of services.

The NHL is working with the local police department in trying to assemble the details.

Kane, a Buffalo native, had attended a press conference with the mayor to announce funding for a local rink earlier in the evening.

WGRZ.com says the driver appeared to have suffered cuts to his face as well as damage to his glasses.

Buffalo's WIVB is reporting that an attorney for the Kanes has entered a plea of not guilty in City court.

BRETT HULL TURNS FORTY-FIVE TODAY

2009-08-09T09:03:00.000-07:00

On behalf of all my friends, readers and visitors I would like to congratulate Brett Hull, who was inducted to the NHL Hall of Fame this year, all his family and his dad in particular.

SUCH PHOTO IS EVERY HOCKEY DAD's DREAM (EVEN IF YOUR NAME IS BOBBY HULL)

by HAll of Fame:
As the son of the "Golden Jet" Bobby Hull, the younger Hull came into the game with the pressure that having a famous name can bring, pressure that he shrugged off easily. After his 1,000th point, Brett and Bobby became the only father and son combo in NHL history to each score 1,000 points and now both will be inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame.
But this was not the first time the younger Hull hit a scoring milestone. As a St. Louis Blues player nine years earlier, he scored 50 goals in 49 games. He became just the fifth player in NHL history to do the 50/50, tying as third fastest ever. This achievement put Hull in an elite group of superstar players alongside Wayne Gretzky, Maurice Richard, Mike Bossy and Mario Lemieux.
Despite his father's impressive career, Brett was not always seen as being destined for hockey stardom. He began playing junior hockey in Penticton, in the BCJHL. This was only a Tier II junior team, one level below major junior hockey. In those days, Hull weighed 220 pounds and was nicknamed Pickle. Despite his size, he scored 105 goals in 56 games and won a scholarship to the University of Minnesota-Duluth.

In 1984 the Calgary Flames drafted Hull 117th overall after just two years in college, and he spent the next couple of seasons splitting his playing time between Calgary and their minor league team in Moncton. In Moncton, Hull finished third in league scoring and was name the IHL's Rookie-of-the-Year.
In 1988 the Flames traded Hull to St. Louis. In his first season, he scored 41 goals and captured the Lady Byng Memorial Trophy. 1990-91 marked the first Hull's three consecutive 70-plus goal seasons, which included a career high 86 goals in 1990-91 which earned him the Lester B. Pearson Trophy and the Hart Memorial Trophy as the league's Most Valuable Player.

BRETT HULL SCORES HIS CONTROVERSIAL GOAL ENDING THE GAME 6 TRIPLE OT OF 1999 PLAYOFFS FINALS

After eleven seasons in St. Louis, Hull signed with the Dallas Stars in the summer of 1998. He had said he wanted to play for the Chicago Blackhawks, his father's team, but the Stars made him an offer he just could not pass up. Despite the big contract, the move to the Stars took some pressure off Hull. A perennially strong team, the Stars had never played quite as well on the ice as their name suggested. When Hull joined their ranks, they went on to win the Stanley Cup in 1999, with Hull scoring the winning goal in triple overtime.

Long-time Flyers' goalie Ron Hextall once summed up the opposition's take on Hull: "When he comes in on the wing, he's got an awful lot of speed. If you give him a hole, he hits it." And for his part, Hull has always had a pretty clear idea of what he has been paid to do. Possessed of a mean slapshot and a solid frame, Hull has had a decided knack for finding the back of the net throughout his career.

Early in the 99-2000 season, Hull scored his 600th goal, thus ensuring he and father Bobby were the first and only father-son combination to reach that remarkable plateau. After three seasons in Dallas, Hull signed as a free agent with the Detroit Red Wings prior to 2001-02 season and went on to capture his second Stanley Cup later that spring.

BRETT HULL. DALLAS STARS GENERAL MANAGER

Hull surpassed the 700-goal mark and 1,300-point mark in 2002-03 and shows no signs of slowing down. After three seasons in Detroit, Hull went on to sign as a free agent with the Phoenix Coyotes in the summer of 2004 and following a lock out year in 2004-05, would play a mere five games with the club before announcing his retirement from the game.

On the international stage Hull has represented the United States at the Winter Olympics (1998 and 2002), the 1996 World Cup, the 1991 Canada Cup and the 1986 World Championships.

In his illustrious NHL career, Brett Hull scored 741 goals, 650 assists and 1,391 points.