ScottM

Thanks a lot, guys.

None of us will ever forget where we were on this date 14 years ago. Nearly 3,000 people dies in the largest act of terrorism in United States history. Despite being the direct victim of the attacks, the United States was not the only nation affected, as the dead came from 61 distinct nationalities. Though the targets of the attack were financial, military, and political (assuming Flight 93 was intended to strike the White House or Capital as many believe), no segment of society was untouched. Even those of us who had no acquaintances among the injured or dead felt the gut punch of that infamous day. Though sports pale in comparison to the events of that day, the world of hockey was affected that day, and a look at that might bring us closer to the tragedy. This post is in honor of Garnet "Ace" Bailey, Mark Bavis, and all those who were affected by the evil acts of the perpetrators. Garnet "Ace" Bailey (no relation to the former Maple Leafs star) was born in Lloyminster, Saskatchewan on Jun 14, 1948. Though not a superstar, Bailey put together a successful career, playing 10 seasons with the Bruins, Capitals, Red Wings, and Blues, and one season with the Edmonton Oilers in the WHA. He was a member of the Bruins teams that won the Stanley Cup in 1970 and 1972, and worked for the Oilers as a scout during their dynasty period, having his name engraved on the Cup three times in that position. Eventually he was hired by the Los Angeles Kings and rose to the position of director of pro scouting, a title he held at the time of his death. Mark Bavis was born in Roslindale, Massachusetts on March 13, 1970. He was drafted by the New York Rangers in the ninth round of the 1989 entry draft. After four seasons playing for the Boston University team, he spent three seasons playing professional hockey with the Fredericton Canadiens and Providence Bruins of the AHL and the South Carolina Stingrays of the ECHL. Following a couple of stints as an assistant coach with Harvard University and the Chicago Freeze of the NAHL, he took a job as a scout with the Los Angeles Kings, which would prove to be his final job. On September 11, 2001, Bailey and Bavis boarded United Airlines Flight 175 to fly from Boston to Los Angeles to attend the Kings' organizational meeting. Little did any of the innocents aboard the flight know the evil that boarded with them, or the fate ahead of them. Among the 65 people on board the plane were Marwan al-Shehhi, Fayez Banihammad, Hamza al-Ghamdi, Ahmed al-Ghamdi, and Mohand al-Shehri. At 8:14 AM, Flight 175 took off from runway nine of Logan International Airport. Due to suspicions about the ill-fated American Airlines Flight 11, Flight 175 was ordered to turn to avoid the other plane at 8:37. Minutes later, at some time between 8:42 and 8:46, shortly before Flight 11 slammed into the North Tower of the World Trade Center, the terrorists stormed the cockpit and took control of the plane. En route to its own target, the plane nearly collided with two other planes, forcing an air traffic controller to issue orders to a Delta Airlines pilot to take "any evasive action necessary." The passengers of the flight would soon meet their tragic end as the terrorists aimed their projectile at the remaining unscathed tower in lower Manhattan. Many people on the ground were focused on the World Trade Center site because of the smoke already pouring out of the North Tower. At 9:01, those witnesses saw a heart-wrenching sight, when Flight 175 crashed into the South Tower. The video of the collision and explosion is now etched in stone in many of our memories. Sometimes good things can arise from tragedy. Determined not to see their loved ones deaths be in vain from the tragedy they experienced, the families of Bavis and Bailey saw to it that something good did come. Bavis's family began the Mark Bavis Leadership Foundation to provide tuition grants for young people "allow deserving young men and women to enjoy opportunities and experiences similar to those which contributed to Mark the person that he was." Bailey's family started the Ace Bailey Children's Foundation "to honor his memory and to perpetuate his deep caring for the happiness of children through our work," by "[reducing] the stress of pediatric hospitalization by creating environments that are less clinical in appearance and more comforting and soothing for children and their families." Eleven years later, in 2012, the Los Angeles Kings made a miracle late season run to squeak into the playoffs with the eighth seed. A second miracle run followed, and against all odds, the team that formerly employed Bailey and Bavis hoisted the Cup. Not willing to see their former colleagues be forgotten, the team saw to it that the Stanley Cup was taken to the 9/11 memorial in New York, and placed on top of their names "so that the families of Bailey and Bavis could [have] their day with the Stanley Cup." The victims of United Airlines Flight 175, American Airlines Flight 11, American Airlines Flight 77, United Airlines Flight 93, as well as those on the ground or in buildings at the World Trade Center and the Pentagon should never be forgotten. I hope that in remembering the stories of Ace Bailey and Mark Bavis we will remember all of the victims of that darkest of days. May we never forget...

Some players and coaches become fan favorites despite not being the most successful or skilled. Others do have the success and skills, but a poor attitude or a dirty streak prevent them from becoming as beloved as their talent might otherwise dictate. When you find someone that faultlessly bridges the gap between a fan favorite and a high level of success, you know you have found someone special. The hockey world lost such a person last week with the passing of long-time New York Islanders head coach Al Arbour. Arbour is now viewed nearly exclusively in the light of his coaching career, and the fact that he played is thus often overlooked or forgotten. Despite the fact that he was never a star on the ice, he cobbled together a lengthy career during which he won two Stanley Cups. At the age of 36, he was picked up by the expansion St. Louis Blues and managed to finish fifth in Norris Trophy voting. Partly through his fourth season with the Blues, he retired as a player to replace the now-legendary Scotty Bowman as head coach. In 1973, after being fired by the Blues Arbour was presented with the opportunity to Coach the New York Islanders. The Isles were coming off of a season in which they posted a paltry 12-60-6 record, then the worst in NHL history, and GM Bill Torrey believed Arbour was the man to build the team. Arbour took the job despite a comment Bowman made to him. Bowman is rarely wrong about anything to do with coaching, but in this case, he was very wrong. "You'll be in last place for ten years." The Islanders did finish last in the division in 1973-74 after a modest improvement to 19-41-18, but it would never happen again. In his second year with the team, Arbour coached the Islanders all the way to the NHL semifinals, a feat the franchise would accomplish for three consecutive seasons. Being among hockey's "final four" three years in a row is no small achievement, but it was nowhere near the peak that Arbour and the Islanders would achieve. The Islanders built a highly impressive roster during Arbour's years with the team, and they had the perfect coach to get production from those players. A team with the likes of Mike Bossy, Clark Gillies, Denis Potvin, Billy Smith, and Bryan Trottier was a force to be reckoned with, and in 1980, the Isles reached the Promised Land. In 1980, the Islanders won their first Stanley Cup after defeating the Philadelphia Flyers in six games. It had taken the team less than a decade after its founding to reach the top of the sport. The Islanders were not to be one and done, however, as in 1981, the beat the Minnesota North Stars in five, and swept the Vancouver Canucks and Edmonton Oilers in 1982 and 1983 respectively to capture four consecutive titles. In 1984, the reached the Finals for a fifth straight year, to give them a chance to mathc the Montreal Canadiens' record of five straight Cups, but fell to the Oilers in a rematch of the previous year's Final. Arbour retired from coaching in 1986, only to return to the Islanders bench after a rocky start to the 1988-89 season. In his first full season back, he had the flailing Isles back into the playoffs, and in 1993, took them all the way to the Eastern Conference Finals. In the 1993-94 season, he coached the team back from being 13 points out of a playoff spot into the postseason, a record that stood until just last season when the Ottawa Senators overcame a 14 point deficit. Arbour retired again in 1994, this time "permanently." In 1996, he was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in the Builder category. I placed the word permanently in quotes in the last paragraph because Arbour made one more brief comeback in 2007. Ted Nolan, who was then the Islanders head coach one day realized that Arbour had coached the Islanders in 1,499 games. After receiving the permission of team management, he invited Arbour to come back and coach one more game to get to 1,500. Arbour accepted. In a ceremony held at the Nassau Colliseum that night, the "739" banner that hung in the rafters to honor his wins with the team was lowered and replaced with one that read 1500. Not only did he get game number 1,500 behind the New York bench, but win number 740 as well, as the Isles downed the Pittsburgh Penguins 3-2. Over the course of his lengthy coaching career, Arbour coached 1607 games between the Islanders and Blues, compiling a 782-577-248 record. His games and wins totals are second only to Scottie Bowman. But ultimately, those numbers are not what made him great. The thing that made him so revered was the respect he commanded from players and fans alike. In fact, respected may not describe him as well as the word loved does. Last Friday was a hard day for the hockey world, since we lost not only a great coach, but a great man. But, as long as the sport survives, Al Arbour will always have a place of honor. He may be gone, but he is truly not forgotten.

Outside of sports, there was 9/11. At least for a while, everyone came together after that tragedy The Miracle on Ice had a TV rating of 23.9/37, and while it wasn't broadcast live, the tape delayed broadcast drew 32.4 million viewers. People in areas which are certainly not hockey hotbeds watched the game. It was the feel good moment that we could actually beat the Soviets in something. Even so, I still agree with you that in the sports world, it's hard to think of any time that an event had such an impact on the nation as the Richard Riot. In many ways. hockey is inseparable from the history of hockey. In a sense, the sport and the nation grew up together.

@yave1964 I agree that there was some ethnic bias against Richard because of being his being French, but I also believe that chip you mentioned caused it to be played up to more than it was. I really think it went both ways. But yeah, they are definitely a different breed in Quebec. @WingNut722 I don't really think there is a clear cut comparison to hockey in Canada in the United States, though baseball would probably be the closest thing. Ironically, the most unifying sports event in American history is likely hockey: the Miracle on Ice.

You're very welcome, and thank you for the kind words. I think there may be some truth to what you said. If the current generation doesn't know about the events that trigger a situation, they may not have any feeling for the grievances, thus causing the issue to subside. Regardless, it's interesting to see how sports can affect an entire nation. Sometimes, they're of major cultural impact.

Human nature seems to dictate that when two cultures try to coexist, there will be clashes. No matter how strong the similarities may be, the differences always seem to rise to the top at some point or another. For instance, despite over a century of being a part of Canada, the primarily French-speaking province of Quebec nearly voted for independence in 1995, and from 1993 through 2008, the separatist Bloc Quebecois won a sizable percentage of the vote and a majotiry of that province's ridings in every federal election. Relations between the Francophone and Anglophone populations within the province have not always been sterling either, and we can see an example of that in the history of Montreal hockey. Though the entire city rallies around the Canadiens today, in the early 20th century, the two demographics could not agree on something as simple as which hockey team to support. The Canadiens were the team for the city's French speakers, while first the Wanderers, and later the Maroons were the English-speaking population's team. Interestingly, some historians trace the root of the previously mentioned separatist movement to an event strongly tied to hockey: the Richard Riot of 1955. Maurice "The Rocket" Richard was a cultural icon in Quebec in the 1950s, and his fans defended him rabidly. So strong were the passions of the fans that during that time, one of the quickest ways to start an argument among hockey enthusiasts was to begin a debate about who was better: Richard or Gordie Howe. In many respects, that debate became a part of the French-English "battle." As such, while the modern consensus gives the nod to Howe, that would have been an afront to Richard's supporters during his career. The incident in question began on March 13, 1955, during a game in Boston between the home standing Bruins and the Canadiens. In the third period, while the Bruins led 4-1, Richard took a blow to the head by the stick of Hal Laycoe which created a cut that required five stitches. Play was not immediately whistled dead because the Canadiens had possession of the puck, and the ill-tempered Richard decided to take matters into his own hands. Making a beeline for his assailant, Richard began to pummel Laycoe with his fists and stick. On ice officials attempted to restrain him, but he repeatedly escaped their clutches and continued his assault. In the fracas, Richard punched linesman Cliff Thompson, knocking him out. Richard was ejected from the game. Boston police attempted to arrest him, but were barred from the Montreal locker room by other Habs players. Though he escaped legal punishment because thanks to the protection of his teammates, he would not escape league punishment. On March 16, after a meeting with the game's on ice officials, Richard, Laycoe, Montreal assistant general manager Ken Reardon, Boston general manager Lynn Patrick, Montreal coach Dick Irvin, and NHL referee-in-chief Carl Voss, NHL President Clarence Campbell suspended Richard for the remainder of the season, playoffs included. The general opinion around the league was that Richard had gotten off lightly, with Ted Lindsey going so far as to say that he thought Richard was lucky not to be banned for life. That sentiment was not shared by Montrealers, however, who felt that the punishment was excessive, and Campbell's office was flooded by calls from angry Canadiens fans. Some feel that the now famous riot that began after the next Montreal home game might not have occurred, but for one thing. Against the advice of the Montreal police, Campbell chose to attend the St. Patrick's Day game when the Detroit Red Wings visited the Montreal Forum. Immediately after his arrival was noticed, fans began pelting the League President with food, trash, and even shoes. One fan, claiming to be a friend of Campbell's made it past security, and after appearing to offer a handshake, punched him in the face. Sadly, that was not the height of the mischief, as at some point during the uproar, a tear gas bomb was triggered. The game was forfeited to Detroit, and the Forum evacuated. The clearing of the building did not end the chaos. On the streets outside the arena, protesters attacked bystanders, looted stores, and set fires to newsstands. Thirty-seven injuries and 100 arrests were reported in addition to $100,000 in monetary damage to property. The tension did not subside until the next evening when Richard himself took to the radio waves to urge for peace. The emotions stirred up by the Richard suspension and riot continued to be felt throughout the season. Richard never won a league scoring title, and the 1954-55 season was the closest he ever came. On the last day of the season, when fellow Canadien Bernie Geoffrion passed Richard in the points standings, he was booed by his own fans. Montreal advanced to the Stanley Cup Finals that season, but Richard's absence loomed large when they lost to the Red Wings (appropriately) in seven games. The Richard Riot was a moment of major historical importance not only for hockey, but for the nation of Canada. Perhaps the 2011 decimation of the Bloc Quebecois caucus signals some level of subsidence of the separatist movement, but even if so, assuming the historians are correct about the role the riot played in its creation, the incident with Richard impacted the nation for over half of a century. I would not advice tugging on Superman's cape, but even that might be smarter than messing with Maurice Richard in 1950s Quebec.

He'd be down the list a bit for me. I'd certainly have Alfredsson, Karlsson, and Spezza in front of him at a minimum. Other players that maybe weren't as skilled might be ahead of him too, simply because they made good contributions to the team and didn't create any drama. He'll make my all-time Senators team when that comes around, but I'd certainly have a few guys above him if I were ranking players.

Yeah, I shed no tears over seeing Yashin go either. The great thing about it from my perspective as a Sens fan was that all the heartache made the team better in the end. They weathered the storm of Yashin's drama and got better pieces in the trade. I mean honestly, just a couple of years later, who would give up Chara or Spezza for Yashin one for one, let alone as two pieces of a package? And yeah, I was going for the contrast with him and Alfredsson. The photo seemed appropriate for that reason and the fact that Alfredsson took over the captaincy from Yashin (and did a much better job in the role).

@WordsOfWisdom Yashin was a "me first" type of guy. Guys like Ovi get accused of that by some now for a perception of being more interested in personal stats than anything else, but Ovi has never done anything to directly undermine his team. No honor is an accurate statement. @JagerMeister The Maple Leafs series in 2001 summed up his playoff performance (or lack thereof) very well. I remember Senators fans (myself included) wanting the #2 seed instead of the #1 seed because we had swept Toronto in the regular season. Suffice it to say, many (myself included) felt that we would have been better off without Yashin. It felt like he was a drag on the whole team. @yave1964 The charity ordeal showed that his issues were more deeply rooted than hockey. I agree that he had delusions of grandeur. The sad thing is, that if he had played hard and not been so selfish, he probably could have been great. He missed out on a lot because of his attitude. @Bertmega The thing about Daigle that angered Yashin was that the Senators were touting Daigle more highly before their rookie season. We obviously now know that Daigle was a bust, but at the time, he was thought to be a can't miss superstar. What team wouldn't have talked him up under those circumstances? I really don't think there would have been a difference. Yashin was too greedy anyway. And, yeah, the trade made it all worthwhile.

Hard feelings from a fan base toward a player that leaves a team on bad terms is not rare in hockey or in sports generally speaking. What is somewhat uncommon is when said player's new team's fan base soon feels animosity toward said player. One such case is that of Alexei Yashin, whose contract holdout poisoned his relationship with the fans of the Ottawa Senators, and whose later lack of production and eventual buyout embittered New York Islanders' fans. Before we get too far ahead of ourselves, let us look back over the details of "The People v. Alexei Yashin." To say that relations between the Senators and Yashin were always strained would not be fair, nor would it be true. Yashin was the first draft pick in the history of the modern Senators, with Ottawa taking him with the number two overall pick in 1992. After playing for Dynamo Russia during the 1992-93 season, Yashin joined the Senators for the 1993-94 season, and led the team in scoring as a rookie, with 30 goals and 79 points, and finished fourth in Calder Trophy voting. After one more season in which he led the team in scoring, the first signs of trouble appeared. In 1995, unhappy with his pay, Yashin held out until December. Eventually, a deal was worked out, and though some fans were less than thrilled with Yashin's actions, things appeared to be back to normal. In fact, the Senators finally began to gain some traction, making the playoffs for the first time in franchise history in Yashin's first full season back with the team. The 1996-97 season began a streak of three consecutive years in which Yashin led the Senators in scoring, and the Senators made the playoffs in each of those three years. In 1998, he was named team captain, and his 44 goal, 94 point season made him runner-up in Hart Trophy balloting after the ensuing season. The Senators won their first division title, and the future looked bright in Ottawa. Appearances can be deceiving, and the sunshine and roses look in Ottawa certainly was. Yashin was slated to earn $3.6 million the next season, and feeling his market value was much higher demanded another contract, threatening to sit out if he did not receive one. The Senators refused a trade demand, and stripped Yashin of the captaincy, giving it to Daniel Alfredsson. With Yashin still refusing to report, the Senators, with the backing of the NHL chose to suspend him for the 1999-2000 season. Yashin then attempted to sign with a Swiss team, but was barred from doing so, pending the resolution of his North American status. Not willing to allow Yashin out of the last year of his contract after the holdout, the and without a clause in the CBA addressing such a situation, the Senators took Yashin to arbitration, arguing that he still owed the team the final year of the contract. The arbiter agreed, and Yashin had no choice left but to rejoin the team. On the ice, Yashin was successful in the regular season, with 40 goals and 88 points, but was not well received by fans at any stop. Further exacerbating the situation was his poor performance in the playoffs. Yashin managed only one assist in a four game sweep at the hands of the Maple Leafs, and the damage was done. The Senators made the most of the situation on Draft Day, 2001, the Senators dealt Yashin to the New York Islanders for forward Bill Muckalt, then little known defenseman Zdeno Chara, and the number two overall pick, which they used to select Jason Spezza. With the eventual production of Spezza and the extremely rapid development of Chara, the trade is now considered to be one of the most lopsided ever. For their part, the Islanders quickly signed Yashin to a 10-year, $87.5 million contract. The price tag was reduced by the 2005 CBA, but the Islanders soon had reason to regret the deal. In New York, Yashin's point production began to decline, and he was still ineffective in the playoffs. In four playoff appearances with Yashin on the roster, the Islanders never managed to advance past the first round. By the beginning of the 2006-07 season, there were rumblings concerning a potential buyout of Yashin's contract. During the season, he suffered a knee injury, and was less effective after his return. As a result, Islanders head coach Ted Nolan announced that he would rest Yashin until his knee was completely healed, prompting more speculation. Once he did finally return to the lineup, he contributed 13 points in 16 games, but another lackluster playoff performance was the final nail in the coffin. In 2007, the Islanders chose to buy out the contract, paying out $2.2 million per year each season, which ended just this off-season. Shockingly, after the buyout, Yashin's agent, Mark Gandler, announced Yashin's desire to return to the Senators and said that he would "be calling Ottawa for sure." Not surprisingly, the Senators had no interest in bringing Yashin back to the team, and disappointed with offers received from other NHL teams, Yashin elected to continue his career in the Russian Super League with Lokomotiv Yaroslavl. There were talks of his return to the Islanders for the 2011-12 season, but they came to nothing in the end, and Yashin retired in 2012. For Ottawa, the Yashin drama and trade were a blessing in disguise. Chara and Spezza played key roles in the team's run to the 2007 Stanley Cup Finals. The Islanders learned the hard way that all that glitters is not gold. Immense natural talent does little good if not accompanied with the proper attitude. With 20/20 hindsight, we can easily see that Yashin's attitude probably cost him dearly. One can only wonder, if he had it to do all over again, would he do it differently?

Bure would have clashed with Bowman because of his attitude. He wasn't a team guy and didn't like playing within the system. That would have been a definite no go with Bowman.

Yeah, that moment in 1998 ranks up there with Ray Bourque in 2001. I always loved the way that the Wings made sure to make Konstantinov a part of things that year. He was well deserving of it because of his contributions to the team. I think having a feel good moment like that was a great thing considering the heartbreak they had a year earlier.

That was a screw up by the league. Bure was 18 at the time of that draft, so he was eligible. That has my curiosity piqued now, so I may have to research that. IIRC, Bure did play with Fedorov in Russia. I think the two of them and Mogilny made up one of the lines for the CSKA Moscow team before Fedorov's defection. I do think that their styles would have meshed well. Fedorov is one of the best two-way guys in the history of hockey, and he was well-rounded offensively too. He could score, he could set up goals, and was obviously great defensively. That last one would have gone very well with Bure and his Devil may care attitude on defense. With a guy like Fedorov playing next to him, he wouldn't have had to care. I also agree with you about Bowman and Bure. I think that Bure likely would have ended up in Bowman's dog house, so I don't know if any of that would have come to fruition if Bowman still came along in an alternate timeline. All in all, though, I'd definitely say things worked out well for the Wings. That said, I can't help but wonder what if the Russian Five had been created a couple of years earlier. Would it have made any difference in 1995? Could they have given Detroit a boost to make the Finals that year more competitive, or maybe even turned it with a jump on the series?

The collapse of the Soviet Union in the early 1990s created a seismic shift in international politics. The Cold War ended, and the United States was the world’s only surviving superpower. The post-1991 world was a far different place than the pre-1991 world. The threat of nuclear war subsided, maps looked different, and the world of sports changed as well. Athletes that were previously forced to defect or get permission from communist governments to play in the West were now free to leave their native countries. Of the four major North American sports, hockey was affected the most. Eastern Europeans were not unknown in the NHL before the fall of the Iron Curtain, but they were somewhat uncommon. Only one Russian-born player spent any time in the NHL in the 1988-89 season – Sergei Pryakhin – and he played in only two games. Five years later, the number of Russians playing in the world’s top league had surpassed 50. Similar (those less extreme) increases in the number of Czech and Slovak players also took place. The Detroit Red Wings were one team that took full advantage of the influx of new players, though they had already begun to do so before the fall of the USSR. In the 1989 entry draft, Detroit chose Sergei Fedorov with their fourth round draft pick. Fedorov was not immediately able to join his NHL squad because of Soviet restrictions, but an opportunity presented itself only a year later. Fedorov played for the famed CSKA Moscow, and the team travelled to Seattle to play in the Goodwill Games in 1990. While there, Fedorov slipped away from his hotel and boarded a plane bound for Detroit, and the Red Wings had their first Russian star. The Red Wings drafted two other high profile Soviets, before the fall of the Iron Curtain, though they were unable to acquire the services of their other selections until after the 1991 collapse. In the 11th round of the draft in which they chose Fedorov, the Wings chose Vladimir Konstantinov, and the next year, they selected Slava Kozlov. After a delay, those two men were finally able to join the Red Wings for the 1991-92 NHL season. Fedorov, Konstantinov, and Kozlov soon met with success in their new home, and Detroit continued to add Russian talent to their roster. During the 1994-95 season, the Red Wings acquired Slava Fetisov via trade from the New Jersey Devils, and worked out a deal with the San Jose Sharks the next year for the services of Igor Larionov. After the addition of Larionov, Scottie Bowman had an idea to play the five Russians together. While NHL teams dress 18 skaters, many European teams would dress 20 skaters and group them into five man units. Since the Red Wings had Russian players that played each position in such a unit, Larionov proposed that the Red Wings create such a unit with Konstantinov and Fetisov on the blue line, Fedorov at center, Kozlov at left wing, and Larionov at right wing. The concept was novel for the NHL, but the execution was flawless, and Bowman came out looking like a genius. The new group played together well, and soon became well known for their chemistry on the ice. The so-called “Russian Five” was a vital part of the Red Wings’ success in the 1996-97 season. That year, Detroit had a respectable regular season, placing second in the Central Division, behind only the Dallas Stars, and earning 94 points in the standings, the fifth-most in the league. In the playoffs, the team took their act to another level entirely, and the Russian Five was largely responsible. The 1997 Stanley Cup was the first of three that the Red Wings would win over the course of a six season span. In the first round of the playoffs, Detroit defeated the St. Louis Blues in six games, swept the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim in the second round, downed the defending champion Colorado Avalanche in six games in the Western Conference Finals, and finally swept the Philadelphia Flyers in the Stanley Cup Finals for a combined playoff record of 16-4. Remarkably, the team was 16-0 when at least one member of the Russian Five scored a point, and was 0-4 when the unit was held scoreless. The five Russians combined for 53 points in the team’s 20 playoff games. Sadly, the 1997 Finals proved to be the last hurrah for the Russian Five. Less than a week after the Red Wings won hockey’s Holy Grail, Konstatinov was involved in a serious limousine accident which left him paralyzed, and nearly took his life. In his honor, the Red Wings wore a patch on their jerseys with the word “believe” in English and Russian during the 1997-98 season, and successfully defended their title, but the days of the Russian Five were tragically over. Today, Fedorov, Fetisov, and Larionov are members of the Hockey Hall of Fame, and all five players have made their mark on the sport both individually and as a unit. The concept of the Russian Five was unusual, but no one can question Bowman’s wisdom. Their time together was short, but the Russian Five deserve to be remembered. Some lines can claim similar impacts on their teams, but none represent as drastic a change in the world of hockey as the Wizards of Ov.