Slava Fetisov And An Important Moment in Russian Hockey History
I want to begin by stating that I have a personal connection to this truly inspiring story. Both of my parents immigrated from the former USSR; my father before Viacheslav (Slava) Fetisov and my mother after. The journey to America and the New Jersey Devils was not easy and extremely stressful for all involved, but Fetisov had one of the most interesting stories I have ever heard.
The New Jersey Devils were a new franchise in 1983 when they drafted a defenseman by the name of Viacheslav Fetisov in the 8th round of the NHL Draft. The future Hall of Famer was not guaranteed to play in the NHL because he was Russian and playing for CSKA Moscow, a dynasty in the Soviet League. Tensions were high between the United States and Russia and this animosity transferred over into the world of sports.
Soviet Hockey was one of the greatest hockey organizations in the world. As all players were soldiers, they were in peak condition and trained to be in stressful situations. This gave the Soviets an advantage over players from other countries. These players were superstars across Europe, but they wanted more. Slava Fetisov was the first to stand up and say he wants out of the USSR to go play in the NHL for the 1989-1990 season.
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This was met with a lot of animosity within the government of the Soviet Union, even going as far as threatening to send Fetisov to Siberia to play hockey where no one will hear from him again. There were tough times for Fetisov, but at the end of the day he led a group of eight Soviet players into the NHL and the hundreds that have come since.
Fetisov told his story to the Hockey Hall Of Fame. He spoke about how his choices provided a blueprint for Russian players decades later.
“It was a victory against a whole system. It was not easy. You always have to fight for everything and I fought for everything I have in hockey. I also won the biggest fight away from hockey. That was the fight against communism, the fight for freedom of choices.” (HHOF)
Today we see Russian players at the highest level of the NHL such as potential Hart Trophy Winner, Nikita Kucherov, Rocket Richard Trophy Winner, Alex Ovechkin, and Former Vezina Trophy Winner, Sergei Bobrovsky.
Without the Devils taking a flier on Viacheslav Fetisov in 1989, the NHL would not be the NHL we know today.