OT: Fedorov Leaves NHL
I know this is way of topic, but figured some of you would care to know or discuss this.
I grew up a Red Wings fan during the time of the Russian Five or the Red Army comprising of Sergei Fedorov, Konstantinov, Kozlov, Larionov, and Fetisov.
I used to love Sergei Fedorov and one time when I got to watch one of the Wings practices before a Michigan vs Michigan State Alumni game at the Joe he gave me a puck off the ice and said thanks for coming out and supporting us.
Looks like his time in the NHL is over.
http://sports.espn.go.com/nhl/news/story?id=4285795
My most vivid memory of Fedorov was when he shot the puck between the legs of a Washington Capitals D-man and sniped it top shelf over Olaf Kolzig in the Stanley Cup finals.
I know Fedorov was only "ours" for 70 games, but he made a real impact on the Caps. He is a spectacular coach on the ice and, from what I can tell, a great teammate.
I noticed the article mentioned that Viktor Kozlov also left the Caps for Russia. Fuck that guy.
during the Russian Five era. My most fond memory of Fedorov was that goal he scored against the Jets when it bounced out of the corner (hooray JLA boards!!) and off the back of the goalies leg. I think that was in '96 playoffs. IIRC, we were the final team to ever play the Jets before they moved to Phoenix.
This all being said, I'm not surprised to see him go. I've been hearing for some time now that this move was only a matter of time.
That's my favorite Federov goal as well. (Gah, the reply thing didn't go right - it was the one off the boards and off the back of the goalie's leg)
Is that the goal where Gary Thorn said, "That's why you pay him a billion dollars!"
Yeah, the deal was 6 years, 38 million, with 28 million as a signing bonus. Good work Carolina.
It always pissed me off when Wings fans booed him when he played at the Joe with a different team. The guy was instrumental in bringing the Wings back as a franchise. Anyone who wouldn't leave their job for a higher paying one is nuts.
Andy, I don't get the boos either. The guy was key to three Stanley Cups. He gave Detroit fans their all and helped return the franchise to sustained glory. And he was exciting to watch. What more do you want?
I think they should retire his number, FWIW.
He flipped me a puck one time I was at a practice. I'll always remember it, I was like 10 at the time, and the huge superstar looked at me and effortlessly placed a puck in my lap 15 rows back.
that's awesome
No.
To elaborate. If you can make a case for Fedorov being put up in the rafters at the Joe next to the names that are up there (In case you are unaware: Abel, Lindsay, Howe, Sawchuk, Delvecchio, Yzerman) then you are obviously devoid of the mental capacity for reality. Stats? Stats! Stats. I got stats.
Fedorov (in Detroit): G 400, A 554, PTS 954 in 13 years after he left the team for more money because he reportedly wasn't happy not being the face of the franchise. Which he never would have been as long as Yzerman was there.
Yzerman: G 692, A 1063, PTS 1755 in 22 years with the same team. Not to mention he changed his playing style to make the team better and took less money to stay here for his entire career.
This doesn't even include the other 5 who all have outstanding numbers. I know Fedorov was great when you were kids (I'm around the same age) but he is not even remotely close to having his number retired by the Wings.
If you leave after complaining about lack of ice time and not being the face of the franchise, then you shouldn't get your number retired by the said franchise. It would be one thing if he simply left for more money after a great career. It's another when you leave for more money after spending several years complaining about all kinds of crap. Also, when you look at the other numbers retired by Detroit, namely Steve Yzerman, Terry Sawchuk, Alex Delvecchio, Ted Lindsay, Sid Abel, and Gordie Howe, it's kind hard to put Federov's name there.
Jerry Seinfeld took note of this phenomenon:
"Loyalty to any one sports team is pretty hard to justify. Because the players are always changing, the team can move to another city, you're actually rooting for the clothes when you get right down to it. You know what I mean, you are standing and cheering and yelling for your clothes to beat the clothes from another city. Fans will be so in love with a player but if he goes to another team, they boo him. This is the same human being in a different shirt, they
*hate* him now. Boo! different shirt!! Boo!"
is what makes me LOL at sports. Gotta love it. Totally true, too.
I think the boos stem in part from the fact the he left money on the table to leave Detroit. He took $10 million less to sign with the Ducks.
My fondest memories of him will always be as a Red Wing.
I will always remember his 5-goal game, and the fact that he was a top-notch defenseman as well.
I've been to maybe 7 red wings games in my life, but the 5 goal game happened to be one of them... it was unbelievable..
It involved Sergei, Chelios, Kid Rock, Bobby Higginson, Uncle Kracker and John Salley.
My buddy and I went to the Post across the street from the Palace after a playoff game in '04.
Actually, we went to a couple other places but came back to the post really late.. (like 1:30am or so)
We went outside to drink a few beers and all of the above names were out there hanging out. There were maybe only 75 people in the whole place, so these guys were just hanging out and talking with us like normal dudes.
Kid rock had like 15 groupies on him all night.
Federov had been playing for the ducks that season. My buddy and I talked to him for a few minutes and thanked him for his service to the wings. (and for bringing Anna to the Joe or something)
My buddy said something to Sergei like, " Chelios ain't that big of a guy, I think I could take him." Sergei laughed his ass off at that. He was like, "you know how many guys thought like that and went down? He's a bad dude."
I also remember Bobby Higginson was there wearing like ... this purple velvet jumpsuit thing. This random dude kept yelling shit across the bar at Bobby. "Hey Higgy, yer batting .190! You can't wear purple sweatpants to a bar batting .190!" He kept on and on about Higgy looking like a backstreet boy.
We also talked to Uncle Kracker about him singing the National Anthem that night at the palace. He messed it up a little and had to read the words from the big screen. I asked him how he could mess up the anthem and he said, "man, I was HIGH!"
haha... great night..
Thanks for the post.
used to be my favorite wings player. i had his jersey when i was a kid. i wasn't mad when he left, i mean he was probably one of the highest paid players already and other teams were offering even more! i missed him though. especially when he ended up at the ducks. plus, he scored 483 goals, which is pretty damn good.
He Skated circles around everyone in that game.
I loved the wrap-around in that game. It was unstoppable.
if Sergei wore 91 before he got to Detroit? Or was it kind of an opposite of Stevie Y?
I'm not positive, but I think he wore that number because that was the year he came to the US ala Peter Klima.
Sergi was a truly great player. He helped break a 40 some year cup drought in Detroit - and then helped win two more. That 2002 team was the best we will see for a looong while. Three cups and a gold medal is not too shaby!
I swear that he always played better if Anna was there to try to impress her. Course, who wouldn't?
No excuse not to except pettiness. One of the 5 best Wings ever.
While my above post may make me sound petty I just don't think that he deserves to be up in the rafters at the Joe. Especially when the only person to have their number retired since 1974 is Yzerman.
Frankly, stats mean more than you're implying. He's 5th or 6th all time in all offensive stats and has played more games as a Wing than almost anyone. And only 2 players had their numbers retired before 1974, all the other numbers were retired in the mid-90's.
Guys like Ted Lindsey and Sid Able left the team on bad terms, too. Time heals all those wounds.
Ted Lindsay was traded by a crazy (all-time great, but crazy) coach because he was trying to form a union. I don't feel hatred for Federov, far from it. But those are not the same circumstances, and it's an oversimplification to compare them.
Just sayin'. I don't know how I feel about his number being retired; I missed most of his best years, or at least I didn't follow hockey closely enough to appreciate what kind of player he was. Still, he played, what, ten years for the Wings? So did Shanahan. Should he have his jersey retired?
Or, not to open up a can of worms, but if that's really the criteria, should Osgood?
I don't want his numbers in the rafters. Let the hall-of-fame decide on his career as a whole. This guy signed a "poison-pill" contract with Carolina triggering 20 million in a bonus if his team reached the Conference finals. Something that was about 100% likely to happen if the Red Wings signed him, and very unlikely at that time in Carolina. I actually would have applauded the negotiating leverage he used if I thought it was about money, but he left money on the table when he left unrestricted. He wanted out of Detroit in a bad way. Why would the organization want to put his jersey in the rafters? Stats?
Abel
Delvecchio
Howe
Fedorov
Lindsay
Sawchuk
Yzerman
One of these is not like the others.
I'm sorry, but I just can't agree with this sentiment. He is a great player, and he was amazing for the Red Wings. He was one of my favorite players ever to watch; I just don't see his name in the rafters alongside the current six.
It's definitely a justifiable argument though. I mean, he's clearly HoF-worthy upon first year of eligibility.
In what way is it not like the others.
He isn't Canadian!
Fucking Russians.... Grumble grumble, Don Cherry.
He's Russian. Duh.
So no Lidstrom to the rafters then amirite?
the better.
When it comes to hockey greats, those above are spoken with an air of reverence & respect. The same can be said for the likes of Gordie Howe, Wayne Gretzky, Mario Lemieux, Bobby Orr, and countless others I could mention here like Messier, Roy (arg arg arg ugh arg), or Borque.
I do not see Fedorov's name, 20 years down the line, being given the same style of recognition.
Time will tell. I still think he's HoF-worthy, which brings me to a side note:
2002 Red Wings, greatest team ever? HoF resume says probably:
In - Hull, Larionov, Robitaille, Yzerman
Definitely in at one point - Chelios, Hasek, Fedorov, Lidstrom, Schneider
Maybe someday - Osgood, Datsyuk, Shanahan, Draper
impressive
edit: oops, Schneider wasn't on 01-02 roster
In-Hull, Larionov, Robitaille, Yzerman
Will be in-Chelios, Hasek, Fedorov, Lidstrom, Shanahan (I don't know how you can only say maybe on him. Go look at his career numbers and get back to me)
Possible, but may be longshots-Datsyuk
Wasn't on team-Schneider, Osgood
No chance-Draper. Sorry, I love him. But he's a career role player who happened to stay in one town for over a decade.
Federov will always be my favorite Red Wing. Despite the time Yzerman put in with the Wings, there was something about him that never really got me enthused.
Wh...Wha...What? WHAT?
Yzerman never got you enthused? Holy shit man. He is like the best player, person, leader, and winner to ever put on a Wings sweater.
I'm Russian, so perhaps I'm a bit partial to Federov.
Would be sweet if they brought back Kozlov and put him on a line with Datsyuk.
Federov always drove me crazy because he would be the best player in the world one night, and then not seem to care much the next. His skating, stick-work and shot were all out-of-this-world, but he never had the same drive as Yzerman. I think he could have been the best hockey player ever if he'd cared, but once Scotty made him play as a piece of the system he seemed to coast. That stretch when Bowman moved him to defense was a clear sign that the two were not getting along. Didn't he leave the next year?
Thanks for the great memories and all the goals, but in my mind he does not deserve a jersey in the rafters.
The most valuable of the Russian five, in my opinion, was Larionov. He made the machine work, he learned English first, he helped Yzerman grow into a complete and mature captain capable of managing a room full of egos, he got the most out of Sergei even when he was pouting, and he also stayed on to help make Datsyuk what he is today.
Anyone who can con Anna Kournikova to come to Detroit, Michigan (quite possibly the shittiest city in the entire nation) should be in the Hall of Fame, have their number retired, and get a lifetime supply of blowjobs from Monica Conyers