Soviet National Team Personal Impressions

I don't think the Russians have ever considered this series to be among their most cherished. They didn't play that well, although seemed to get better as the tournament went on.

The KLM line was a shadow of their usual self. Makarov had some nice zip, but did not create much offensively. Krutov was unnoticeable except when he and Makarov were killing penalties expertly. Larionov was the most impressive of the three. When the big line was clicking, Larionov was never the most noticeable of the three. Lucky for the NHL that the line wasn't hitting on full cylinders.

The KLM line also includes defensemen Fetisov and Kasatonov. Both had very strong tournaments, especially Fetisov. Could Fetisov had been the best defenseman in the world in the 1980s? Its a shame that we never saw him compete in the NHL during his prime, but I suspect he might have been as good as anyone in the NHL.

The Soviets didn't really need the offense from the KLM thanks to spectacular play of Valeri Kamensky. Linemates Bykov and Khomutov have always impressed me with their speed and togetherness, but big Kamensky was something else in this tournament. Dare I say he was better than anyone, including Wayne Gretzky? That might be a slight stretch, but certainly the two of them were above everyone else.

Funny thing - For his efforts Kamensky was named Soviet MVP and got a home stereo. Gretzky, the NHL MVP, got a brand new car. I wonder what Kamensky was thinking when he compared the two prizes.

Here is some commentary on the individual Soviet players.

Name Comments
Valeri Kamensky Absolutely stole the show. Incredible showing. Too bad he
was never able to consistently play at that high level. He may have been
better than Gretzky at Rendez-Vous 87. 
Andrei Khomutov Complimented Kamensky well on the opposite wing. Pleasure to watch 
him skate.
Igor Larionov Of the big threesome of Krutov, Larionov, and Makarov, this
was one of the few times that I saw Igor as the most dominant
of the three. Usually he'd be overshadowed by the other two.
Viacheslav Bykov A personal favorite, Bykov didn't overly impress me this time
around. His linemates were great, and Bykov was, like a typical
Russian center, more concerned with defense.
Viacheslav Fetisov Best defenseman on either side of the ice, and maybe in the
world period at this point in time. Mind you, Paul Coffey did not
play, but Coffey was never as good as Fetisov defensively.
Mikhail Tatarinov The announcers kept introducing him as the next great Russian
rearguard. It seemed funny since he amounted to not a whole lot
in the NHL. Nice pass on the Semenov goal in game one.
Alexei Kasatonov Kasatonov, as usual, wasn't far behind Fetisov in the best 
defenseman category at Rendez-Vous '87
Sergei Starikov I thought Starikov played pretty well at Rendez-Vous. I kept my eye
on him because of his early jump to the NHL a couple of years later.
Vladimir Krutov I said earlier Larionov was the dominant of the big three. Krutov was 
easily #3 of the threesome based on these two games.
Mikhail Varnakov He didn't really attract my attention. I guess Tikhonov thought the same
thing as he was benched for game 2.
Sergei Makarov Makarov played well, but didn't produce or create a whole lot of 
offensive chances. It sure was fun watching him and Krutov kill 
penalties though. They just wouldn't let go of the puck.
Anatoli Semenov I was always impressed with Semenov, both in international hockey
and the NHL, but he was never able to amount to as much as he
could have. Beautiful goal in game one, but he hurt himself on it
and couldn't play game 2.
Igor Stelnov He didn't do a whole lot for me in this series. I think the big NHLers and
small NHL ice cut down on his effectiveness.
Vasili Pervukhin Typical unheralded job well done by Pervukhin. Good depth defenseman.
Alexei Gusarov Gusarov impressed me much more than Tatarinov. Most of the Russian
defensemen impressed me actually.
Zintula Bilyaletdinov It was hard not to notice him as the announcers kept tripping up over
his name. 
Viacheslav Lavrov I knew very little about this Lavrov fellow, then or now. He put in a 
gutsy effort and was like a spark plug for the Russians.
Sergei Svetlov I'll be honest: his performance must have been unmemorable because
I don't recall noticing him.
Alexander Semak Similar to what I said about Semenov. Man did this guy ever had a
deadly lazer of a shot.
Sergei Nemchinov Lanky pivot replaced Semenov in game 2. I didn't really notice him
much in Rendez-Vous, but he was a very solid NHLer.
Sergei Priakhin Considering Priakhin, the first Soviet player released in the NHL, did 
very little in the NHL, I thought he had a decent tournament. He
could have played in the NHL with some muscle on his tall body.
Yuri Khmylev With the different pronunciation than I was used to, it took me a while
to figure out who the commentators were talking about. A crafty effort
by a guy I always considered to be underrated.
Evgeny Belosheikin (G) Very steady play, but it was obvious that there was no mystique in
the arena that was present when Vladislav Tretiak was still playing.

Did Not Play: Vitaly Samoilov (G), Sergei Mylnikov (G)