Rendez Vous '87

In February, 1987, the NHL All Star Game was set aside for one season. In its place was two game series in Quebec City that pitted the NHL All Stars against what many people call the strongest team ever iced - The Soviet National Team! There was no clear winner as each side won one game a piece, although the Soviets did score 1 more goal than did the NHL All Stars. Wayne Gretzky led all players with 4 assists, but he was upstaged by the spectacular play of big Russian left winger Valerie Kamensky. Kamensky would later be allowed to play in Quebec City with the Nordiques when he was first cleared to play in the National Hockey League.

Below is a game by game box score followed by a table of complete scoring statistics.

Game One - February 11, 1987 at Quebec City - NHL All Stars 4 - USSR 3

Summary
First Period.

1  NHL   Jari Kurri (Wayne Gretzky, Esa Tikkanen) 5:23

Penalties: Claude Lemieux (NHL) 10:30, Ray Bourque (NHL) 15:34

Second Period

2  NHL   Glenn Anderson (Mario Lemieux) 17:00
3  USSR Alexei Kasatonov (Sergei Makarov) 18:42

Penalties: Dale Hawerchuk (NHL) 12:28, USSR Bench Minor (served by Valerie Kamensky) 14:37

Third Period

4  USSR  Viacheslav Bykov  (Andrei Khomutov, Sergei Starinov) 2:03
5  NHL    Kevin Dineen (Dale Hawerchuk, Dave Poulin) 7:03
6  USSR  Anatoli Semenov (Mikhail Tatarinov, Sergei Varnakov) 8:04
7  NHL    Dave Poulin (Mario Lemieux, Doug Wilson) 18:45

Penalties: Esa Tikkanen (NHL) 8:18

Shots on goal
USSR   5  9  10  =  24
NHL   11  9    7  =  27

Goalies:
USSR:  Evgeny Belosheikin - 60 minutes, 4 GA  : Backup: Sergei Mylnikov
NHL:   Grant Fuhr - 60 minutes, 3GA  :  Backup: Clint Malarchuk

Game Two: February 13, 1987 at Quebec City - USSR 5, NHL All Stars 3

Summary
First Period

1  NHL Mark Messier (Jari Kurri, Wayne Gretzky) PP 3:32

Penalties: Sergei Nemchinov (USSR) 3:32 (?), Vladimir Krutov (USSR) 9:50, Glenn Anderson (NHL) 9:50, Claude Lemieux (NHL) 11:33, Viacheslav Fetisov (USSR) 17:04

Second Period

2.  USSR  Valerie Kamensky (Andrei Khomutov, Viacheslav Bykov) 3:13
3   USSR  Vladimir Krutov (Viacheslav Fetisov, Igor Larionov) 5:41
4   USSR  Valerie Kamensky (unassisted) 19:41

Penalties: None

Third Period

5  NHL  Doug Wilson (Wayne Gretzky, Michel Goulet) PP 7:33
6 USSR Anatoli Semenov (Igor Larionov) 9:19
7 USSR Andrei Khomutov (Valerie Kamensky) 12:59
8  NHL  Ray Bourque (Mario Lemieux, Wayne Gretzky) 19:23

Penalties: Sergei Nemchinov (USSR) 6:05, Alexei Kasatonov (USSR) 11:46, Sergei Priakhin (double minor) 17:20 (second penalty served by Lavrov)

Shots on goal:
USSR:  7  9  13  =  29
NHL    6  13 12  =  31

Goalies:
USSR: Evgeny Belosheikin 60 minutes, 3 GA  : Backup Sergei Mylnikov
NHL   Grant Fuhr, 60 minutes, 5 GA :  Backup: Clint Malarchuk

Scoring Leaders

NHL                                                       Soviet Union

Name  GP G A Pts PIM Ramsey 2 0 0 0 0 Langway 2 0 0 0 0 Green 2 0 0 0 0 Bourque 2 1 0 1 2 U Sameulsson  2 0 0 0 0 D Wilson 2 1 1 2 0 Chellios 2 0 0 0 0 G Anderson 2 1 0 1 2 Hawerchuk 2 0 1 1 0 Messier 2 1 0 1 0 Dineen 2 1 0 1 0 Tikkanen 2 0 1 1 2 Goulet 2 0 1 1 0 Kurri 2 1 1 2 0 Muller 2 0 0 0 0 Poulin 2 1 1 2 0 C Lemieux 2 0 0 0 4 M Lemieux 2 0 3 3 0 Gretzky 2 0 4 4 0 Sandstrom  1 0 0 0 0 Rochefort 1 0 0 0 0

Name GP G A Pts PIM Fetisov 2 0 1 1 4 I Stelnov 2 0 0 0 0 Pervukhin 2 0 0 0 0 Tatarinov 2 0 1 1 0 Kasatonov 2 1 0 1 2 Gusarov 2 0 0 0 0 Starinov 2 0 1 1 0 Bilyaletdinov 2 0 0 0 0 Krutov 2 1 0 1 2 Lavrov 1 0 0 0 0 Varnakov 1 0 1 1 0 Larionov 2 0 2 2 0 Kamensky 2 2 1 3 0 Khomutov 2 1 2 3 0 S Stelnov 2 0 0 0 0 Semak 2 0 0 0 0 Nemchinov 1 0 0 0 4 Priakhin 2 0 0 0 4 Makarov 2 0 1 1 0 Bykov 2 1 1 2 0 Khmylev 2 0 0 0 0 Semenov 1 1 0 1 0