Top 10 Russian hockey players all-time(link)

[um]

He has only been in the league for 3 years. Even though he has had one of the biggest impacts in the NHL, we need to give him more time before he is considered with the elite.

k i must admit thats a good point but isnt datsyuk like 30? anyways so i guess you can say this is my predictions for when they get older

 

[um]

Just before the Russia-Canada series started, my Dad and I sat at the kitchen table and talked about it. We both agreed the Russians had no goaltending (that was the published report, honest) and that the Canadian team would dominate with superior size and strength. I remember we both agreed Frank Mahovlich would be the best player because he had that size and booming shot.

I also remember in the middle of G1, my Dad saying something like "Mahovlich isn't even the best LWer" and we laughed. Kharlamov was tremendous, although we weren't laughing much by the time they hit Vancouver.

The other thing I remember is a MacLean's magazine cartoon. It was of Foster Hewitt announcing a CAN-RUS game and trying to pronounce Cournoyer's name. He said "And it's Courn..Corney....Cornwhy...anyway Tsygankov just scored."

Major kick in the junk for us Canadians.

im canadian and me and my dad make fun of canadian hockey players lol i cheer for russia in the world cup/olympics and he cheers for finland (probably the best hockey country in the world if you look at there population) and im also a capitals fan the only canadian i really like that would be on team canada is mike green i hate pronger, bertuzzi, phanuef, etc. nobody likes to watch dirty hockey (btw im the one caps fan who doesnt hate penguins and crosby)

 

[KnucklePuck96]

pavel bure should be on all the lists stated above

 

[Ashe]

Oveckin deserves to be up on that list, Sure he's been here for 3 years. But guess what he did? He and Crosby helped bring the NHL back into a prime seat. If you dont watch hockey im sure most people know who ovechkin is. His presense and marketability make him be on the list. Especially in this day and age where the NHL is struggling with marketing players.

 

[um]

Oveckin deserves to be up on that list, Sure he's been here for 3 years. But guess what he did? He and Crosby helped bring the NHL back into a prime seat. If you dont watch hockey im sure most people know who ovechkin is. His presense and marketability make him be on the list. Especially in this day and age where the NHL is struggling with marketing players.

thank you finally someone agrees with me but not just ovechkin dont forget datsyuk, kovalchuk, malkin.

 

[Inner Gear]

Russian All-time unit, chosen by great coach V.V.Tikhonov:

Tretiak
Fetisov-Sologubov
Bobrov-Firsov-Kharlamov

 

[jjmcgo]

Tikhonov picked Firsov?

That might be the best thing I've ever seen him do, given the political infighting and how Firsov was so poorly treated after his playing career when Tikhonov was ascendant.
Firsov is their greatest player of all time. Marshall Johnston still calls him the best player he ever saw after they competed in the 1964 and 1968 Olympics and several world championships.
Larionov speaks of him in hushed tones and said he was proud that they became friends.
Firsov led the World Championships in scoring for three straight years and broke the scoring record in 1968. His Soviet teams won the World Championship every year from 1964 to 1971. He played on seven Soviet League championship teams.
Firsov was named to five straight All Star teams at the World Championships. The amazing thing is that he was named an All Star at left wing in 1967 and 1969 and as a right wing in 1968 and 1971. He was honored with the prestigious Directorate Award at the 1967, 1968 and 1971 World Championships.<p>
In 1968, Firsov's 12 tournament goals broke a 17-year-old Olympic record.
He was a better all-around player than Kharlamov. He had a better shot and was a better skater.
Hard as it is to admit, he was the best hockey player in the world in the late 1960s.

 

[AK-27]

(1-10)

- Makarov.
- Kharlamov.
- Fetisov.
- Fedorov.
- Firsov.
- Bykov.
- Tretjak.
- Maltsev.
- Krutov.
- Khomutov.

(11-20)

- Petrov.
- Kasatonov.
- Larionov.
- Mogilny.
- Vasilijev.
- Bure.
- Mikhailov.
- Jakushev.
- Ragulin.
- Kapustin.

 

[Jeffrey]

Can Ovechkin reach to the #1 spot until the end of his career ?

 

[Metallian*]

Can Ovechkin reach to the #1 spot until the end of his career ?

i think so, especially with all the great stats he puts up for the national team

 

[silkyjohnson50]

That is completely wrong. Ovechkin, Kovalchuk, Datsyuk, and Malkin should not even be on the list. It is more like this:

Bure
Fedorov
Larionov- still at the top of his game
Fetisov- same with Larionov
Mogilny
Konstantinov
Kozlov
Zubov
Gonchar
Yashin- yes Yashin, regardless of how he left to go to Russia.

I'm not necessarily agreeing with his list, but i don't agree with this either.

Yashin and Kozlov never reached the level that Datsyuk, Ovechkin, and Malkin are currently playing at. A strong case could be made that these are the three best forwards in the NHL right now.

And if we're only going back to '95, Larionov and Fetisov really don't belong on that list over any of those guys either. Both of them were well past their best days and as somebody who followed them closely in Detroit, they never reached the level that Datsyuk, Ovechkin, and Malkin are playing at right now during their time in the NHL.

Fedorov would definitely be near the top of the list. His play in the mid-90's was mind-blowing, with domination of all 3 zones. As exciting and electrfying as Bure was offensively, i wouldn't put him ahead of Fedorov. Bure would, however, be near the top as well. He's one of the best goal-scorers the NHL has seen.

Zubov is definitely on the list as he's the best Russian defencemen to play in the NHL (the level he played while in the NHL)...

With that being said, Konstantinov was playing at an even higher-level, but the accident changed that and his career was so short that it's really hard to compare. He had a better peak than Zubov, but Zubov's career has been the best by a Russian.

Moginly's a tougher call. He obviously had a couple of amazing offensive seasons, but he did it during an era where it was more common to put up them type of numbers, and he actually had 8 NHL season where he was under a point per game in production.


Datsyuk, Ovechkin, and Malkin would definitely be on that list.

Right now, Datsyuk is the closest thing the NHL has seen to mid-90's Fedorov in terms of complete dominance.

Ovechkin, i mean what needs to be said here. Ever since he stepped into the NHL he's been a goal scoring machine, and one of the most dangerous forwards.

Malkin has elevated his game in the last year to amazing heights. Offensively he's been dominant, and all one really needs to do is look at the numbers he has put up in the last year.

I truly believe that these 3 are currently playing at a level that maybe only Fedorov and Bure have reached at the NHL level.

 

[Topshelfsnipes44]

Kovalchuk should be on any of those lists. He is on one of the worst and worst managed teams and is still a consistent 45+ goal scorer. This year he is on the absolute worst team, but still manages to keep himself in the top half of the league in scoring. He has the handles and speed of Kharlamov, more size. Plus think about who Kovalchuk is playing against, he makes them look stupid and these are basically the best players from all over the world. Kharlamov never really faced so high a level of skill against anyone he played. Plus you guys shouldn't forget Moginly or especially Mikhailov.

 

[MaxV]

It's too early to put Kovalchuk, Ovechkin and Malkin on this list. Perhaps Datsyuk, but he wasn't always a dominant player. He'll need a few more years of this production.

And for the record Kovalchuk isn't even close to what Kharlamov was in his prime.

I don't think you guys realize just how good Kharlamov was in his prime. Bure isn't "the Russia rocket", that nickname belongs to Kharlamov.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B83hzBVupXI
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yuD9-1v0Bno
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VNJVOXdQJ1Y

That's not great, that's POETRY IN MOTION.

Don't let those videos fool you, those Canadian defenders were going at full speed, it only looks like they are standing still.

 

[Topshelfsnipes44]

Honestly, I don't even think it is fair to compare Soviet guys to modern Russian guys. Lets look at who was on Kharlamov's line, Mikhailov, and probably someone else ridiculously good. Plus lets not forget they played together, lived together, practiced together for basically their whole careers. Consider that Kovalchuk, Ovechkin, Malkin, etc are placed on a more random team and still do amazing things. Kharlamov and Mikhailov didn't even play against competition that would have been equal to their skill level and intelligence or their level of understanding of each other this is typically called chemistry. So....Kharlamov had Mikhailov, Kovalchuk has who to play with? Colby Armstrong? Erik Christiansen, the only other legit player on Atlanta is Slava Kozlov. If you had Ovechkin and Kovalchuk had played on a 70's or 80's Soviet team you would think no one would ever compare to them either.

 

[silkyjohnson50]

It's too early to put Kovalchuk, Ovechkin and Malkin on this list. Perhaps Datsyuk, but he wasn't always a dominant player. He'll need a few more years of this production.

And for the record Kovalchuk isn't even close to what Kharlamov was in his prime.

I don't think you guys realize just how good Kharlamov was in his prime. Bure isn't "the Russia rocket", that nickname belongs to Kharlamov.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B83hzBVupXI
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yuD9-1v0Bno
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VNJVOXdQJ1Y

That's not great, that's POETRY IN MOTION.

Don't let those videos fool you, those Canadian defenders were going at full speed, it only looks like they are standing still.

I was only referring to the post that was looking from 1995-present.

Obviously the careers of the current players would have to be farther along to even think about them on an all-time list.

 

[Topshelfsnipes44]

Check that out, I assure none of the goalies or defensemen are standing still, they are going full speed. This is just pure crazy ridiculousness on-par with anything Kharlamov has done.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=axmOCYuukQo&feature=channel_page

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RNz8CRFSo44

 

[MaxV]

Great videos. I love Kovy.

And I still say he's not even close to what Kharlamov was.

 

[Koval17]

malkin, datsyuk and ovechkin will be on there in 20 years FO SHO

 

[member 30781]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M5sfRf9BwRc

Here is the video I made of Kovalchuk.


He will be on the list in 15 years.

 

[RedAce]

Well the biggest problem is most people on here have never really seen Kharlamov and others from the 60's 70's and 80's they see a few youtube clips and such but this does not do these players justice. I have been VERY VERY fortunet to see alot ALOT of Kharlamov and others from 70's and 80's and they were amazing But so are these great kid's today Datsyuk Malkin Ovechkin,,, But what is so amazing about Kharlamov is that he was SOOOOOOOOOOOOO far ahead of his time, he was so creative so skilled with the puck. I have seen him (Kharlamov) pull off moves that to this day i have never seen anyone else do. the training and pratice and stickhandeling you see kids working on today is stuff Kharlamov and other Russians were doing in the 50's 60's 70's.

 

[um]

top 10 for right now
ovechkin
malkin
datsyuk
kovalchuk
markov
semin
khabibulin
(atl)kozlov
kovelev
frolov

 

[Boxscore]

Here is my list:

1. Fetisov

2. Tretiak

3. Kharlamov

4. Firsov

5. Bobrov

6. Makarov

7. Sologubov

8. Maltsev

9. Mikhailov

10. Larionov

HM:

A. Krutov

B. Vasiliev

C. Kasatonov

D. Fedorov

E. So many greats like Bure, Kovalev, Gusev, Ragulin, Petrov, Mogilny, Ovechkin, etc.

 

[sparxx87]

I can't say all time, because many of these great players were before my time. But for a 22 year old who watched NHL all his life, heres my list;
1.Fetisov
2.Fedorov(possibly bias-was always my fav player growing up)
3.Mogilny
4.Bure
5.Konstantinov
6.Larionov
7.Yuskevich(prolly my favorite RUS-D of all time)
8.Kovalev(when he wants to be)
9.Datsyuk
10.Ovechkin(should possibly be higher, but IMO he'll stand alone at the top when his career is over)

Obviously I started watching hockey in the early 90's so this list wont go past then, but I can't compose a list of people I've never seen play.

 

[Zusammenhalt]

I can't say all time, because many of these great players were before my time. But for a 22 year old who watched NHL all his life, heres my list;
1.Fetisov
2.Fedorov(possibly bias-was always my fav player growing up)
3.Mogilny
4.Bure
5.Konstantinov
6.Larionov
7.Yuskevich(prolly my favorite RUS-D of all time)
8.Kovalev(when he wants to be)
9.Datsyuk
10.Ovechkin(should possibly be higher, but IMO he'll stand alone at the top when his career is over)

Obviously I started watching hockey in the early 90's so this list wont go past then, but I can't compose a list of people I've never seen play.

A little different question but don't know where else to ask it. Does anyone know if Igor Larionov is related to Yuri Larionov the pairs figure skater?
Also asked it here on page 2 under General thread.
http://hfboards.com/showthread.php?t=771725

 

[NMF78]

my list:

1) Valery Kharlamov
2) Vladislav Tretiak
3) Sergei Makarov
4) Viacheslav Fetisov
5) Boris Mikhailov
6) Anatoli Firsov
7) Vladimir Petrov
8) Aleksandr Maltsev
9) Vsevolod Bobrov
10) Pavel Bure

Ovechkin & Malkin both have the potential to make this list imo.