The Soviet Hockey Program

[Zine]

ur not just nitpicking now...ur being ridiculous !

The Soviets reportedly invited Schooley behind the Iron Curtain for a month, BEFORE they had played against him, and because they wanted to LEARN from a reputed goal scoring WIZARD!

It’s Not like they ( the Soviets ) extended this sort of invitation to every Tom , Dick or Harry hockey player, or many Westerners either. This was 1950's Russia we’re talking about, at the height of the Cold War and having just recovered from its Stalinist hangover= a VERY CLOSED SOCIETY! I don’t have any cold hard facts ( oh niggling one ), still, I’ll lay dollars to donuts, that this sort of invitation woulda been almost unheard of !

Scotty B:

Theokritos:

Sorry, I don’t see the problem here at all? ... This particular tidbit has no bearing on the Percival/ Tarasov debate. So what does it matter if it was Tarasov, or some other head honcho from the Soviet Hockey Establishment, who green lighted Schooley’s invite?

Nott cites the 8 goals scored by Schooley vs Fife Flyers, on Dec 11,1953 , as a world record, at the time, and one which got recorded , as such, on page 178 of the 1955 edition of The Guinness Book of World Records. These FACTS would be pretty EASY to check, plus the date of that game jives with the 1954 time-line for Schooley tutoring ( do u like that term better ? ) Russian hockey players, presumably, at the behest of ( do u like that designation better ? ) officials overseeing Soviet Hockey, although it still doesn’t help us with the month obviously.

For the record, I have no trouble believing ( in hindsight ) that Schooley’s visit came some months AFTER Russians won their first World Championship.

Most of the time I talk about this stuff it's from memory (not with a copy of Nott’s article handy ) and I got in the habit of saying West Germany Nats, cause that’s who I thought it was. What can I say? Old Dog + Old Habits = Die Hard.

As an aside, I wondered earlier whether Schooley ( his ability to speak German notwithstanding ) was even eligible to suit up for East Germany in any official game vs CCCP Nats. So now I’m wondering if Schooley and/or Nott might not have made the same sort of mistake as me.

Nott’s article must have been written circa 1989. Schooley was reportedly 60 ( his memory, like his hair, might have gone a tad grey by then). Plus that was before the Internet became what it would become in the 90's, never mind what it is today. Doubtless newspaper writers, facing a deadline and such, were a lot less careful circa 1989 about fact checking; plus research woulda been a good deal harder back then.

So Maybe, just Maybe, it was an East German club team Schooley suited up for vs a West German one, and Maybe it was a Russian club team, he played the previous day?

Wait a second here.

1. Being invited to tour and play in the Soviet Union (so players can learn from you) is not tatamount to guest coaching the Soviet National Team at Tarasov's request.
Cmon, to say so is ridiculous. Not to be taken seriously.

2. You said 'these FACTS would be pretty EASY to check'. However I have yet to encounter any evidence, in English or Russian, corroborating that a Lloyd Percival protege named Hal Schooley was even in the Soviet Union (I have even browsed old game reports). In fact, I have yet to find any mention of it in German, although my German skills are limited to google translate. Perhaps some native German speaker could help out.
Surely, some ex-teammates or opponents (German, Russian) or Canadian colleagues who knew he went would eventually make mention of such an obvious and groundbreaking venture as a Canadian playing behind the 1950s Iron Curtain? No? I can't seem to find anything.

The article you posted is a very interesting find. However, it's written in a sensationalist manner and Schooley himself is the only source, not to mention some aspects don't appear to pass the smell test.
Nonetheless, its basic premise is plausible. It would be great if it could at least be verified.

 

[Scotty B]

Theokritos;

where in the article does it say Schooley "guest coached" the Soviets?

Theokritos:

If Schooley "guest coached the CCCP" by playing against them then I guess every Canadian player who played against the Soviets in the 1950s and 1960s served as a "guest coach of the Soviet national team"

Zine:

1. Being invited to tour and play in the Soviet Union (so players can learn from you) is not tatamount to guest coaching the Soviet National Team at Tarasov's request.
Cmon, to say so is ridiculous. Not to be taken seriously.

Au contraire...from my perspective, it’s the apoplectic response to my choice of words, a mere two words, and two wholly apropos words which I still stand behind, which is ridiculous/ NOT to be taken seriously

To me, ( and maybe I'm reading too much into this ) some of u Russians/ Euros are being far too protective of the MYTH that Soviet hockey developed in a vacuum , as it were.

Indeed some here seem to view as somehow antithetical to conventional wisdom - as some sort of anathema, neigh as a heresy- the very notion that a Canuck ( a reputed goal scoring phenom) should have the wherewithal, neigh the unmitigated gall, to instruct ( aka teach, aka coach ) members of the CCCP national team ( whether individually or as a group ) on ANY of the finer points of goal scoring, bearing in mind that this has always been the main objective of the game, bearing in mind that the Soviets had reportedly expressed their desire to learn from said individual, and bearing in mind that CCCPers were still comparatively new at hockey circa December 1953, and hadn't won anything of note, yet.

Seriously guys, is this a language problem or what? Do some here imagine that the only way to serve as a ‘ guest coach’ is to put on a suit and tie and stand in front and/or behind the CCCP bench during an official game? I didn’t have that image in my mind at all. Schooley didn’t speak Russian. Ergo, his expertise could have been most readily shared, on the ice, during various practice drills, or what have u. And again this could have involved various Soviet Nats, both individually and/or collectively, adorned in the uniforms of various club teams and/ or sporting CCCP crests. All of the Above constitutes COACHING!*

*Moreover, the notion that those same Russian pupils might want to compete against their Canuck tutor, in a game, official or not ( a game where, according to Nott, Schooley didn't disappoint !) certainly doesn't seem like a stretch either...

Glenn Not never uses the term ‘ guest coach’. So cry me a river? I was Not quoting Nott, I was writing from memory, as I made abundantly clear.... Besides, if people want to be so-oooo anally retentive about two words, two wholly apropos words, two can play that game

Coach ( source http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/coach?s=t )
noun
a person who trains an athlete or a team of athletes:
a private tutor
a person who instructs...
.
verb (used with object)
to give instruction or advice to in the capacity of a coach.; instruct:
She has coached the present tennis champion.
verb (used without object) to act as a coach.

Synonyms: train, teach, instruct, instructor, mentor, handler, manager, tutor, teacher

Guest
noun
1.a person who spends some time at another person's home in some social activity, as a visit, dinner, or party.
2.a person who receives the hospitality of a club, a city, or the like.
3.a person who patronizes a hotel, restaurant, etc., for the lodging, food, or entertainment it provides.
4.an often well-known person invited to participate or perform in a regular program, series, etc., as a substitute for a regular member or as a special attraction.
.
verb (used with object)
6.to entertain as a guest.
verb (used without object)
7.to be a guest; make an appearance as a guest:

She's been guesting on all the TV talk shows.
adjective
8.provided for or done by a guest:
a guest towel; a guest column for a newspaper.
9.participating or performing as a guest:
( as for example) a guest conductor ( or a guest coach ).

From Glen Nott's article, we read:

“After I ( Schooley ) scored the 8, I guess the Russians read it in the paper and got on the phone to Canada House in London. They wondered if Mr. Schooley would come over for one month and tour Russia. They had heard he was an exceptional goal scorer and would like to learn from him”
One year later, Schooley was behind the Iron Curtain, wowing the comrades with his prolific touch around the net.

Scotty B:

Learning implies teaching, teaching IS tantamount to coaching, and he was their invited guest...ergo I used the term ' guest coach'...again seems pretty self explanatory sans explanation so kwitcher*****in

As for the bit about Tarasov? How many times, and in how many ways, must I say this? Earlier, I assumed that Tarasov, The so-called Father of Soviet Hockey, was in charge circa 1954. Hells bells, even for a bonafide hockey historian ( which I’m not ) that would seem like a pretty easy mistake to make. NO? I was likewise operating on the assumption that no Western Hockey player, circa 1954, is gonna be invited behind the Iron Curtain, without the head honcho of CCCP hockey’s approval? At the risk of repeating myself ad nauseam, that still seems like a very safe assumption. And again... What does it matter if it was Tarasov or some other dude? How is that Germaine to the main topic at hand? Namely, Percival’s reputed impact on Tarasov, and by extension on CCCP hockey?

Zine:

...You said 'these FACTS would be pretty EASY to check'.

Yes, but that comment was in reference to the game btwn Fife Flyers and Paisley Pirates on Dec 11th, 1953, wherein Schooley reportedly tallied 8 goals, as documented, again reportedly, on page 178 of the 1955 edition of the Guinness Book of WRs.

Zine :

I have yet to encounter any evidence, in English or Russian, corroborating that a Lloyd Percival protege named Hal** Schooley was even in the Soviet Union (I have even browsed old game reports). In fact, I have yet to find any mention of it in German, although my German skills are limited to google translate. Perhaps some native German speaker could help out.

Surely, some ex-teammates or opponents (German, Russian) or Canadian colleagues who knew he went would eventually make mention of such an obvious and groundbreaking venture as a Canadian playing behind the 1950s Iron Curtain? No? I can't seem to find anything.

For most Canucks , at the time, hockey overseas, so long as it didn't involve players in a Canadian uni, mattered not. As for the Soviet Union/ Eastern bloc? These were the antithesis of Open Societies. Ergo, ( even sans Soviet purges/ revisionist history ) firsthand records of this might be mighty hard to come by.

Still presumably, records , newspaper stories etc, of Schooley's barnstorming exploits in mainland Europe, circa 1955 and later, in places like Italy, Austria, etc...can still be found. If someone started with this, maybe these accounts, might also mention, in passing, by way of an interesting footnote/tidbit*** Schooley's time behind the iron curtain?

Zine:

The article you posted is a very interesting find. However, it's written in a sensationalist manner and Schooley himself is the only source

Again ur forgetting about the Guinness Book...If u could score 8 goals in a game, and 89 goals in 62 games, in the British professional league. which was quite good in the years immediately prior to, and in the years not long after ww2 ( bearing in mind that a group of Canuck ex-pats won Olympic hockey gold for UK in 1936 ), you could doubtless do some considerable damage too against teams in mainland Europe, and on both sides of the Iron curtain!

Zine

...some aspects don't appear to pass the smell test

Ditto many claims that CCCP hockey developed independently sans considerable input from Canucks

Zine

.... Nonetheless, its basic premise is plausible. It would be great if it could at least be verified

I can only echo ur sentiment, that it would be great if someone, anyone , with any info on any of this, would share it ici!

PEACE OUT

P.S: **I never heard Schooley called anything but Harold

PPS: *** Interesting to European ears, at the time, as opposed to those of Canucks who still thought of Europe, inclusive of the Eastern block , as a Hockey Backwater...

 

[Canadiens1958]

International Exchanges

Posting a link to my comments in another thread about international hockey exchanges:

http://hfboards.mandatory.com/showpost.php?p=95608985&postcount=21

Basically as defined by hockey governing bodies, official and non - official exchanges did happen. Also you have the cultural and political aspect to consider.

Prime example would be the 1945 Moscow Dynamo Soccer team with Vsevolod Bobrov toured England for a series of exhibitions games during which they were exposed to Canadian Ice Hockey and received Equipment, perhaps some ice time with the Canadian players.

it is possible to split hairs over such meetings as to whether coaching,etc took place but one cannot escape the conclusion that the meeting was a benefit to International hockey.

 

[Theokritos]

Seems to me, that BEFORE Tarasov is going to order + ship 500 copies of a hockey book, behind the Iron Curtain, he’s going to read it AND presumably try to put some of its suggestions into practice on the Ice. Likewise, it seems reasonable to assume Tarasov needed the OK from his own bosses, since presumably the Soviet sports’ ministry was footing the Bill, plus, with the wheels of Communist bureaucracy moving notoriously slowly, common sense dictates that this 1955 date should probably be pushed back quite a bit. Ergo, Mossman’s contention, that Percival's tactics and training methods probably first came to Tarasov's attention circa 1951,certainly doesn’t seem out of line with the above.

Speculation on top of speculation at this point. What we can say with certainty is that the Soviets were aware of Percival's Handbook by 1955 – every claim beyond that has the burden of proof.

Edit: Now that I've got Mossman's book it turns out he's got the info from John Coleman who in turn refers to Stan Obodiac. I included the info in the Tarasov biography resp. careerography in post 100. See March 1951.

It’s Not like they ( the Soviets ) extended this sort of invitation to every Tom , Dick or Harry hockey player, or many Westerners either.

How do you know that? Because no-one has ever heard of them? Well, how many people have heard of Harold Schooley so far?

Sorry, I don’t see the problem here at all? ... This particular tidbit has no bearing on the Percival/ Tarasov debate. So what does it matter if it was Tarasov, or some other head honcho from the Soviet Hockey Establishment, who green lighted Schooley’s invite?

A story no-one has ever heard of, brought forward in a rather sensationalist tone – and then it turns out some of the alleged facts are wrong. Should always cause the alarm bells to go off.

Nott’s article must have been written circa 1989. Schooley was reportedly 60 ( his memory, like his hair, might have gone a tad grey by then). Plus that was before the Internet became what it would become in the 90's, never mind what it is today. Doubtless newspaper writers, facing a deadline and such, were a lot less careful circa 1989 about fact checking; plus research woulda been a good deal harder back then.

So we've got a careless newspaper writer interviewing a man with memory lapses – and the resulting article is what you want us to trust in. And you wonder why people treat it with reserve?

I never heard Schooley called anything but Harold

He was regularly called Hal Schooley in Europe.

Ditto many claims that CCCP hockey developed independently sans considerable input from Canucks

I can't speak for others, but as far as I'm concerned there is no doubt Soviet hockey developed under direct and indirect influence of the Canadians. For starters, the game (basics & rules) itself was from Canada and when it came to the Soviet Union in the 1930s and 40s the Russians explicitly referred to it as "Canadian hockey". At the beginning they basically poured their soccer and "Russian hockey" (=bandy) know-how into the new mould from Canada: puck instead of ball, different sticks, fewer players, smaller field of play. The first international test of the Soviet hockey program was against LTC Prague, one of the leading clubs in Europe at that time (1948) – a very important learning experience. Who coached LTC Prague? Mike Buckna, a Canadian. Then the Soviets entered the IIHF circuit. During that period every game against Canadians was more or less a learning experience. Did they deny it? No, Tarasov et al publicly stated numerous times in the 1950s, 60s and well into the 70s that Soviet hockey players still had a lot to learn from the Canadians, the "masters of hockey".

So why did Tarasov claim to be an innovator? Because he decided to not imitate what he & other Russian observers considered the blueprint of the Canadian style and strategy: Shortest path to the goal, shooting at every opportunity, dumping the puck and recapturing it by forechecking, playing a physical game. Instead of trying to compete with the Canadians in these fields, he developed an alternative approach: Lots of passing with turning back and regrouping if opportune, holding the puck (no dump and chase, shooting only from the perfect spot), fast counter-attacks to take advantage of the forechecking. I think that is usually (or at least was originally) meant when Soviet hockey is called an "original creation not following Canadian examples" or the like.

 

[Killion]

So why did Tarasov claim to be an innovator? Because he decided to not imitate what he & other Russian observers considered the blueprint of the Canadian style and strategy: Shortest path to the goal, shooting at every opportunity, dumping the puck and recapturing it by forechecking, playing a physical game. Instead of trying to compete with the Canadians in these fields, he developed an alternative approach: Lots of passing with turning back and regrouping if opportune, holding the puck (no dump and chase, shooting only from the perfect spot), fast counter-attacks to take advantage of the forechecking. I think that is usually (or at least was originally) meant when Soviet hockey is called an "original creation not following Canadian examples" or the like.

Sounds exactly like Guyle Fielders game Theo... www.greatesthockeylegends.com/2006/06/guyle-fielder.html ... The Greatest Star who Never Was. The WHL & elsewhere in the minors (and it sounds like Hal Schooley was cut from the same cloth) peppered with players & play of that kind. The NHL "game" in the 50's & 60's one that was highly defensive, dump & chase, laneway hockey. I think its important that we acknowledge & distinguish between the "NHL Game" and "The Game of Hockey" as played on a much broader canvas across Canada & the US from elite amateur on up through Junior, Intermediate, Senior & Semi/Minor-pro. Players like Fielder, and the old Q for example was full of guys like that as well, playing a sort of hybrid of what you might call the Tarasov School of hockey but it pre-dates that and was contemporaneous to the development of hockey in the Soviet Union. That school, players like Golden Guyle, the NHL didnt want them. Either adapt or go play your dipsy doodle dandy games in the QHL, WHL or wherever. This different brand of hockey while nothing new was quite popular, so much so that the NHL was really rather worried that they'd lose their place as the preeminent league in North America and as such in part precipitated Expansion in 67/68 (amongst other factors of course).

 

[Theokritos]

I think its important that we acknowledge & distinguish between the "NHL Game" and "The Game of Hockey" as played on a much broader canvas across Canada & the US from elite amateur on up through Junior, Intermediate, Senior & Semi/Minor-pro. Players like Fielder, and the old Q for example was full of guys like that as well, playing a sort of hybrid of what you might call the Tarasov School of hockey but it pre-dates that and was contemporaneous to the development of hockey in the Soviet Union.

I'm sure there were such players in North America even before the Russians got introduced to the puck, but the "NHL Game" must have been prevalent enough among the Canadian non-NHL teams the Soviets encountered (or the "NHL tendencies" within the hybrid style must have been so apparent, to European observers at least) that they considered it the quintessence of the Canadian way to play. But no doubt there was more in North America than just that (perceived) essence.

 

[Canadiens1958]

Soccer

Speculation on top of speculation at this point. What we can say with certainty is that the Soviets were aware of Percival's Handbook by 1955 – every claim beyond that has the burden of proof.



How do you know that? Because no-one has ever heard of them? Well, how many people have heard of Harold Schooley so far?



A story no-one has ever heard of, brought forward in a rather sensationalist tone – and then it turns out some of the alleged facts are wrong. Should always cause the alarm bells to go off.



So we've got a careless newspaper writer interviewing a man with memory lapses – and the resulting article is what you want us to trust in. And you wonder why people treat it with reserve?



He was regularly called Hal Schooley in Europe.



I can't speak for others, but as far as I'm concerned there is no doubt Soviet hockey developed under direct and indirect influence of the Canadians. For starters, the game (basics & rules) itself was from Canada and when it came to the Soviet Union in the 1930s and 40s the Russians explicitly referred to it as "Canadian hockey". At the beginning they basically poured their soccer and "Russian hockey" (=bandy) know-how into the new mould from Canada: puck instead of ball, different sticks, fewer players, smaller field of play. The first international test of the Soviet hockey program was against LTC Prague, one of the leading clubs in Europe at that time (1948) – a very important learning experience. Who coached LTC Prague? Mike Buckna, a Canadian. Then the Soviets entered the IIHF circuit. During that period every game against Canadians was more or less a learning experience. Did they deny it? No, Tarasov et al publicly stated numerous times in the 1950s, 60s and well into the 70s that Soviet hockey players still had a lot to learn from the Canadians, the "masters of hockey".

So why did Tarasov claim to be an innovator? Because he decided to not imitate what he & other Russian observers considered the blueprint of the Canadian style and strategy: Shortest path to the goal, shooting at every opportunity, dumping the puck and recapturing it by forechecking, playing a physical game. Instead of trying to compete with the Canadians in these fields, he developed an alternative approach: Lots of passing with turning back and regrouping if opportune, holding the puck (no dump and chase, shooting only from the perfect spot), fast counter-attacks to take advantage of the forechecking. I think that is usually (or at least was originally) meant when Soviet hockey is called an "original creation not following Canadian examples" or the like.

Most of the original Soviet Ice Hockey players had a soccer background- Bobrov being the prime example. The bolded refers to soccer type tactics while recognizing that the dump and chase is not feasible due to the out of bounds feature of soccer.

 

[Theokritos]

Most of the original Soviet Ice Hockey players had a soccer background- Bobrov being the prime example. The bolded refers to soccer type tactics while recognizing that the dump and chase is not feasible due to the out of bounds feature of soccer.

That's right, although it's worth pointing out that the size of the soccer pitch allows an approach at least similar to dump and chase: trying to get into the scoring area as fast as possible by kicking the ball far into the opponents' half and rushing after it. This strategy, sometimes referred to as kick and rush, has been called the traditional cornerstone of English soccer coaching. Like dump and chase, minus the boards and the body checking. Maybe a trace of joint British heritage of English soccer and Canadian hockey?

Russian soccer however had entered a different path in the 1930s, namely under the influence of Boris Arkadyev. His "belief in passing and movement" (see last paragraph here) led to the system displayed when Dinamo Moscow toured Great Britain in 1945:

Albert Tennant, Chelsea Football Club:
"The Russians were on the move all the time. We could hardly keep up with them."

Davie Meiklejohn, Daily Record:
"They interchanged positions to the extent of the outside-left running over to the right-wing and vice versa. It was a Chinese puzzle to try to follow the players in their positions as it was given in the programme. They simply wandered here and there at will, but the most remarkable feature of it all, they never got in each other's way."

Alex James, News of the World:
"They play to a plan, repeating it over and over again, and they show little variation."

Source: Jonathan Wilson

Boris Arkadyev coached Dinamo Moscow from 1940-1944 and CDKA (later renamed CSKA) Moscow from 1944-1952. Among those who played and trained under him were Chernyshov (1940-44), Bobrov (1945-49) and Tarasov (1945-46 and 1947). The latter would later refer to Arkadyev as one of his most important teachers.

 

[Theokritos]

Trivia addition:

Arkadyev was inspired to develop his system by a Basque soccer selection that made a huge impression on the Soviets when it toured the USSR in June 1937. The objective of the trip was to raise funds for the cause of the Republican faction in the Spanish Civil War. Things didn't look bright back home as the Basque region was in the process of being conquered by the Nationalist Faction. Among the numerous Basque children removed to a safe place (in this case Russia) was a girl named Carmen Oribe Abad – she would later marry a certain Boris Kharlamov and give birth to a son named Valeri. So the Spanish Civil War brought the seeds of Soviet hockey and the mother of one of its greatest players to Moscow at the same time in June 1937.

 

[Zine]

For most Canucks , at the time, hockey overseas, so long as it didn't involve players in a Canadian uni, mattered not. As for the Soviet Union/ Eastern bloc? These were the antithesis of Open Societies. Ergo, ( even sans Soviet purges/ revisionist history ) firsthand records of this might be mighty hard to come by.

Still presumably, records , newspaper stories etc, of Schooley's barnstorming exploits in mainland Europe, circa 1955 and later, in places like Italy, Austria, etc...can still be found. If someone started with this, maybe these accounts, might also mention, in passing, by way of an interesting footnote/tidbit*** Schooley's time behind the iron curtain?

Zine:

Again ur forgetting about the Guinness Book...If u could score 8 goals in a game, and 89 goals in 62 games, in the British professional league. which was quite good in the years immediately prior to, and in the years not long after ww2 ( bearing in mind that a group of Canuck ex-pats won Olympic hockey gold for UK in 1936 ), you could doubtless do some considerable damage too against teams in mainland Europe, and on both sides of the Iron curtain!

Zine

Ditto many claims that CCCP hockey developed independently sans considerable input from Canucks

Zine

I can only echo ur sentiment, that it would be great if someone, anyone , with any info on any of this, would share it ici!

PEACE OUT

P.S: **I never heard Schooley called anything but Harold

PPS: *** Interesting to European ears, at the time, as opposed to those of Canucks who still thought of Europe, inclusive of the Eastern block , as a Hockey Backwater...

Firsthand records (including game reports) should be very easy to find, especially considering Schooley claimed to have played in a tournament with and against German teams.

INTERESTINGLY:
Other than WC and 2 national team exhibitions (Feb. 8-10, '54), the only games played between Russians and Germans in 1953 and 1954 was during the exhibition "Velvet and Silk Cup" tournament. It was played late Oct. 1954 and featured Team USSR (playing as Dynamo Moscow) as well as two German and a Swiss team. In addition, Dynamo Moscow also played 4 extra exhibition games against German opponents.....including the finale on Nov 1, '54 against a 'Unified German team' comprised of both East and West German players (pretty cool!!).
The date of these games is very consistent with the time period in question, and the format greatly corresponds to Schooley's account.

But unfortunately it wasn't played in the USSR, it was held throughout Germany. Furthermore, Schooley couldn't have scored 12 goals against the 'Soviets' because Dynamo Moscow outscored tourney opponents 23-4, and 26-4 in the other 4 games.
These games are well documented by numerous Russian and German sources. In fact, there's a HF thread on it (including video) here.

There's also this. It says that the majority of the media at the time mistakenly reported the 4 extra exhibitions were played in Moscow. Take away from it what you will.

 

[Theokritos]

Other than WC and 2 national team exhibitions (Feb. 8-10, '54), the only games played between Russians and Germans in 1953 and 1954 was during the exhibition "Velvet and Silk Cup" tournament. It was played late Oct. 1954 and featured Team USSR (playing as Dynamo Moscow) as well as two German and a Swiss team. In addition, Dynamo Moscow also played 4 extra exhibition games afterwards...including the finale on Nov 1, '54 against a 'Unified German team' comprised of both East and West German players (pretty cool!!).
The date of these games is very consistent with the time period in question, and the format greatly corresponds to Schooley's account... These games are well documented by numerous Russian and German sources. In fact, there's a HF thread on it (including video) here.

Was neither aware of the tournament nor that thread. Nice! As for the 'Unified German team' (Gesamtdeutsche Mannschaft): such teams had already participated in the 1953 European Basketball Championship and the 1954 World Artistic Gymnastics Championships, so it was en vogue.

But unfortunately it wasn't played in the USSR, it was held throughout Germany.

The Berlin game could have been taken place in East Berlin, no? That's where the Soviets trained prior to the tournament.

 

[Zine]

Was neither aware of the tournament nor that thread. Nice! As for the 'Unified German team' (Gesamtdeutsche Mannschaft): such teams had already participated in the 1953 European Basketball Championship and the 1954 World Artistic Gymnastics Championships, so it was en vogue.



The Berlin game could have been taken place in East Berlin, no? That's where the Soviets trained prior to the tournament.

Correct. The exhibitions played in Berlin were on the east side of the Iron Curtain (at the Werner-Seelenbinder-Halle, East Berlin).

Interesting note: Although Team USSR played as Dynamo Moscow, it looks as though the contest against 'Gesamtdeutsche Mannschaft' was deemed important enough to record/memorialize as an official national team exhibition game. I just noticed it's even listed on Chidlovski's CCCP site.

 

[Theokritos]

Institutions I

The Soviet sports clubs

1) Sports clubs of the Army, Air Force and Navy, under the umbrella of the "Physical Culture and Sports Association of the Armed Forces" and overseen by the Soviet Ministry of Defence. After several name changes most Army sports clubs were labeled as SKA (Sportivnyj klub armii, "Sports Club of the Army") by the 1960s. Several of them involved hockey branches: Among others SKA Leningrad, SKA Kalinin/Lipetsk, SKA Sverdlovsk, SKA Novosibirsk, SKA Khabarovsk, CSKA ("Central Sports Club of the Army", Moscow) and, deviating from the name scheme, Zvezda ("Star") Chebarkul. The only non-Army club within the Armed Forces to ever gain relevance in Soviet hockey was the Air Force Team of the Moscow Military District (VVS MVO) from 1946-1953.

2) Sports clubs of the KGB and Ministry of Interior under the umbrella of the "Physical Culture and Sports Society Dinamo". The name Dinamo is a compound of the Greek word dýnamis and the Latin word motio and stands for "Power in Motion". Several Dinamo clubs incorporated hockey departments, for example Dinamo Moscow, Dinamo Leningrad, Dinamo Kiev (Ukrainian: Dynamo Kyiv), Dinamo Minsk (Belarusian: Dynama Minsk) and Dinamo Riga (Latvian: Rīgas Dinamo).

3) Sports clubs representing a broad variety of economic enterprises and public service institutions, ranging from public transportation over factories to collective farms. These clubs operated under the umbrella of "Voluntary Sports Societies" (Dobrovolnye sportivnye obshchestva, DSO), most of whom were overseen by one of the Soviet Trade Unions and linked to the corresponding ministry, depending on the branch of occupation. Of the great number of Voluntary Sports Societies in the Soviet Union here are a few that included hockey clubs of relevance:

3. 1) Traktor: DSO of the Tractor Industry Trade Union. Incorporated in another DSO (Torpedo, see below) in 1953. In hockey: Traktor Chelyabinsk.
3. 2) Torpedo: DSO of the Automotive Industry Trade Union. Merged with others to form the new DSO Trud ("Labour") in 1957. Torpedo Gorki, Torpedo Yaroslavl, Torpedo Ust-Kamenogorsk etc.
3. 3) Metallurg: DSO of the Metallurgical Industry Trade Union. Among those socities merged to form DSO Trud (1957). Metallurg Novokuznetsk, Metallurg Magnitogorsk, Metallurg Cherepovets etc.
3. 4) Khimik ("Chemist"): DSO of the Chemical Industry Trade Union. Among those societies merged to form DSO Trud (1957). Khimik Voskresensk, Khimik Engels etc.
3. 5) Krylja Sovietov ("Wings of the Councils"): DSO of the Aviation Industry Trade Union. Became part of another DSO in 1953 or 1966. Krylja Sovietov Moscow.
3. 6) Lokomotiv: DSO of the Railway Union. Lokomotiv Moscow, Lokomotiv Novokuznetsk etc.
3. 7) Spartak: Started as "Voluntary Physical Culture and Sports Society" of the Producers' Cooperatives. Became DSO of the Central Council of the Trade Unions in 1960 which turned it into the umbrella society for employees in the fields of "local industries" (small and medium-sized enterprises), telecommunication, road transport, geological surveying, culture, governmental institutions, aviation, medicine, state trading, education and food industry. The name Spartak refers to the historic insurgent Spartacus whom the Soviets considered a symbol for proletarian revolt against exploitation. Spartak Moscow, Spartak Sverdlovsk, Spartak Omsk, Spartak Novosibirsk etc.

 

[Eisen]

Yeah, that thesis is an enormous pile of horse ****. An established piece of research? Are you kidding me?

Also, he's almost certainly an ethnic Russian.

Fuks sounds German to me. Could be derived from Fuchs which is a fox. Not an uncommon name in Germany.

 

[Theokritos]

Fuks sounds German to me. Could be derived from Fuchs which is a fox. Not an uncommon name in Germany.

Most likely, there are probably Baltic Germans in his genealogical tree.

 

[Theokritos]

Institutions II

State Central Institute of Physical Culture

Founded in May 1918 as Moscow Institute of Physical Culture in "order to train physical culture instructors and teachers" (Susan Grant, Physical Culture and Sport in Soviet Society, p.180/Appendix B). Designated "State Central Institute" by Lenin two years later. Initially occupied with research into the effect of physical exercises on one's fitness and health, the Institute proceeded to "become more closely associated with the specialist training of athletes."

Susan Grant:
Not only did the Institute cater for individual sports (athletics, boxing, wrestling, fencing, and other sports) but it also offered courses in psychology, hygiene, anatomy, biology, chemistry, the history and organization of physical culture, as well as the ubiquitous Marxist-Leninist courses and the theory and practice of physical culture. The structure included departments and laboratories for social science, gynaecology, haematology and experimental psychology, as well as psychological techniques. By 1928 the Institute had its own stadium, sports and gymnastics squares, tennis and basketball courts, athletics track, as well as swimming and rowing centres. It could also boast of specialist halls for physical exercise, a library, and a museum.

Higher School of Coaches

At some point in the first half of the 1930s the Sport Faculty of the State Central Institute turned into a tertiary education establishment dedicated to the teaching of trainers. Since there were no qualified coaches in the USSR "prior to the creation of the master soccer and bandy teams in 1935-1936" (Anatoli Salutski, Vsevolod Bobrov, chapter Edinstvo.../"Unity of opposites") a "Higher School of Coaches" was deemed necessary to remedy the lack of capable personnel. Among those who attended the Higher School are Anatoli Tarasov, Arkadi Chernyshov and Vsevolod Bobrov.

Anatoli Salutski:
The team captain was entrusted with carrying out the functions of a coach during the matches [before there were coaches]. But when it was decided to set up master teams and conduct national championships it quite naturally became necessary to have coaches – at first not only and not so much to guide the training, but in order to represent the teams in the sports organizations. But professional coaches to employ were nowhere to be found in the USSR in that time, so as a result the teams designated coaches through elections. In all the teams the most respected and brightest players were elected, like Boris Arkadyev, Arkadi Chernyshov, Mikhail Yakushin, Konstantin Kvasnin, Viktor Dubinin and other prominent soccer and bandy players of the time. Becoming trainers at a very young age, the vast majority of them did not stop to play for their teams, so the institute of the player-coach was very widespread in the 1930s and 40s... In the same period the Higher School of Coaches was established at the Moscow Institute of Physical Culture and a large group of the brightest and most lettered players, recommended by a variety of sports clubs, was enlisted there. It was the first class of graduates from the Higher School of Coaches that gave our sport a whole plethora of distinguished trainers who would subsequently lead their students to the podium at the world and Olympic championships.

 

[Theokritos]

Addition to Institutions II

Front face of the State Central Institute of Physical Culture ~1944. The Institute was situated at the former estate of Count Razumovski (1748-1822):

"Russian hockey" (=bandy) training, back side of the Institute ~1930:

Soccer training, back side of the Institute ~1970-1975:

 

[Killion]

^^^ Very interesting Theo. Thanks for that. "Experimental Psychology" huh? I just bet.

 

[Theokritos]

^^^ Very interesting Theo. Thanks for that. "Experimental Psychology" huh? I just bet.

The only specific information I have come across on that matter is that they studied the Psychology of Chess. (Chess being a very popular quasi-sport in the USSR, promoted by the government.) They used the laboratories to conduct psychological tests with participants of international tournaments, including the likes of Rubinstein, Lasker and Grünfeld.

 

[Killion]

The only specific information I have come across on that matter is that they studied the Psychology of Chess....

Oh indeed, did they now. Does the name Pavlov ring a bell?.... Dont suppose youve ever heard of Ivan Petrovich Pavlov and his Assistant Flipp?... Ivan Filippovitch Tolochinov?.... betcha cant pronounce that name 3X's fast? Ha?.... pioneers in the field of reflex system research. Transmarginal inhibitions based on temperament, conditioning. Studied voluntary & involuntary reflex actions through the application of harmonics & or electric shock for example. Classical Conditioning Techniques. Temporal Forward, Backward, Delay, Trace & Extinction Conditioning. Just the ticket for the Mighty Soviet Red Machine's Hockey Program. The real truth about Zero Contingency Procedures and so on. Ja. I can assure you, all of it quite elementary Theo but of course completely top secret at the time.

 

[Eisen]

Oh indeed, did they now. Does the name Pavlov ring a bell?.... Dont suppose youve ever heard of Ivan Petrovich Pavlov and his Assistant Flipp?... Ivan Filippovitch Tolochinov?.... betcha cant pronounce that name 3X's fast? Ha?.... pioneers in the field of reflex system research. Transmarginal inhibitions based on temperament, conditioning. Studied voluntary & involuntary reflex actions through the application of harmonics & or electric shock for example. Classical Conditioning Techniques. Temporal Forward, Backward, Delay, Trace & Extinction Conditioning. Just the ticket for the Mighty Soviet Red Machine's Hockey Program. The real truth about Zero Contingency Procedures and so on. Ja. I can assure you, all of it quite elementary Theo but of course completely top secret at the time.

Are you sure? I have a hard time seeing Pavlov's conditioning for sport.

 

[steve141]

Ditto many claims that CCCP hockey developed independently sans considerable input from Canucks

Who has claims this? It's a Canadian game - of course there is going to be a lot of Canadian influence. Canada was by far the leading hockey country at the time, it would have been stupid of the Russian to not try to learn as much as possible from the Canucks.

On the other hand, it's a gross over-simplication to claim that Tarasov was a fraud who just copied Percival's ideas. Russian hockey developed in a context, where they competed regularily against other teams, Canadian and European, and were very interested in learning from all sources. International team sports have always been a bigger draw in Europe than in North America, and the development of the Russian hockey program was certainly influenced by developments in other sports (compare for example soccer and handball which are very system-driven, with a focus on keeping possesion of the ball). Total Football, with roots in the 20s-30s, shared many similarities with the Russian style of hockey.

 

[Theokritos]

Total Football, with roots in the 20s-30s, shared many similarities with the Russian style of hockey.

Which, remarkably enough, developed and blossomed in a country and society at the other end of the spectrum in terms of liberality.

 

[Theokritos]

Reviving this thread with a rather lengthy Tarasov bio in chronological form. More a career-ography than a biography actually. See the following post.

 

[Theokritos]

Anatoly Tarasov (1918-1995)

Early Years

Born in Moscow, December 1918. Father Vladimir, an accountant, dies when Anatoly is nine or ten. Mother Yekaterina works as a sewing machinist. One brother: Yury (1923-1950). Anatoly grows up playing "football" (soccer, during the summer) and "hockey" (bandy, during the winter) in the vacant lots of Moscow.
1930: Joins youth wing of Dinamo Moscow. Plays soccer and bandy for them until 1937.
1933: Finishes secondary school, begins to attend a factory apprenticeship school.
1934-37: Works as a mechanic at an aircraft plant to support family.
1937-39: Attends the State Central Institute of Physical Culture where soccer coach and theorist Mikhail Tovarovsky leaves a lasting impression on him. Attends a course on Canadian hockey held by Tovarovsky. Meets his future wife Nina Zabelina, a gymnast. Works as soccer coach with a factory team in Zagorsk (Sergiev Posad, ~70km/44mi from Moscow) alongside his studies.
August 1939: Graduates from the Institute of Physical Culture and marries Nina Zabelina. Begins career as full-time athlete and joins Dinamo Odessa (Ukraine, ~1140km/700mi from Moscow) for the remainder of the soccer season.
November 1939: Joins the bandy team of Krylya Sovietov Moscow (captained by Vladimir Yegorov, later his assistant with the Soviet hockey team).

Army and Air Force

February 1940: Drafted into the army and sent to the Moscow Aviation School. Becomes player-coach of the school team.
April 1940: Assigned to the army sports club TsDKA (Tsentralnovo doma Krasnoj Armii, "Central House of the Red Army", Moscow). Plays soccer for them, but more with the second than with the first team.
February 1941: His wife Nina gives birth to a daughter, Galina.
June 1941: During his second season with TsDKA the soccer league is shut down abortively after the German Invasion of the USSR.
1941-1945: Spends most of the "Great Patriotic War" as a military instructor training soldiers.
Winter 1944-45: Wins Moscow Cup with TsDKA bandy team under Pavel Korotkov. Among his teammates are Vsevolod Bobrov, Yevgeny Babich and Aleksandr Vinogradov.
May 1945: German surrender ends war in Europe. Soviet soccer league reopens with TsDKA being coached by Boris Arkadyev. Being a leading soccer theorist, Arkadyev becomes Tarasov's "second mentor" after Tovarovsky.
Winter 1945-46: Tarasov wins Moscow Cup and USSR Cup with TsDKA bandy team. Bandy teams play Canadian hockey in exhibitions matches with Tarasov reportedly explaining the basics to those unfamiliar with the game.
April 1946: Returns to coach his former Aviation School team that has now become the Air Force (VVS) club. Soccer team gains promotion to first tier under his guidance.
Winter 1946-47: First Soviet championship in Canadian hockey sees a lot of leading bandy players trying out "hockey with the puck". VVS finishes 5th (out of 12 teams), player-coach Tarasov is the tournament's best goal scorer (14 goals in 6 games). Championship is won by Dinamo Moscow under Arkady Chernyshov.
February 1947: Second daughter Tatyana is born.
July 1947: Vasily Stalin, son of the dictator Iosif Stalin, is appointed deputy commander of the Air Force (VVS) of the Moscow Military District (MVO). Not getting along him, Tarasov soon finds himself replaced as Air Force coach and returns to TsDKA (still under Boris Arkadyev) half-way through the soccer season.

First term as Army coach (1947-1961)

1947-1953:
Winter 1947-48: Replaces Pavel Korotkov as player-coach of the TsDKA hockey section. Centering a forward line with Vsevolod Bobrov (LW) and Yevgeny Babich (RW), he leads the team to its first championship.
February 1948: LTC Prague in Moscow. The leading hockey club in Europe plays several exhibition games against Soviet teams.
1948-49, 1949-50: Tarasov manages to defend the title with TsDKA even though Vasily Stalin begins to lure away players, most notably Bobrov (1949).
January 1950: Sverdlovsk air disaster. Li-2 aircraft carrying several players of VVS MVO crashes while approaching Sverdlovsk (Yekaterinburg) airport. 19 casualties, among them 11 players (including player-coach Boris Bocharnikov and forward Yury Tarasov, Anatoly's brother). Bobrov is appointed new player-coach and convinces Babich to join the rearranged Air Force team.
1950-51: Bobrov's VVS MVO team dethrones Tarasov's TsDKA and wins the championship. Two more titles for the Air Force team follow (1951-52, 1952-53).
February 1951: Soviet national team instituted, coaches are Arkady Chernyshov (Dinamo Moscow) and Vladimir Yegorov (Krylya Sovietov Moscow). The Army sports club is renamed TsDSA (Tsentralnovo doma Sovietskoi Armii, "Central House of the Soviet Army").
March 1951: Tarasov reportedly attends the World Championship in Paris and receives a copy of Lloyd Percival's book "How To Play Better Hockey" from Canadian player Stan Obodiac.
February 1952: USSR joins IIHF and eyes participation in the 1953 World Championship.
January 1953: Tarasov ends his playing career and focuses solely on coaching.
February 1953: With Bobrov sidelined after knee surgery, the Soviet hockey federation abstains from registering for the World Championship. Tarasov, taking over as head coach from Chernyshov, leads the national team to victory at the Academic World Winter Games in Vienna and bemoans the lost World Championship opportunity.
March 1953: Death of Iosif Stalin. His son Vasily soon finds himself arrested and the VVS MVO team is disbanded.
September 1953: Tarasov takes the national team to East Germany to prepare them for the World Championship. His rigorous training regime is met with repugnance by the players.
November 1953: Alarmed by the demoralization displayed by the team during a tour of Czechoslovakia, the Soviet hockey federation decides to release Tarasov and bring back Chernyshov.

1953-1961:
1953-54: Despite picking up Bobrov, Babich and their center Viktor Shuvalov from VVS MVO, TsDSA finish second in the domestic championship. The title goes to Dinamo Moscow under Chernyshov who also proceeds to win the 1954 World Championship with the Soviet national team.
1954-55: Army club renamed TsSK MO (Tsentralny sportivny klub Ministerstva oborony, "Central Sports Club of the Ministry of Defence"). Wins domestic championship for the first time since 1950.
1955-56: TsSK MO defends title in most dominant fashion (28 wins in 28 games) even though Bobrov only plays for the national team and sits out the domestic league.
August 1956: Tarasov receives the newly introduced title "Merited Trainer of the USSR" (simultaneously with Chernyshov and Vladimir Yegorov).
1956-57: Bobrov returns to TsSK MO for one more season, but the Army team is topped by Krylya Sovietov Moscow (coached by Yegorov) who win their first championship.
March 1957: Failure to win the world championship on home soil in Moscow leads to the dismissal of Arkady Chernyshov. Tarasov becomes head coach of the national team again. Bobrov ends his hockey career.
1957: Russian translation of Lloyd Percival's "Hockey Handbook" released by publishing outfit Fizkultura i sport. Tarasov contributes a preface.
November 1957: First tour of Canada with the Soviet national team.
1957-58: Tarasov wins back domestic championship with TsSK MO, but doesn't win World Championship with the national team. The Soviets finish second after a 2-4 defeat against Canada (represented by the reinforced Whitby Dunlops, featuring Sid Smith, Connie Broden and Harry Sinden).
1958-59: TsSK MO team defends domestic title, national team again second behind the Canadians at the World Championship.
1959-60: Army team renamed TsSKA (Tsentralny sportivny klub Armii, "Central Sports Club of the Army"), defends championship again. National team has to settle for bronze at the Olympic Games in Squaw Valley. Frictions become visible as forward Veniamin Aleksandrov publicly defends goaltender Nikolay Puchkov against criticism by Tarasov.
December 1960: Internal tumoil at TsSKA as a group of players (Genrikh Sidorenkov, Vladimir Vasilyev, Ivan Tregubov, Viktor Glagolev, Vladimir Kiselyov) make head against Tarasov. A rare losing streak of three games follows. Colonel Arkady Novgorodov, head of the army sports clubs, intervenes. Tarasov is released as CSKA coach after a stormy meeting and publicly denounced as a "dictator" by Yury Arutyunyan, member of the Soviet hockey federation's Sport Technical Commission.

Intermediate Period I (1961)

January 1961: Aleksandr Vinogradov becomes new TsSKA head coach with Boris Kulagin as assistant. Anatoly Tarasov is put in charge of Siberian army team SKA Novosibirsk by Gleb Baklanov, Commander in Chief of the Siberian Military District.
March 1961: TsSKA win the Soviet championship. Nevertheless Vinogradov is dismissed due to disciplinary issues (alcohol consumption) among the players.
June 1961: Yevgeny Babich appointed head coach.
October 1961: Frictions between Babich and several players (most notably Nikolay Sologubov). Poor start into the 1961-62 season by Red Army standards.
November 1961: An unprecedented debacle (4-15) against Dinamo Moscow costs Babich his job. Rumours of deliberate sabotage by Babich's opponents among the players. Tarasov is recalled from Novosibirsk.

Second term as Army coach (1961-1970)

1961-62: Tarasov manages to improve team performance and results, but TsSKA still end up third behind Spartak and Dinamo Moscow after a tight race.
1962-63: Tarasov recaptures domestic title with TsSKA. He returns to national team as assistant or associate coach under head coach Chernyshov.
March 1963: USSR win World Championship for the first time since 1956. Begin of domination in international hockey with ten consecutive titles at the World Championships and Olympics (1963-1972).
1963-64, 1964-65, 1965-66: TsSKA defend domestic title three times in a row.
February 1964: Vsevolod Bobrov becomes head coach of Spartak Moscow.
1964: Shooting of the movie drama "Hockey Players" (Khokkeisty). Chernyshov and his assistant at Dinamo, Viktor Tikhonov, are involved as advisors, the script is provided by prominent writer Yury Trifonov. Screening in February 1965, the film features a character interpreted as a caricature of Tarasov: a tyrannical coach named Lashkov (played by Nikolay Rybnikov).
September 1965: Tarasov introduces the 1-2-2 system at TsSKA.
1966-67: After four years of TsSKA domination the championship is won by Spartak Moscow under Bobrov.
1967-68: TsSKA back at the top.
February 1968: International incidents, part 1: During the game against Czechoslovakia at the Olympics in Grenoble, Tarasov gets into a shouting match with Czechoslovak forward Jozef Golonka and calls the player a "fascist".
August 1968: Soviet-led invasion of Czechoslovakia to suppress reform movement ("Prague Spring"). Hockey encounters between the Soviets and the Czechoslovaks in the subsequent years are characterized by tensions and hostility.
1968-69: Tight race for the Soviet championship. TsSKA repeatedly upset by Spartak Moscow under head coach Nikolay Karpov.
May 1969: In the decisive game (televised live and attended by Leonid Brezhnev, General Secretary of the Central Committee) Tarasov sends his team off the ice for more than 30 minutes after a controversial call by the goal judge and has to be ordered to continue the game. The match ends with a win for Spartak who become champions. Tarasov's behaviour earns him criticism in the press and the Soviet Sports Committee strips him of the title "Merited Trainer of the USSR", but he still enjoys the backing of Defence Minister Andrey Grechko. Sports Committee under Sergey Pavlov debates whether to dismiss Tarasov as national coach, but nothing comes out of it.
1969-70: Tarasov restored as "Merited Trainer of the USSR" prior to the season. TsSKA win back championship.

Intermediate Period II (1970)

June 1970: Tarasov quits as TsSKA coach in order to work on his academic thesis ("Basics of the Soviet school of training hockey players of the international class"). His assistant Boris Kulagin takes over the Army team with Konstantin Loktev as assistant coach.
Autumn 1970: Bumpy start into the season as TsSKA keep dropping points.
November 1970: Trailing Dinamo Moscow by 10 points, Kulagin is released as Army coach. Having successfully defended his thesis and earned the academic degree Candidate of Pedagogical Science, Tarasov takes over the team again.

Third term as Army coach (1970-1974)

1970-71: Tarasov manages a turnaround and wins another domestic championship with TsSKA.
March 1971: International incidents, part 2: Tarasov upsets the Swedish hockey federation by vocally abusing a referee during an exhibition game of the Soviet national team in Sweden. Subsequently the Swedish national team pulls out of the annual Izvestia Cup tournament in December 1971.
1971-72: TsSKA defend Soviet title again.
February 1972: International incidents, part 3: Clash between Tarasov and Czechoslovak captain Václav Nedomanský at the Olympics in Sapporo. Tarasov insults Nedomanský which prompts the latter to fire a puck at him. After the tournament the Czechoslovak federation urges the Soviets to not send Tarasov to the upcoming World Championships at Prague.
March 1972: Chernyshov and Tarasov let go as national coaches. Vsevolod Bobrov appointed new head coach, Nikolay Puchkov becomes assistant coach. The new coaching duo fails to win the World Championship. Czechoslovakia claims gold on home soil.
September 1972: The Central Committee of the Communist Party receives word of a book released in Sweden under the name of Tarasov ("Hockeyn mitt liv" [Hockey my life], a 1970 compilation of publications and interviews by Tarasov, translated into Swedish by hockey coach Verner Persson). After an investigation Tarasov is reprimanded for a lack of caution in his conversations with foreign journalists.
1972-73: Tarasov wins his 17th and last Soviet championship with the Army team.
1973-74: A deeply disappointing season in which TsSKA finishes 11 points behind Krylya Sovietov under Boris Kulagin leads to the dismissal of Tarasov. He is succeeded by his assistant Konstantin Loktev.

Post Career

August 1974: Tarasov inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame as a builder. Laudatory speech by Fred Shero.
December 1974: Appointed head coach of the TsSKA soccer team (first tier).
November 1975: His soccer engagement ends after one season when TsSKA finishes 13th out of 16 clubs.
May-June 1979: At the invitation of Lou Vairo, Tarasov tours the USA together with Arkady Chernyshov and Czechoslovak coach Ladislav Horský and conducts dry-land training sessions with coaches and younsters.
June 1983: Tarasov conducts dry-land training sessions with local youngsters in Kelowna at the invitation of Robert Hindmarch (University of British Columbia).
1986: Visits training camp of the Vancouver Canucks together with Vladislav Tretyak.
February 1987: Guest coach with Canucks for two weeks.
June 1995: Dies at a hospital in Moscow.