Clean English translation of
Alexander Yakushev's profile at the Russian site Championat:
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Today, our story follows a legend of Soviet hockey, a "refined, intelligent" player, who became, when he took the ice, "a scrappy fighter, ruthless to himself".
"Yak-15" - the Soviet forward wearing the number 15 was known by this moniker all over the world.
Alexander Sergeyevich Yakushev was born on January 2, 1947 in the city of Balashikha, greater Moscow. Soccer was his favorite sport as a child, and by the age of 12, Alexander was already playing for the Spartak youth team. Hockey started becoming very popular at that time, so Alexander decided to try a new sport. His parents worked at the Moscow "Sickle and Hammer" steel works, so he joined up with the factory team.
His older teammates urged him to go to Alexander Igumnov who was in charge of Spartak's youth hockey program. Igumnov took the boy's request, but observed the proper protocols, asking for a vote from the Sickle and Hammer team. Alexander decided to simply let it be, but destiny had other ideas, and Alexander ended up playing for Spartak for many years. In a youth semifinal for the Cup of Moscow, Igumnov saw Alexander play, and admired his game. Rather than rely on Yakushev, he decided to file the paperwork, himself. That is how Alexander Yakushev joined the Spartak youth hockey team. Most of the boys were older, but by autumn, he was already in the starting lineup.
Spartak won the Soviet youth title two years in a row. At that time, the famous Spartak line of the Mayorov brothers and Vyacheslav Starshinov was at its best. Everyone admired their game, including Alexander. In April, 1964, on the eve of an important match with the title-holders Krylja Sovetov, Boris Mayorov fell ill, and no acceptable replacement for him could be found. The great Vsevolod Bobrov, then the senior coach of Spartak, made the unexpected move of bringing Alexander Yakushev onto the team's top line. This was not only a great stroke of luck for Alexander, but also a severe test, which he handled very well. Alexander scored a goal in this game, and under the careful guidance of Bobrov, stayed with the senior team through the first 17 games of the season, though he only saw the ice in 5 of those matches.
In little time, his talent came to be held in high esteem - by the end of the year, Yakushev was already on the youth national team when they made their trip to the USA. Nicolai Epstein, coach of the national team's B club at the time, invited the young man to train with the team, so Alexander began at that time, as a member of the Soviet second team, perfecting the skills he would need to compete against Canadian professionals. With great size - 6' 2" - Alexander possessed good speed and an excellent stick.
If a person does not work long and hard, talent quickly comes to naught. Alexander trained, giving everything he had, which could not help but make him better. He was always terse, preferring actions to words.
In 1967, under the leadership of the legendary Bobrov, Spartak became Soviet champions. That same year, Alexander was invited to the national team, where he justified the hope placed in him - at the World Championships in Vienna where he went along as a spare, he scored a goal in a match with East Germany. He finally earned a starting role on the national team in 1972, just before the Sapporo Olympics.
In sport, some events are eternal, their value not diminishing over time. The matches between the Soviet national team and the Canadian professionals in the Summit Series were such an event. The 7-3 victory on Canadian home ice in Montreal plunged the homeland into hockey mania. It would be difficult to overstate Yakushev's contribution to this victory - his play was beyond praise.
In each of the first four matches of that series, Yakushev won the prize for best player (including a gold ring) awarded by a panel of Canadian hockey experts. In only eight matches, Alexander scored nearly a quarter (7 of 32) of the national team's goals. Following the results of the Summit '72 series, Canadian journalists ranked Alexander Yakushev, Vladislav Tretiak and Valery Kharlamov among the "immortals".
That same year, Alexander Yakushev graduated from MOPI of N. K. Krupskaya.
Two years later, a new series against the Canadians further cemented Yakushev's status as not only a masterful player, but also a steady and consistent one. At the World Championships in the spring of 1975, along with victory for the national team, he was awarded the ultimate prize - Best Forward of the tournament. For this achievement, Yakushev was awarded the Order of the Red Banner of Labor.
Alexander Yakushev continued to shine for his club team, Spartak. The Yakushev - Shadrin – Shalimov line was inimitable, and nearly unbeatable.
At the Olympic Games in Innsbruck in 1976, Yakushev won his second gold with the Soviet national team. That same year, he became captain of Spartak, taking Yuri Liapkin's place.
Alexander finished his career with the Soviet national team in 1980, World Champion for the seventh time. He amassed remarkable statistics over the course of his career: 568 Soviet league matches, 339 goals (7th all-time in Soviet hockey), 64 goals at the Olympic Games and World Championships, 144 total goals for the national team. For his career, he was twice a World Championhsip All-Star, led the Soviet league in goalscoring three times, and was one of the six best hockey players and top ten athletes in the nation.
Here is what Anatoli Tarasov had to say about Yakushev:
Anatoli Tarasov said:
"It must be said: Alexander Yakushev skillfully executed our game plans, and had success against a wide variety of opponents - rough and technical, swift and sluggish, skilled, cool and dangerous opponents.
Alexander scored goals in a peculiar and elegant manner, with his great reach, weaving intricate patterns on the ice which only Yakushev could understand. What is interesting is that the puck seemed to be glued to his stick - is this not evidence of the highest level of technique?!
When Alexander skated up ice with those long strides, his eye was fixed firmly on his opponent. Should that opponent bite on a feint, Yakushev, changing gears…could beat practically anyone.
Yakushev did not, however, like to defend, but in my opinion no one could exploit this weakness - everyone was generally too concerned trying to stop Alexander from attacking.
Despite all the checking schemes of his opponents, he always scored goals. And, when finishing in the high-traffic areas, Alexander Yakushev transformed from a refined and intelligent player into a scrappy fighter, ruthless to himself".
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*brief section on Yakushev's post-playing career omitted.
