Originally published on IHWC.NET in 2003 By Lucas Aykroyd Peter Bondra has scored many spectacular goals during his 13-year NHL career with the Washington Capitals. But few could rival the laser bullet he put past Russian goaltender Maxim Sokolov to give Slovakia its first hockey gold medal ever at the 2002 IIHF World Championships in […]

Originally published on IHWC.NET in 2002 By Lucas Aykroyd Jaroslav Spacek has excelled on the international stage before, but life in the NHL hasn’t always been as kind to him. Chicago and Columbus are both cities in the American Midwest, but as Spacek is finding out, they’re worlds apart in the hockey universe. The skillful […]

Originally published on EuroReport.com in 2002 By Lucas Aykroyd Americans say “Zee,” but since 13 March 2001, the Montreal Canadiens have been saying “Zed.” The acquisition of fleet right wing Richard Zednik from the Washington Capitals along with Jan Bulis on that date looks like a minor coup for the Habs at this writing, since […]

Originally published on EuroReport.com in 2000 By Lucas Aykroyd Vladimir Malakhov disappeared and was unavailable to speak with the media after his debut with the New Jersey Devils in a 5-2 road loss to Vancouver on 4 March. That was appropriate, since the veteran Russian defenseman was scarcely visible during his 17:17 of ice time, […]

Originally published on EuroReport.com in 2001 By Lucas Aykroyd When Herbert Vasiljevs was growing up in Riga, Latvia, he idolized the flashy Soviet winger Sergei Makarov. So it was appropriate that he scored his first goal in a Vancouver uniform on a tic-tac-toe passing play worthy of the KLM Line. Playing against Colorado on 9 […]

Originally published on EuroReport.com in 1999 By Lucas Aykroyd Once an offensive threat with the New Jersey Devils of the early 1990’s, Valeri Zelepukin of the Philadelphia Flyers has seen his scoring fall off in recent years. This season, the 31-year-old Russian winger from Voskresensk has just 16 points in 36 games. Zelepukin, who idolized […]

Originally published on EuroReport.com in 2000 By Lucas Aykroyd You’d expect Valeri Bure to be in the best of moods after returning from an NHL All-Star Game weekend in Toronto that saw him pair with brother Pavel to nab MVP honors for the Russian Rocket. But instead, Bure the Younger admitted he had a bit […]

Originally published on EuroReport.com in 2000 By Lucas Aykroyd Pro hockey players know they may be told to pack their bags and take their stick and skates to a team on the other side of the continent at any time. Still, actually getting the news can come as a shock. And when you’re asked to […]

Originally published on EuroReport.com in 2001 By Lucas Aykroyd In 2000-01, Ossi Vaananen of the Phoenix Coyotes became known for more than having arguably the NHL’s most colorful name. Thanks to his solid play, many hockey observers hailed him as the top rookie defenseman in the Western Conference. The 6-4, 220-pound native of Vantaa, Finland […]

Originally published on EuroReport.com in 2000 By Lucas Aykroyd Nashville is where you find hot country stars like Shania Twain, Tanya Tucker and Faith Hill. In keeping with that, Tomas Vokoun has been playing some beautiful hockey for the Predators this year. The Karlovy Vary, Czech Republic native started 15 consecutive games in goal from […]