Originally published on EuroReport.com in 2001 By Lucas Aykroyd Martin Havlat grew up far away from the plains of Africa, but the young Czech left wing’s speed and vision inevitably prompt comparisons to a gazelle. TV analyst John Davidson is awed by the way the Ottawa Senators rookie “explodes through the neutral zone.” Drafted 26th […]

Originally published on EuroReport.com in 2000 By Lucas Aykroyd In hockey talk, the term “workhorse” is often abused. Listening to TV color commentators, you might think any NHL defenseman who occasionally plays more than 20 minutes per game deserves that title. But Roman Hamrlik of the Edmonton Oilers really is a workhorse, and he proved […]

Originally published in Michigan Hockey in 2004 By Lucas Aykroyd For NHL teams, succeeding in the annual NHL Entry Draft can be as risky as investing in precious metals on the stock market. Fortunately for the Detroit Red Wings, Hakan Andersson has proven his worth by consistently assembling a great portfolio of prospects. As Detroit’s […]

Originally published in Eishockey News in 2007 By Lucas Aykroyd In a parallel universe where the Soviet Union didn’t collapse, Sergei Fedorov might still be centering USSR national team coach Viktor Tikhonov’s top line with Pavel Bure and Alexander Mogilny. In actuality, this NHL legend celebrated his 37th birthday on December 12 with a fifth […]

Originally published on EuroReport.com in 2001 By Lucas Aykroyd Last year, the less-informed hockey fan might have wondered if his surname was a misspelling of “Nabob Tea.” This year, the whole NHL knows who Evgeni Nabokov is. Combining sharp reflexes with an aggressive challenging style, the San Jose Sharks rookie is bidding to become the […]

Originally published on EuroReport.com in 2000 By Lucas Aykroyd With no goals and 10 assists last year, Danny Markov didn’t exactly tear up the NHL offensively. But entering his fourth season with the Toronto Maple Leafs, the Moscow-born defenseman is looking to improve on those numbers and his overall game. Chosen as Toronto’s seventh pick […]

Originally published on EuroReport.com in 1999 By Lucas Aykroyd Memory check: who captained Team Sweden at the 1998 Winter Olympic Games in Nagano? If you guessed Mats Sundin or Peter Forsberg, no one would raise an eyebrow. But as it turns out, the man with the C was a quietly effective veteran defender—no, not Niklas […]

Originally published on EuroReport.com in 2001 By Lucas Aykroyd When you can shoot the puck 100 miles per hour and lap the rink in 14 seconds, your chances of robbing NHL goalies blind increase incrementally. That’s what Washington’s Peter Bondra has done this year. The 33-year-old Slovak right wing has twice as many goals as […]

Originally published on EuroReport.com in 2000 By Lucas Aykroyd Titanic is Sergei Berezin’s favorite movie. That fits. The 28-year-old Russian left wing must have had a sinking feeling over Toronto’s last 14 games, as a hamstring injury kept him out of the lineup. Lacking the opportunity to waltz around opposing defensemen or rescue his club […]

Originally published on ChickSports.com in 2000 By Lucas Aykroyd Don’t call her Alanis. Alana Blahoski may not sing like Ms. Morissette, but she’s one of America’s top female hockey players. At 25, the swift-skating forward from St. Paul, Minnesota has already enjoyed the thrill of winning an Olympic gold medal with the U.S. national team […]