The road to the NHL wasn't easy for Russian players who left their homeland in pursuit of the Stanley Cup. And in this exclusive story from THN's archive, writer Mike Ulmer pulled back the curtain on the San Jose Sharks' Russian forwards Igor Larionov and Sergei Makarov as they butted heads with Sharks coach Kevin Constantine.
Vol. 47, No. 34, May. 20, 1994The San Jose Sharks won the 2024 NHL draft lottery this week. And in this feature story from The Hockey News’ May 20, 1994 edition (Vol. 47, Issue 34), contributing writer Mike Ulmer focused on San Jose’s bumpy relations with Russian stars Sergei Makarov and Igor Larionov.
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Sharks coach Kevin Constantine clashed with Larionov, who was on his second NHL team after coming over from his homeland in 1989 and playing for the Vancouver Canucks initially. But the two men made peace, and while Larionov didn’t obtain great Stanley Cup playoff experience until he became a Detroit Red Wing in 1995, he found a way to peacefully co-exist with his coach.
“It’s really hard to change me and Sergei (Makarov),” Larionov said. “We produced goals and the coach left us alone. If it works, let us go.”
Larionov was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 2008, and his pure skill and instincts set him apart from the rest.
“With Larionov, you get a guy who has a great picture of the game,” then-Canucks’ director of pro scouting Murray Oliver said. “He makes more backhand passes in one night than a lot of teams do in a whole season.”
REBEL WITH JAWS
By Mike Ulmer
They debated behind the dressing room door and gently bantered through the media.
Kevin Constantine, the American coach from International Falls, Minn., and Igor Larionov, the international superstar from Voskrensensk, Russia had a slight difference of opinion.
When Constantine, a 34-year-old rookie NHL coach, implemented a rigid defensive system with the San Jose Sharks, he insisted it go team-wide. Larionov, a new member of the team, said no.
Somewhere along the way they agreed to meet halfway and Larionov did whatever he wanted.
“It’s really hard to change me and Sergei (Makarov),” Larionov said. “We produced goals and the coach left us alone. If it works, let us go”
Larionov, right winger Makarov and left winger Johan Garpenlov as well as defensemen Jeff Norton and Sandis Ozolinsh, are a team within a team. Unlike almost all of their teammates, each member of the five-man unit is able to control the puck and do something interesting with it.
Hockey chemistry lesson No. 1: Conflict, polite or otherwise, is only bad when you lose.
And with the 33-year-old Larionov, a free-agent signee, the Sharks don’t lose as often or as badly. The deft playmaker helped San Jose rise 57 points in the standings over 1992-93, the greatest improvement in NHL history.
Larionov was also leading the team’s charge in the post-season. He had two goals and 10 points as the Sharks stunned the Detroit Red Wings in a seven-game Western Conference quarterfinal. He was among the playoff scoring leaders early in the second round.
Through the regular season, the Sharks were 30-20-10 (.583 winning percentage) with Larionov in the lineup and 3-15-6 (.250) without him. Larionov scored 18 goals in 60 regular-season games, three short of his career high.
If his play isn’t better than when he arrived in the NHL as a 28-year-old rookie with the Vancouver Canucks in 1989, it is more productive. His 56 points gave him a .933 points-per-game average, the best of his four-year NHL career.
“With Larionov, you get a guy who has a great picture of the game,” said Canucks’ director of pro scouting Murray Oliver. “He makes more backhand passes in one night than a lot of teams do in a whole season.”
Larionov’s and Makarov’s refusal to toe the line represented the first threat to Constantine’s authority. By acquiescing, the coach passed with flying colors.
“You start out a season 0-8-1, you’d better keep looking for solutions to try to get better,” Constantine said. “That’s one of the things that evolved, letting those guys play to their strengths.”
“I think that’s one of the things Kevin has had to adjust to,” said । Sharks’ director of hockey operations Dean Lombardi. “How do you get the most out of world class talent? Until you get to the NHL, you can’t experience that. Kevin came in with a certain idea and he had to adjust.”
Larionov, a member of the first wave of players to leave the former Soviet Union for the NHL, was well-liked in Vancouver and still has a home there.
“If either of my sons grows up to be anything like him, I’d consider myself to be a success as a parent,” said NHL director of hockey operations Brian Burke, a Canucks’ executive during Larionov’s term.
But when Larionov learned the Russian hockey authorities would receive a sum equal to whatever he earned for re-signing with Vancouver, he bolted to Switzerland. The Sharks picked up his rights in the 1992 waiver draft.
Larionov earned more in Europe, but liked it less. “I missed the league a lot,” he said. “I was 32 years old so I decided to come back as soon as I could.”
His impact has been pronounced. Larionov has emerged as the Sharks’ backbone.
“Ninety per cent of what I have done this year is because of Igor,” said Ozolinsh, a 26-goal scorer in his sophomore year. “He gives a great pass and he’s unbelievable the way he sees the ice. Off the ice, he’s like a godfather to me.”
“I just try to keep young players confident,” Larionov said. “It’s the playoffs, and especially young players get very excited in the playoffs. I keep things calm and try to help them out.”
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