Alexander Mogilny was considered one of the best, if not the best, young hockey player in the late 80s. But his name was not associated with the victories of the USSR national team, and then Russia. For the vast majority of fans, the forward will remain a deserter and a traitor who fled to the United States. - about the semi-criminal story of the Soviet hockey player moving to American soil.

The best player in the world. Young

There was nothing interesting in this story. Believe me.

20-year-old Alexander Mogilny descended from the plane. He had just flown in from Stockholm, where he had helped the Soviet team win their 21st world championship gold. His - the first. May 1989, perestroika was in full swing in the USSR, and the young, even young, forward had to return to the reformed state. But Mogilny landed at the airport in New York. He was waiting for money, fame and her - freedom.

Mogilny was the best young hockey player of that time. At the World Championship among players under 20 in Anchorage, he became the first star, playing in the top three with the future of the Soviet and Russian teams - and. In the last game with the Canadians, Alexander scored three goals, and the commentators who worked at that meeting were close to speaking Russian. It's been six months since he was drafted by the NHL club Buffalo Sabers, but this was a convention. The club hoped rather than actually intended to transport a young powerful player to the United States.

There, in Anchorage, was Don Luce, head of the Buffalo scouting service. He met with Mogilny and handed him his business card. He took her.

One year later Main coach The USSR national team unhooked Pavel Bure from the team that was already going to the adult world championship in Sweden - he was too young. A couple of Fedorov - Mogilny went to Stockholm. As he recalled, who was the head of the delegation of the national team, in the Union, Sergei and Alexander lived in a simple Moscow hostel, and according to Mogilny himself, he had neither a meter of housing nor money.

Seven wins in seven matches, three of three - in games for medals. In Stockholm, the national team could not be stopped. On May 1, Soviet hockey players became world champions, and 20-year-old Mogilny, who played a significant role in the success of the team, added a world title to the gold of the 1988 Olympics.

On May 2, the bell rang at Don Luce's house. At the other end of the wire was, who introduced himself as an agent of Mogilny. This person used to live in the Soviet Union, then married a Swede and moved to Stockholm. He told Luce that Alexander had something to say to him. It became clear: the young Soviet player wants to move to the USA. The scout decided to check Fomichev and asked him to quote a phrase that he said to Mogilny during their first meeting in Anchorage. The agent, in perfect English, replied, "You didn't impress me." Luce and Buffalo General Manager Jerry Meehan were in Stockholm the next day.

The escape

The detective began on the evening of May 3. Meehan went to the American embassy to draw up documents for Mogilny's flight. Before visiting the embassy, ​​the American said, "You can still come back." The forward replied: "No, I'm going." Yuri Korolev suggested that the Buffalo functionaries, with the help of special services, forged papers, because there was no passport under Alexander. “Our system at that time required that the head of the delegation had to keep all the passports of the players with him. When I went to the police and said that maybe one of our people lingered in the city, showed his document, they immediately told me that he was already flying over the Atlantic Ocean, ”said Korolev, a witness to those events.

While Mikhan was fiddling around with documentation, calling up either with the Swedish embassy or with employees in the United States, the hockey player himself, in the company of Luce and Fomichev, was driving around Stockholm in a car, covering his tracks. They changed several hotels. Mogilny wanted to contact his parents, so the car stopped at one of the telephone booths. The operator accepted the call, then there was a pause, after which someone else's voice was heard on the phone. Mogilny hung up and said, "I think they know where we are."

The whole operation took place in fear of the all-powerful Soviet intelligence. Embassy workers and functionaries later said that they were afraid that information about Mogilny's escape could get to the authorities. They were afraid of wiretapping, surveillance - everything that is inherent in a normal detective. After all, at first no one could notice the loss of Alexander. Soviet players were given one day for shopping - for winning the World Cup. All of them on May 3 went to shopping centers the capital of Sweden, which the conspirators took advantage of.

The Stockholm embassy worked closely with US colleagues on the issue of Mogilny's move. The difficulty was that Mogilny could not just get into North America and get refugee status. For this, grounds were needed. Paper work has been delayed.

“Of course, we knew that all this was associated with a certain risk, but we realized the seriousness of what was happening only when we flew directly to Stockholm. Strangely, Mogilny was the calmest of us. He knew exactly what he wanted and went to his goal. I could not believe how unflappable the 20-year-old guy who risked everything was, ”said Luce.

As soon as Luce and Meehan got a call from the embassy saying that their travel documents were ready, they bought tickets for the next flight, boarded a plane to New York and left.

On the morning of May 4, the hotel where the Soviet team lived was searched. Among the athletes preparing to fly home, there was no Mogilny. It was not found in the room. That morning, the team flew off in a truncated lineup while the 20-year-old forward was moving in the opposite direction.

Before leaving, Mogilny offered, asked Fedorov to go with him. Sergei refused, being unsure of the whole idea of ​​"kidnapping" his partner. Communicating with journalists already in the USA, Alexander said something like: "He's just a sissy."

Refugee

Playing for CSKA, Mogilny was an officer in the army. It turns out that, having left for the States, he became a traitor to the people and a deserter - according to the law. The Soviet press immediately put this label on him, and coach Tikhonov said in a comment: “With his act, he only showed that it was not in vain that he had no friends in the national team. He was a man with secret intentions." The agency dubbed the Buffalo pirates.

Upon arrival at home, the players of the USSR national team were interrogated by the KGB, but they could not say something against or for Mogilny - the whole operation was carried out in secret, and only Fedorov knew about it, although Alexander himself said that he did not tell anyone about the impending escape. also had a conversation with the Soviet hockey player, as with all refugees.

Because of the escape, formally from the army, a criminal case was opened against Mogilny in his homeland. This allowed him to request political refugee status from the US government. It's ironic that he did it on May 9th. So, on Victory Day, Alexander became the main Russian deserter.

Mogilny called his parents already from the USA. His mother, in tears, begged him to return home, but the hockey player resolutely refused. Everyone wondered why. “I’m afraid to imagine what would have happened if I hadn’t done this! No, by Soviet standards, everything was fine with me. But I wanted more. I saw the attitude towards older comrades here, I understood what would happen to me when I reached this age. Ending their careers, they were left with nothing, ”Mogilny said much later.

Escape required a lot of courage? - asked in 2011 the journalists of "Sport-Express".

None at all. Do not make me laugh. Someone said that when I left, I burned bridges - and this makes me especially funny.

Because I left Moscow as a beggar. Okay, if there was an oligarch - he stole money and dumped. But it's different for me. I was a natural beggar.

In the USA, he got a house, a car, became a big star. The Americans called him Alexander The Great - Great. And since that moment he has played for the national team only once.

Alexander Gennadyevich Mogilny was born on February 18, 1969 in the city of Khabarovsk (USSR, now Russia). He started playing in the courtyard team "Youth", then there was Khabarovsk SKA, but since 1986 he began to play for CSKA. For three years in the army club, he became the champion of the USSR 3 times and the same number of times the owner of the European Champions Cup.

Alexander, along with Pavel Bure and Sergei Fedorov, made up the most promising trio of those years, played on the left.

In 1988, he won silver at the World Youth Championship, moreover, having scored 18 points in 7 games (9 goals and 9 assists), he became top scorer tournament and entered the symbolic team of the championship. In February of the same Olympic champion in Calgary. (in 6 games he scored 3 goals and made 2 assists).

In the 1988 draft, he was selected in the 5th round under the 89th number (at that time the highest pick among all Russians).

In 1989 he became the world champion among youth teams. His performance in 7 matches was 12 points (7 goals and 5 assists) according to the goal + pass system.

In the spring of the same year, as part of an already adult team, he won gold medals at the World Championships in Sweden. But after the victory, he disappeared from the camp of the national team, not remaining for the festive banquet. Before leaving, he presented his gold medals to Sergei Fedorov (Sergei lived with him in the same room) - the world and European champion - with an order to transfer them to his family. At home, he was declared a traitor, moreover, the military prosecutor's office opened a criminal case against him: accusing him of desertion.

At first, fearing KGB agents, he did not communicate with the Russian diaspora in Buffalo. At first, there was no question of any millions, moreover, in his first season, he was supposed to receive only 180 thousand dollars. Having made his debut in the NHL on October 5 in the game with Quebec, in his first shift at 20 seconds he scored his first puck, moreover, this was the first "Russian puck" in the NHL. The first interview on television in 1989, in which Alexander answers questions about Gretsky, the differences between Soviet and Canadian playing styles, etc.

The first season in the NHL went well: in 65 games in the goal + assist system, he scored 43 points (15 goals and 28 assists). In the first season, he made his debut in the playoffs, having chalked up 1 assist in 4 games. Buffalo was eliminated in the first round.

In the 1990-1991 season, he updated the performance record in both goals (30) and assists (34), and on average Alexander scored more than 1 point per game. In January 1991, against Toronto, he scored the fastest goal in Buffalo history, scoring already at 5 seconds.

In the playoffs, they failed to score again, but Alexander brilliantly proved himself as a passer, recording 6 assists in 6 games. But his club did not go beyond the first round.

The 1991-1992 season was even more productive for him: in 67 games he scored 84 points (39 goals and 45 assists). Mogilny could not play more matches due to a 10-match suspension received on January 21 in a game with St. Louis. Alexander, not agreeing with the decision of the judge, gave him a poke in the head.

In the Stanley Cup, he was out of action after 2 matches, having 2 assists to his credit, without Mogilny, the “blades” lost in the first round.

The 1992-1993 season was the best in Alexander's career. On February 3, 1993, having scored his 50th goal, he became the first Russian to reach this mark in one season. On March 5, having made an assist, he became the first Russian player to reach the grandmaster mark of 100 points scored in one season. Moreover, scoring 76 goals and scoring 127 points, Mogilny set a hitherto unbroken record for both the number of goals and the number of points in one season among all Russian players. After such a phenomenal season, Mogilny received the nickname "Alexander the Great".

One of the best passers of the time, Pat La Fontaine, helped him to achieve such super-performance. In the regular season, this “couple” was unstoppable – 275 points for two (129 goals and 146 assists). Unfortunately, this duet failed to play just as successfully in the following seasons: La Fontaine was constantly worried about injuries and he was more likely to be sick than to play.

In the playoffs, Alexander finally opened the scoring with his goals and played very productively: 10 points in 7 incomplete matches. But in the 2nd round in the 3rd game with Montreal, he received a fracture of his right leg (ankle). After such severe injury The season ended early for him.

Mogilny missed the start of the 1993-1994 season while recovering from an ankle injury. But when he returned to duty, he was appointed captain of Buffalo, since the former captain - La Fontaine was injured. Thus, Alexander Mogilny became the first Russian captain in the NHL.

During the lockout, Alexander Mogilny came to Russia to play a series of friendly matches as part of the Stars of Russia. Despite the invitation, Alexander was very afraid for himself, he was sure that after his arrival he would be arrested. Before landing, he asked Makarov and Fetisov not to leave him alone. But over time, realizing that his country had changed and power structures no more business with him, he calmed down and began to feel more comfortable. During the break of one match, all Olympic champions received insignia, with the exception of Mogilny.

In the 1994-1995 season, he played quite effectively, averaging more than one point per game - 47 points (19 goals and 28 assists) in 44 games. In knockout matches in 5 games, he scored 5 points (3 goals and 2 assists), and his “blades” flew out in the 1st round.

Traded to the Vancouver Canucks during the off-season for Mike Pecu, Mike Wilson and a first-round pick. Mogilny moved to his former partner in CSKA and the national team - Pavel Bure. But they did not actually play in one link, since both of them were playing on the right by this moment.

At the very beginning of the regular season, Bure suffered a severe knee injury and was out for the rest of the season. The outlook for Vancouver was not entirely rosy. But Alexander more than adequately compensated the “killer whales” for the absence of their main star: he scored his second fifty dollars (55 goals) and knocked out the second hundred (107 points). Mogilny's excellent performance helped the Canucks to get into the playoffs. Mogilny was also good in the playoffs (1 goal and 8 assists in 6 games), but the Killer Whales lost in the 1st round to the future Stanley Cup winner Colorado Avalanche.

Before the start of the next season for the first time (and last time) played for the Russian national team, making his debut for it at the World Cup. He played on the same line with Fedorov and Bure, but only in exhibition matches. At the World Cup itself, he played in a place with Fedorov (Bure was injured), recorded 2 goals and 4 assists in 5 games. But the strongest squad in the history of the Russian national team took only 3rd place.

In the 1996-1997 season, Alexander slowed down somewhat, gaining 73 points (31 goals and 42 assists) in 76 matches. For the first time in his career, Mogilny was left without a playoff as the Killer Whales took 9th place.

Mogilny missed the beginning of the 1997-1998 season due to ..... a strike. After Yashin got himself a good contract, others Russian players(Fedorov, Bure, etc.) followed his example and declared "financial wars" on their clubs, Mogilny was no exception. A month after the start of the regular season on November 8, Alexander signed a 4-year contract for 17.6 million dollars, and on November 9 he already played for the killer whales.

Unlike his former "army" partners, Mogilny did not go to the Olympics in Nagano.

His 18 goals and 27 assists in 51 games weren't enough to get the Orcas into the playoffs, and Vancouver was the worst team in the West.

During the 1998-1999 season, the “army” became 2 times less: Bure was traded to Florida. Mogilny missed about a third of the season, and in 59 games scored 45 points (14 goals and 31 assists). Vancouver again failed to qualify for the playoffs.

In March 2000, he was traded to New Jersey for Brendan Morison and Denis Pedersen. Of course, from the point of view of cup prospects, such a transition was very beneficial for Alexander: he changed the club that was in the "peak" (for the third year in a row not getting into the playoffs) for one of the dominant clubs of that time.

In the playoffs, the “devils” went through everyone and Alexander lifted the Stanley Cup over his head for the first time. In the playoffs, he played poorly, recording only 4 goals and 3 assists in 23 games. The victory in the Stanley Cup allowed Alexander, along with Vladimir Malakhov, to enter the triple club (winners of the world championships, Olympics, Stanley Cup winners).

The 2000-2001 season was very productive in 75 games, scoring 43 goals and making 40 assists. In the playoffs, he slowed down a bit: in 25 games, 16 points (5 goals and 11 assists). But they failed to win the second Stanley Cup in a row, the Devils lost in the final to Colorado in 7 games.

After the end of the season, Alexander became a free agent. New Jersey was ready to re-sign the Russian, but guided by the "financial aspect" Alexander signed a contract with the club who offered more - Toronto Maple Leafs ($22 million for 4 years).

to the Olympics in Salt Lake City Mogilny did not go. On the reason for his refusal, he said the following: "I didn't play last time and I'm not going to play this time. I'm not that good anyway. There are a lot of young guys who deserve a place in the team."

The first season in the maple leaves turned out to be quite good: in 66 games, 24 goals and 33 assists. In the playoffs, he failed to repeat the success of a year ago - Toronto lost in the conference finals. In the knockout matches, Mogilny was not as productive as in the regular season - 8 goals and 3 assists in 20 matches.

In his second season for Toronto, Mogilny was much more productive both in the regular season, 83 points (43 goals and 40 assists) in 77 games, and in relegation matches, 7 points (5 goals and 2 assists) in 6 games. Unfortunately, it was not possible to develop performance in the playoffs already in the 1st round of Toronto's relegation from the Stanley Cup.

His high scoring combined with correct play (only 12 penalty minutes) earned him his first individual NHL award, the Lady Byng Trophy. But he did not come to the ceremony itself. When asked about the "reason for his absence", Alexander answered the following: "By and large, the Lady Byng Trophy is more of a consolation trophy, I don't need it."

During the 2003-2004 season, he suffered a hip injury, as a result of which he missed 40 matches. But on March 15 in the game with his former club– “Buffalo” – Mogilny scored his 1000 points in the NHL, becoming the second Russian after Sergei Fedorov, who reached this mark.

As a result, in the “regular season” he played only 37 matches with a score of 30 points (8 goals and 22 assists), but in the playoffs, Alexander played even more modestly in 13 games, only 2 goals and 4 assists. Well, his Toronto did not go beyond the second round.

After the lockout, he returned to New Jersey on a 2-year, $7 million contract. (3.5 million per year).

Mogilny played the first half of the season not badly - 25 points (12 goals and 13 assists) in 35 games. But then Alexander became a kind of "victim" of the salary cap and his high salary. At the beginning of 2006, Patrick Eliash returned to service, and since there was no place under the salary ceiling, a small change was needed, which Mogilny became. At first, he was put up for a "draft of failures", but not a single team took him to himself. And then for the first time in his career he was exiled to the AHL: to the "devils" farm club - Albany River Rats. Mogilny did not go to Turin, explaining that "he is not physically ready to play at a tournament of this level."

After the end of the season, he retired. In total, in the NHL (including the playoffs), Alexander Mogilny played 1114 games in which he scored 512 goals and made 606 assists. In 2011, he was inducted into the Buffalo Sabers Hall of Fame.

Since 2007, he has been working in the structure of the Khabarovsk Amur.

Alesander Mogilny is the most "odious" and controversial Russian hockey player: the "disgraced" forward was the first to flee the country, the main "refusenik" of the national team, who honored his presence only at the 1996 World Cup and then formally registered himself as a "veteran" (at the age of 29) , unable to benefit the national team and giving way to other younger players. Most likely, Alexander simply did not want to participate in the games for the national team, for reasons known to him alone.

ARCHAT

Alexander Mogilny was born on February 18, 1969 in the city of Khabarovsk. He started playing in the Golden Puck tournaments. His first coach was Valery Alekseevich Dementiev, who led the Yunost yard team. Later he played in the youth team of SKA, from where he got to CSKA. From 1986 to 1989 he played in CSKA - 98 games, 38 goals, 20 assists. Olympic champion in 1988. Silver medalist at the 1988 World Youth Championship. He got into the first part of the "all stars" of that tournament and was recognized as the best striker of the championship. World Youth Champion 1989. World Champion 1989. Mogilny's partners in CSKA were Pavel Bure and Sergei Fedorov, Viktor Tikhonov really wanted to make a replacement for Igor Larionov's five.

He was drafted in the fifth round, 89th overall, by the Buffalo Sabers in the 1988 NHL Entry Draft. On May 9, 1989, 20-year-old Mogilny asked for political asylum in the United States, where he received a work permit. He played his first game in the NHL on October 5, 1989 against the Quebec Nordiques and scored in this first exit on the ice already at 20 seconds into the match.

In the 1992/93 season, Mogilny scored 76 goals and shared the first place in the NHL in this indicator with Teemu Selanne. Named to the NHL All-Star Second Team in 1993 and 1996. Played at the NHL All-Star Games in 1992-94 and 1996. Stanley Cup Winner 2000.

On July 8, 1995, he was traded from the Buffalo Sabers to the Vancouver Canucks, along with a fifth-round pick for Michael Pecu, Mike Wilson, and a first-round pick. On March 14, 2000, he was traded from the Vancouver Canucks for Brendan Morrison and Denis Pederson to the New Jersey Devils, with whom he won the Stanley Cup.

Since the beginning of July 2001, having the status of a free agent, he signed a contract with the Toronto Maple Leafs, and on August 17, 2005 he returned to the New Jersey Devils. He ended his career in 2006.

From the beginning of November 2011, he played in a friendly match against veterans of Lokomotiv, playing for the stars of Russia, scored a bullet in the game.

There are many rumors about Mogilny's escape to the Buffalo. At the end of the 80s, various kinds of articles appeared in many printed publications of the USSR, such as Soviet Sport, Ogonyok, Arguments and Facts. Many believe that the Buffalo scouts prepared the escape in advance. That during the performance of CSKA in the USA, after the game with Buffalo, a man was seen leaving the team's locker room, then he was allegedly seen in a hotel. As if this unknown person handed over an envelope with instructions to Mogilny.

During the World Championship in Sweden, some employees of the hotel where the USSR national hockey team lived repeatedly reported that a man with a characteristic American accent called. Also, one of the workers said that while cleaning the room where Mogilny lived, men, also Americans, were seen. After Mogilny's escape, almost the entire team was interrogated by investigators from the military prosecutor's office, since Mogilny had a military rank, and the investigation was also conducted by KGB officers.

Twenty-two years after his escape to the United States, Mogilny, in an interview with Sport-Express, noted that the escape did not require much courage, and also that he was leaving Moscow "a poor man."

He has dual Russian-American citizenship. Mogilny received permission to visit his homeland only in 1994, after the collapse of the USSR.

Alexander played for national team Russia in 1996 at the World Cup, after which even Vyacheslav Fetisov, who gathered all the best Russian hockey players to participate in the 2002 Olympics, could not attract him to the games for the national team.

Currently he is a member of the Board of the Night Hockey League, curator of the conference "Far East".

Alexander Mogilny for Russian hockey- an amazing phenomenon. As a world champion and Olympic champion, he played only five matches for the Russian national team. Being one of the most talented strikers in Russian history, Alexander is practically unknown to the general public. On the one hand, Mogilny should be a reason for pride, on the other hand, he is still considered a deserter and a traitor.

Vasily Oskolkov

Alexander Mogilny is an amazing phenomenon for Russian hockey. As a world champion and Olympic champion, he played only five matches for the Russian national team. Being one of the most talented strikers in Russian history, Alexander is practically unknown to the general public. On the one hand, Mogilny should be a reason for pride, on the other hand, he is still considered a deserter and a traitor.

Way up

Mogilny's career in the USSR was simply phenomenal. The path from the Golden Puck tournament to the foundation of CSKA took only three years. Having moved from Khabarovsk to Moscow at the age of 15, Alexander from 1986 to 1989 managed to win the union championship three times, become the world champion at the youth and adult levels, and also take Olympic gold. And the silver of the MFM-1988 was compensated by the first place in the scorers standings and inclusion in the symbolic team of the tournament.

USSR Olympic ice hockey team, 1988. Photo - ITAR-TASS

However, the golden boy was famous not only for goals and titles. For a couple of years at CSKA, Mogilny managed to disgrace several times. Once a young hockey player, unhappy that veteran Irek Gimaev was forcing him to collect pucks screaming, punched him in the jaw, after which he was afraid to come to training for several days. And in March 1989, in a match with Spartak, he had a fight with the defender of the Red-Whites Yuri Yaschin. Alexander was disqualified for five matches and threatened to take away the title of Honored Master of Sports ...

This match was the last for Mogilny in the USSR. Two months later, the fights seemed like childish pranks. Alexander became the author of the loudest scandal in the history of Soviet hockey.

The escape

In June 1988, the Buffalo Blues drafted Mogilny in the fifth round, 89th overall. At that time, none of the Russian players had been chosen above. A few months later, in Anchorage at the World Youth Championship, where the trio Mogilny - Fedorov - Bure shone, Alexander's fateful meeting with Buffalo scout Don Luce took place. The young striker took a business card from a stranger, which became a ticket to a new world for him.

On May 2, 1989, the bell rang at Luce's house. The man on the other end of the line introduced himself as Sergei Fomichev - Mogilny's agent - and asked Luce to fly to Stockholm, where the World Cup was being held. On May 3 at noon, Luce landed in Sweden with Buffalo GM Jerry Meehan.

A few hours later, Mogilny was sitting in the car with representatives of Buffalo and Fomichev. Alexander simply ran away from the team during a shopping trip. While Meehan was processing documents for the Russian's flight to the United States, the hockey player himself, along with Fomichev and Luce, rode around Stockholm and changed hotel after hotel to cover up the traces of the escape.

Alexander Mogilny in the NHL. Photo - AFP

The loss of Mogilny was discovered on May 4, on the day of the departure of the USSR national team from Stockholm. The hockey players of the national team were interrogated by the KGB, Viktor Tikhonov was furious, suggesting that Alexander was seduced by huge money.

For Mogilny, the main thing was the newfound freedom. Later he will say: "If a person does not have freedom, this is not life. It's like living in a cage. For me, it's like being dead."

Freedom was backed up by a four-year, $630,000 contract with the Buffalo. Later, Alexander got a Rolls Royce and a huge house for half a million dollars.

Early days in the USA

The escape story didn't end there. CSKA players at that time were considered military personnel, so Alexander's act was regarded as desertion. At the same time, the American side did not need the scandal with the escaped Russian at all. Five weeks before that, the USSR and the United States agreed on the departure of Sergei Pryakhin overseas. Mogilny's behavior could harm the thawed relationship.

In general, Alexander did not have a way back, but the path to the NHL has not yet been opened. Everything depended on the decision of the Immigration and Naturalization Center, which had to explain the reasons for fleeing the union.

To stay in the United States, Mogilny was helped by a criminal case initiated at home. On May 9, 1989, on Victory Day, the hockey player asked for political asylum in the United States, securing the title of the main deserter and traitor of Russian hockey.

"Buffalo" and "dynamic duo"

Having escaped from the hated USSR, Mogilny did not become happier. At least right away. A 20-year-old boy found himself alone in another reality without knowledge in English and a family that he might never see again. In addition, he saw a KGB agent in every compatriot in the United States, so he did not communicate with the Russian diaspora in the city.

In addition, “Buffalo” in the early 90s was not the best team. The Blades played power hockey, which the technical Russian could not fit into. Although Mogilny scored his first goal in the NHL already at the 20th second of the first shift, things went from bad to worse - only 15 goals in 65 games in his debut championship.

That all changed with the arrival of Islanders forward Pat LaFontaine. An American with a Russian was nicknamed "a dynamic duet." The scoring pair was successfully complemented by high-scoring powerman Dave Andrejczak.

La Fontaine recalled that he very quickly found a common language with Alexander. Mogilny gave him the puck in the middle zone, accelerated and waited for a return pass. The American, having made the transfer, could prepare for the celebration of the goal.

In the 1992/1993 season, the dynamic duo scored 129 goals. At the same time, number 89 showed phenomenal statistics - 76 goals and 127 points - still the best result among Russian hockey players in the entire history of the NHL.

Buffalo advanced to the second round of the playoffs for the first time in ten years, Alexander scored seven times in seven meetings, but in the third match with Montreal he broke his leg, and the Canadians beat the Blades 4-0 in the series, all four the games ended with the score 4:3. The following season, the "dynamic duet" was gone. Lafontaine suffered injuries, and Mogilny scored 32 goals without the American's passes. In the same season, the striker became the first Russian captain in NHL history.

Return to Russia

In 1994, the NHL went into a lockout. Mogilny, as part of the Stars of Russia, came to Russia for the first time after his escape. Despite the collapse of the union and significant changes, Alexander seriously feared that he would be arrested, and did not step aside from Makarov and Fetisov.

Then the striker played his first and last match on Russian soil. Mogilny, along with Fetisov and Bure, were announced for Spartak for the match with Yaroslavl Torpedo. "Red-white" won 4:2, Alexander scored an assist.

Vancouver and reunion with Pavel Bure

In July 1995, Mogilny was traded to Vancouver, where the star of Pavel Bure was already burning with might and main. The leadership of the Canucks hoped for a revival of the army ligament, but the second “dynamic duet” did not work out - Mogilny had long been playing at the right forward position, like Bure, so the hockey players played in different teams. In addition, Pavel injured his knee at the beginning of the season, and Alexander had to drag the killer whales alone.

Union of A. Mogilny and P. Bure. Photo - HC "Vancouver"

The debut season was a success - 55 goals, 107 points, but then the performance of the Russians crept down. Aggravated the situation and the lack of “Vancouver” cool center. The relationship with the fans was spoiled by a strike at the beginning of the 1997/1998 season. Then the Russian knocked out a four-year contract for $17.6 million. A year later, the Canadian press recorded Mogilny as the main disappointment of the championship.

New Jersey, Stanley Cup and Toronto

Before the deadline for the 1999/2000 season, Mogilny was sent to New Jersey. In the new environment, Alexander did not immediately get used to it. For 12 matches in the regular season and 23 in the playoffs, the Russian scored only 13 points. However, then personal statistics did not matter. Mogilny with the Devils made it to the Stanley Cup Finals, where he beat Dallas.

The next year, the Russian began as the leader of the “New Jersey” – 43 goals and 83 points in the regular season and the second final in a row. However, this time the star “Colorado” with Sakic, Forsberg and Rua was stronger.

In the summer, Mogilny signed a contract with Toronto, where he played on the line with Sundin and Antropov, but without sniper exploits. Oleksandr provided assists. However, the milestone of 400 abandoned washers overcame the Russians in the “Leafs”.

After the 2004 lockout, Mogilny signed his last contract with New Jersey, but he could not work out the two-year agreement to the end. The leadership of the Devils, in order to fit under the salary cap, sent the veteran to the farm club, where he ended his career after 19 matches.

Mogilny and national team

Mogilny and the Russian team have practically nothing in common. After the scandalous escape, Alexander wore the uniform of the national team only once - at the 1996 World Cup. In test matches, Mogilny played in the "dream three" with Fedorov and Bure, but at the tournament Nemchinov replaced the injured Pavel in the first line. Alexander performed quite well (six points in five matches), which cannot be said about the national team. The team, made up entirely of NHLers, won only two victories and took fourth place.

On this, Mogilny's relationship with the national team ended. Why one of the best forwards in the world no longer played for the national team is still not clear. The general manager of the national team before the Turin Olympics Alexei Kasatonov in 2005 mentioned that Alexander spoke of his unwillingness to play at the international level after the 1996 World Cup, and missed the Nagano Games because he wanted to be with his family. After that, his candidacy was not seriously considered.

S. Fedorov and A. Mogilny in a friendly match in memory of V. Kharlamov. Photo - ITAR-TASS

Before Salt Lake City 2002, Mogilny himself said: "I just don't want to play. Do you think that without me the team will not be able to achieve results? Plus, I don't think that the organization in the team is up to the mark." However, in a recent interview, Alexander, recalling those Games, noted that he wanted to speak, but could not because of a microcrack in his spine.

Turin-2006 Mogilny also missed due to injuries. There was no talk at all about trips to the World Championships. Russian NHLers of that generation did not favor world championships in principle.

Achievements of Alexander Mogilny

Three-time champion of the USSR
Olympic champion 1988
World Youth Team Champion 1989
World Champion 1989
Stanley Cup Winner 2000
Winner of the "Lady Bing Trophy" 2002/2003
Triple Gold Club Member

Statistics in foreign clubs

1989-1995 Buffalo (225 goals + 263 assists)
1995 - 2000 Vancouver (140 + 177)
2000 - 2001, 2005 - 2006 New Jersey (55 + 57)
2001 - 2004 "Toronto" (80 + 125).

Story: Alexander Mogilny - the story of the escape

In February 1988, Alexander Mogilny, as part of the USSR national team, became the youngest Soviet hockey player to win Olympic gold. In June of that year, the Buffalo Sabers booked all rights to young hockey player, having selected him in the 5th round of the draft, 89th. At the turn of 1988 and 1989, in Anchorage, Alaska, youth championship The world and then the first meeting of Mogilny with representatives of Buffalo in the person of Don Luce, the club's breeder-trainer, took place.

Such is the prehistory. Five months later, on May 1, 1989, the 53rd World Championship ended in Stockholm, where the Soviet team regained its title. best team peace. A couple of days later, when the Soviet delegation was already waiting for a plane to Moscow, the owner of the hotel where the Soviet team was staying called the airport and told the delegation officials that he had just received an anonymous call with information about the flight of Alexander Mogilny. Coach Viktor Tikhonov was outraged: "This incident spoiled our joyful return home after winning the championship." He also told a TASS journalist that Mogilny asked for help getting him an apartment in Moscow, as he was about to get married and also wanted to move his parents to the capital. Tikhonov also added that he was confident that Mogilny was attracted by the big promised contract in the NHL. On May 4, after the first official reports from Moscow, the NHL leadership still did not know anything. There was no news from Buffalo, except for one - the general manager of the club, Gerry Meehan, flew to Stockholm a few days ago, but so far has not sent any news. Only a day later, North American newspapers were full of reports about the first hockey refugee from the USSR.

Several responses to escape.

Mikal Janofsky for The New York Times

(translation with slight abbreviations by D.R.)

Buffalo, May 6 - Alexander Mogilny, a Soviet hockey player who disappeared from Stockholm earlier this week to join the NHL's Buffalo Sabers, spent his first full day in the US in seclusion while club officials discussed his future with immigration officials and with NHL President John Ziegler.

Gerry Meehan, general manager of the Sabers, said that over the next few days, Mogilny would know exactly how successful all his efforts were. Meehan also said that it all depends on the willingness of the Immigration and Naturalization Center to be sympathetic to the reasons for the flight of the Soviet player and on Ziegler's analysis of possible negative actions on the part of Soviet hockey leaders.

"We do not have large selection in all of this,” Meehan said in an interview. “We have to reckon with the opinion of the league and the immigration authorities. We can only follow what they tell us, but I am confident that we can solve all the problems we are facing right now."

When Mogilny arrived in New York on Friday, he entered the country with the status of a password - a temporary permit. To obtain a permanent permit, he must convince the immigration center that he left the Soviet Union for legitimate political reasons. Meehan rejected earlier reports that Mogilny's love for the girl from Anchorage was the reason for Mogilny's flight.

"He didn't show me any evidence for that reason," Meehan said, but declined to give the reasons Mogilny mentioned to immigration officials immediately after his arrival.

Mogilny is another obstacle for the NHL (for concluding contracts with Soviet hockey players). His escape comes at a time of warming relations between sports organizations in the USA, including the NHL, and in the Soviet Union. Over the past few years, some teams have used their average or last round numbers in the draft to select promising Soviet players, in the hope that the Soviet Hockey Federation will allow hockey players to join their clubs. Usually this process takes years, the Devils with Vyacheslav Fetisov and the Vancouver Canucks with Igor Larionov and Vladimir Krutov felt it.

Five weeks ago, Sergei Pryakhin became the first Soviet player to be allowed to join the team that drafted him, the Calgary Flames. But Mogilny, a 20-year-old left-handed right winger drafted last year in the fifth round, was the first player to outsmart the system, so it remains unclear what the Soviets' response will be.

Meehan expects Ziegler to consider all possible implications before approving a contract for Mogilny.

"I can't speak for John, he has a lot of pressure on this case himself," Meehan said, adding that he expects a decision at the earliest. a short time.

On a grand scale, Mogilny's flight does not appear to bring any difficulty to Soviet-American relations. Rich Bocher, a spokesman for the government department in Washington, said he saw no "unusual" diplomatic moves, and other department officials agreed that the incident did not bring any cause for concern.

It may well turn out that the entire burden of the decision to flee lies entirely with the player himself. "Leaving is always difficult for all immigrants, whether they're hockey players, engineers or workers," said Ben Kagan, who immigrated from Riga to Buffalo 12 years ago.

kagan, hockey fan, who runs an electrical appliance repair business, said that Mogilny would find a small Russian community here, less than 300 people, and that learning English would be his biggest problem. John Hartlr, one of the Sabers' management, said today that Mogilny's English language skills are the most minimal.

The chain of events that brought Mogilny to Buffalo began on Tuesday when, after making contact with Mogilny, Meehan and Don Luce, the team's scout, arrived in Stockholm to meet the hockey player after the end of the World Championship won by the Soviet team. In the next two days, all the necessary documents were made so that Mogilny could fly to New York, and from there to Buffalo.

Meehan had never met Mogilny before, only Luce met him last winter in Anchorage at the World Junior Championships. Luce gave him his business card, instructing him to call at any time. When, last week, Mogilny made contact with Luce through an intermediary, Luce informed Meehan and both immediately went to Stockholm.

"I felt like it was my responsibility to the club, to the Sabers owners and fans, to fly down to Europe and see if there was anything to risk," Meehan said. "I think there was something."

If all goes well, and all other issues are resolved, then Mogilny will be able to go much further than the average hockey player selected in the fifth round of the draft. With his potential, it's safe to assume he'll be able to land a position with the Sabers more easily than his peers in the minor and junior leagues. Two years ago, a group of NHL scouts voted him the best junior in the world in a Hockey News magazine poll. At the 1988 World Junior Championships, when the Soviet team won the silver medal, Mogilny scored 8 goals and made 10 assists.

When the Soviet team won Olympic Games in Calgary, Mogilny with 3 goals and 2 assists, became the youngest Soviet hockey player to receive Olympic gold. In 98 games in the Soviet league, he scored 38 goals. But still, it was not goals and peradachi that attracted the attention of Buffalo to Mogilny. Sabers coaches say Mogilny skates with a flair that is unusual for Soviet players and likes to show off his individual game.

According to some reports, he was suspended for 10 games in the USSR Championship for fighting. It's also unusual.

"We think he has the speed, energy and puck handling to be a top player," Meehan said. "I think maybe they thought his personality was more than what they needed. He's a proud guy, proud of his talent. I like that."

On May 9, 1989, 20-year-old Alexander Mogilny applied for political asylum in the United States and received a work permit. The decision to apply for asylum was made by Mogilny after information was received from Moscow about the upcoming criminal case on the desertion of junior lieutenant Alexander Mogilny from the army. Speaking to reporters with the help of an interpreter, he said: "Having chosen this step, I thought about everything ... and I have to think about my future."

Some time passed before the NHL approved Buffalo's contract with Mogilny. Surely, the fact that the Soviet hockey federation, threatening "serious complications" with the NHL, did not move from words to deeds, fearing to lose money on the sale of other hockey players and on friendly tours, also had an effect.