The Detroit Red Wings regular season is just around the corner. And while this season will be a completely different experience for everyone involved, we’re looking forward to kicking off the 95th chapter of the historic franchise.
Each day as the season draws closer, we’ll be posting a tribute piece to a player who wore the corresponding jersey number to the days remaining until hockey is back.
As there are 16 days until Detroit’s regular season opener against Carolina, we’re starting our countdown by remembering none other than Vladimir Konstantinov.
The bruising blueliner was one of the top defenseman in the NHL and had several more years of hockey ahead of him prior to his career being tragically cut short in the horrible limousine accident just days after the 1997 Stanley Cup victory.
Let’s throw it back to the 1997 Stanley Cup Playoffs, when Red Wings nemesis Peter Forsberg felt the full blunt force of the Russian defenseman’s power:
How I loved watching Vladimir play! All the ‘Russian Five’… I miss them.