Valeri Vasiliev

Valeri Ivanovich Vasiliev (Russian Валерий Иванович Васильев; born August 3, 1949 in Wolchowo, Novgorod Oblast, Russian SFSR, † 19 April 2012) was a Soviet ice hockey player (defender) and a member of the IIHF Hall of Fame.

Career

Vasileva talent was discovered in 1967 by talent scouts of the ice hockey club HK Dynamo Moscow in a youth team. He was brought to Moscow and played for Dynamo to 1984 in the Soviet league. In 1970, he was prepared for the Soviet national team and played here until 1982, but mainly as team captain. He impressed by its hardness, its skills and runs through his precise passing game.

With the Soviet national team, he won at the Olympic Winter Games two gold medals (1972, 1976) and one silver medal (1980). In the latter tournament known as the Miracle on Ice took place against the United States, which the USSR lost 4:3. The Ice Hockey World Championships with the team he could win the title a total of ten times (1970, 1973, 1974, 1975, 1978, 1979, 1980, 1981, 1982).

As a club player, he was far less successful; he could never win the Soviet championship, as the HK CSKA Moscow at that time dominated the league with Dynamo. In 1998 he was honored with induction into the IIHF Hall of Fame.

Like his former club Dynamo Moscow announced that Vasilyev died on 19 April 2012 at the age of 62 after a long illness.

Career Stats

Internationally

( Key to Career statistics: Sp or GP = Games Played, T or G = goals scored, V or A = achieved assists; Pts or Pts = scored points scorer, SM or PIM = received penalty minutes, / - = Plus / Minus balance sheet; PP = scored majority gates; SH = scored shorthanded goals, GW = achieved victory gates; Play-downs/Relegation 1 )