After the Cold War ended between the United States and the old Soviet Union, a small group of Russians invaded America.
One by one, they defected to the National Hockey League. Over time, a small, dynamic group of former Red Army players found their way to the Detroit Red Wings. They were affectionately known as “The Russian Five.”
Their names are still fresh in the minds of Hockeytown’s faithful: Federov, Fetisov, Konstantinov, Kozlov and Larionov. Russia’s best were welcome with open arms in a town once known as “The Arsenal of Democracy.”
This video clip aired just before the 1997 Red Wings Stanley Cup championship. It provides candid interviews of the Russians as they tell their fascinating stories.