People always referred to Sergei Makarov as the Russian Gretzky, which says a lot about the reputation he held in the arena. Cliff Fletcher (Senior Adviser with the Toronto Maple Leafs) didn’t say whether or not he thought Sergei was the greatest hockey player ever, though, looking at the NHL sports betting odds, the opinions of most hockey fans are relatively obvious.
Sergei chose to come to the NHL at the wrong time. Already in the Twilight of his career, Sergei was nowhere nearly as impressive at this time. He was, none the less, amazing to behold. Fletcher compared him to Wayne, especially with the way he was always so focused, determining to simply make the best play in every game.
Fans of Makarov cannot wait for him to finally enter the Hockey Hall of Fame, which will happen on Monday. Rogie Vachon, Pat Quinn, and Eric Lindros will join him in this honor. Makarov has enjoyed a rich and varied hockey career, at one point in time playing alongside Igor Larionov and Vladimir Krutov in the most dynamic unit in history.
Even if he isn’t the greatest Hockey player to ever live, Sergei is definitely the best forward the game has ever seen. Just ask, Vladislav Domrachev, a Russian Sportswriter who thinks that Makarov was always a genius. He somehow managed to avoid injuries and scandals during his lengthy playing career.
Boasting great intelligence, strength, speed and impressive stick-handling abilities, it is no wonder CSKA Coach Viktor Tikhonov preferred to use him on the penalty kill. Sure, players like Larionov and Krutov were impressive enough. However, Makarov was an all-round player, pretty much the face of a line that many grew to fear, not only within the Soviet League but abroad.
Many of Makarov’s best performances went unseen by the NHL squad, which is why it is such a shame that he didn’t come to the NHL sooner. Makarov wasn’t merely touted as a great player.
He delivered sound results. Just look at the Soviet Union which took the World Championship Seven times with Makarov’s assistance. The breadth of Makarov’s skills was proven when he helped his side take Olympic Gold two times.
They also took the World Juniors twice. And that isn’t even taking into account everything they did during the 1981 Canada Cup. Looking at the Old Soviet Championship League, Makarov managed to garner 710 points in 519 games.
If that wasn’t enough to justify all the hype surrounding him, Makarov also scored an impressive 25 goals in seven seasons. That is something worth celebrating. His time at the NHL began when Makarov was 31.
He played with Calgary, San Jose and Dallas, during which he accrued 424 games and garnered 384 points. The transition to the NHL wasn’t easy for him. Larionov had an easier time adopting the lifestyle and the approach to Hockey.
The dump-and-chase just didn’t work for Makarov. For Makarov, holding the puck for as long as possible was preferable. He was used to playing in a system that emphasized puck control. His approach in the NHL gave him ample chances to make his mark; the Hall of Fame Induction is more than deserved.
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