Russia Adds Rocket to Arsenal
Tuesday, November 01, 2005

Posted by Kerrzy

It was only a matter of time before a formal announcement was made, regardless of how badly some of us wanted to see him back on the nightly highlight reel and on November 1st it finally happened -- Pavel Bure has officially hung up the skates.


One of the most remarkable players of his era, Bure was known for his speed and his ability to score goals, with back-to-back 60-goal seasons from 1992-1994 and then 58-goal and 59-goal seasons back-to-back between 1999-2001.

“The Russian Rocket,” as we’ve all come to know him made his mark in the NHL immediately, winning the Calder Trophy as the NHL’s Rookie of the Year in 1992 with a 60 point season (65 games-34 goals-26 assists) and has twice captured the Maurice Richard Trophy as the NHL’s top goal scorer, once in 2000 and then again in 2001; his 58 and 59 goal totals are still the benchmark for the Trophy that has only been awarded since 1999.

What’s next for Bure?

The President of the Russian Hockey Federation, Alexander Steblin, announced today that Bure would be the new General Manager of Russia’s Olympic team, taking over a team full of egos and controversy, which Bure says will be a thing of the past.

Although we’ve had a while to get used to not having Bure flying down the wing every other night, it’s still not a welcome sight to see him out of the game so young.

“My first born will have the name Pavel,” said Edmonton Bure-fanatic Garrett Hadfield when I asked him how he felt about Bure retiring.

“My best memory of Bure was my dad sneaking me down to the 2nd row at the Coliseum; I was wearing a Bure jersey and screaming his name, and he looked up and winked at me....that’s love Kerrzy.”

Love indeed, Haddy.

After five knee surgeries and two reconstructions though, the Rocket just has nothing left; at least we’ve got the throwback Rock ‘em Sock ‘em to remember him by.

Moral of the Story: Imagine what Bure would have done with all the open ice this season. I guess that’s one thing that’s better left up to the imagination.