Vladislav Tretiak

Lore & Background

Tretiak grew up in the USSR; his father was a military pilot for 37 years, his mother a physical education teacher. He initially followed his brother as a swimmer but loved hockey, entering the CSKA youth school at age 11. He became a goaltender because no one else had the desire or courage to play the position. His first trainer was Mike Jaure. He played for the powerhouse Red Army team CSKA Moscow and was named to the Soviet First All-Star Team in 1971 at age 19. He became internationally famous after the 1972 Summit Series, where he played every game while Canada used Tony Esposito and Ken Dryden; Canadian scouts had underestimated him after seeing him let in eight goals on a night when he had been married the previous evening. During the 1976 Super Series, he held the Montreal Canadiens to a 3–3 tie despite being outshot 38–13. In the 1980 Winter Olympics, he was controversially pulled after letting in two goals in the first period against the USA; the USSR won silver. The Montreal Canadiens chose him in the 1983 NHL entry draft, but the Soviet government did not let him leave. He retired in 1984 at age 32, partly because national team coach Viktor Tikhonov refused a training regime that would allow him to live at home.

Reader's Guide

Tretiak's significance stems from his dominance in international hockey and his role as the first Soviet player inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame (1989). He backstopped the Soviet Union to gold medals in the 1972, 1976, and 1984 Winter Olympics, ten IIHF World Championships, and nine European Championships. After retiring, he became a goaltender coach for the Chicago Blackhawks in 1990, coaching Ed Belfour, Dominik Hašek, and Jocelyn Thibault; under his guidance, Belfour won two Vezina and two Jennings Trophies. Belfour later wore uniform number 20 as a tribute to Tretiak, as did Evgeni Nabokov and others. In 2000, he was voted 'Best Russian Hockey Player' of the 20th century. He was elected head of the Russian Ice Hockey Federation in 2006 and served as general manager of the Russian 2010 Winter Olympic team. He also founded the Friends of Canada organization and was awarded the Meritorious Service Medal by the Governor General of Canada in 2006. He ran goalie schools in Toronto, Montreal, and Detroit Lakes. In 2014, he was the final torchbearer and lit the Olympic Flame at the Sochi Winter Olympics opening ceremony.

Did You Know?

• Tretiak was married on 23 August 1972, six weeks after meeting his wife Tatiana, and the night before a game where he let in eight goals, leading Canadian scouts to underestimate him.
• He was the first player born and trained outside North America to be inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame (1989).
• He voted in favor of the 'Dima Yakovlev Law' in 2012, which bars adoption of Russian children by U.S. citizens.
• He was sanctioned by the United Kingdom government in 2022 and by Canada in 2024 in relation to the Russo-Ukrainian War.