Soviet Union men's national ice hockey team

Lore & Background

Ice hockey was not properly introduced into the Soviet Union until the 1940s, though bandy had long been popular. During a tour of FC Dynamo Moscow of the United Kingdom in 1945, Soviet officials first got the idea of establishing an ice hockey program after watching exhibition matches in London. The Soviet Championship League was established in 1946, and the national team was formed shortly after, playing their first matches against LTC Praha in 1948. The Soviets made their debut at the 1954 World Championships, largely unknown to the larger hockey world, and won the gold medal by defeating Canada in the final game. In 2013, the Soviet national team was awarded the IIHF Milestone Award for winning the gold medal in their first appearance at the World Championships and the beginning of a rivalry against Canada.

The Soviets played their first exhibition tour in Canada in 1957, perpetuating a rivalry between the countries. Throughout the rest of the 1950s the World Championships were largely contested between Canada and the Soviet Union. After missing the 1962 tournament due to political issues, the Soviets won the gold medal every year until 1972. They faced perhaps their greatest upset at the 1976 World Championships, losing 6–4 to host Poland in their opening match. In 1972 the Soviets played Canada in an exhibition series known as the Summit Series, where a team of NHL players narrowly won four games to three with one tie. At the 1980 Winter Olympics, the Soviets lost 4–3 to the United States in a match later dubbed the Miracle on Ice, finishing with the silver medal.

The reforms of the 1980s had a detrimental effect on the national team. Players like Viacheslav Fetisov and Igor Larionov openly critiqued the management style of their coach, Viktor Tikhonov, and sought the chance to move to North America and play in the NHL. In 1989 several players, including Fetisov and Larionov, were permitted to leave the Soviet Union and join NHL teams. The nickname 'The Red Machine' came into usage during the 1983 Super Series, when a Minneapolis newspaper headline read 'The Red Machine rolled down on us'.

Reader's Guide

The Soviet national ice hockey team was a dominant force in international hockey from its debut in 1954 until the dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991. The team won at least one medal each year at either the World Championships or the Olympics during that period, amassing 17 World Championship titles and 7 Olympic gold medals. The team's amateur status was controversial, as players were full-time athletes hired as regular workers of companies or organizations to maintain amateur eligibility, while spending all their working hours practicing. This led to protests from several national hockey federations, such as Canada, which withdrew from the 1972 and 1976 Winter Games. The 1972 Summit Series against Canada marked a pivotal moment, as it was the first time the Soviets faced NHL players; Canada won the series in the final seconds of the eighth game. The IIHF later awarded the Milestone Award to both teams for the event's decisive influence on the development of the game. After the Soviet Union dissolved, the team competed as the CIS team at the 1992 Winter Olympics, then was replaced by Russia at the 1992 World Championship. The IIHF recognized the Ice Hockey Federation of Russia as the successor and passed its ranking on to Russia, while other former republics started new teams in Pool C. Four Soviet-Russian players were named to the IIHF Centennial All-Star Team: Vladislav Tretiak, Vyacheslav Fetisov, Valeri Kharlamov, and Sergei Makarov.

Did You Know?

• The Soviet team won the gold medal in its first World Championship appearance in 1954, defeating Canada in the final.
• The nickname 'The Red Machine' originated from a 1983 Minneapolis newspaper headline.
• The 1972 Summit Series was the first time the Soviet team played against NHL players, with Canada winning in the final seconds of the eighth game.