|
 |
Russia's Khabibulin is playing for keeps
By Tim Buckley
Deseret News Olympic specialist
Nikolai Khabibulin has won Olympic gold before. But this time he wants to win a medal that won't be taken away.
The quest for a prize that truly will be his evidently is one reason among many the Russian goalie, after skipping the 1998 Winter Games in Nagano, is playing in 2002.
"I was watching the Olympics in Nagano. I saw how excited players were," said Khabibulin, an All-Star for the Tampa Bay Lightning who enters the Salt Lake Games as the hottest goalie in the NHL. "It was really awesome to watch. I really want to play this time."
Backing up a bit, the reason Khabibulin soured on the Olympics is a mix of political and personal priorities.
The year was 1992, and Khabibulin was the spare, third-string goalie for the Unified Team — a collection of stars from the former Soviet Union who played with no flag after the breakup of that superpower nation.
The Unified Team won gold, but Khabibulin's medal was stolen away by Unified coach Viktor Tikhonov, who — because Olympic coaches aren't awarded medals of their own — claimed it for himself.
Khabibulin doesn't discuss the incident, nor did he prefer, when given the opportunity recently, to discuss in great detail the numerous other matters that soured the relationship between many Russian NHL stars and their own once allegedly corrupt hockey federation.
"A lot of players had some arguments with Federation, and I just didn't like the way they handle things from the World Cup experience," said Khabibulin, who did play in the 1996 World Cup of Hockey. "So I didn't want to go (to Nagano), and some other players didn't want to go.
"There were a lot of issues that I'm really not even going to talk about now," he added. "They're in the past."
Instead, Khabibulin looks ahead to 2002 final-round play, which begins with Russia's Friday-morning game against Belarus at the E Center.
One big reason is the presence of Russian coach and general manager Slava Fetisov, the former Central Red Army and Detroit Red Wings defenseman who was drafted by the New Jersey Devils in 1983, but had to wait six years before being allowed to become the first Soviet superstar to jump to the NHL.
"He has a tremendous amount of respect from the players, and fans all around the world. And he's a player (who) had a great career," Khabibulin said. "He won everything that a player can possibly win. He won Olympics and World Championships and Stanley Cups. You have to respect that, and I definitely am respecting it.
"He's a very smart hockey man. He knows what he's doing, and he's been everywhere. He knows all kinds of situations. So I think everybody's gonna feel comfortable with what he has to say."
The selection of Fetisov, who won two Cups and two Olympic gold medals, is really what sealed Khabibulin's participation in these Games.
"The biggest part was that I wanted to go and play this time — and the fact that there were rumors that Slav was going to be general manager and head coach made me want to go even more," he said. "That even made my decision a lot easier."
Khabibulin had plenty of time to think about it all during a recent rather lengthy layoff from the NHL, a period in which he was embroiled in a contract dispute with the Phoenix Coyotes, who eventually traded him to Tampa Bay.
"They were a pretty tough two years, and I think during those years I became stronger mentally a little bit — which, for a goalie, helps a lot when you play," he said. "That would probably be the main thing. . . . I had to go through a tough stretch . . . When everything's over, and something isn't going right at certain times, you know, it doesn't seem as big as those two years. So I think that helps, a little bit."
Now, Khabibulin's priority is helping Russia win Olympic gold for the first time as a separate, post-breakup country.
"It seems like we can have good chemistry (in Salt Lake)," he said, "and we'll see what happens."
E-MAIL: tbuckley@desnews.com
|
|
February 14, 2002
|
