Sports
Viacheslav Fetisov
born 1958 · ice hockey defenseman
Legendary Soviet defenseman who helped break the barrier keeping Soviet players out of the NHL, then anchored the Red Wings' "Russian Five" to back-to-back Stanley Cups.
- Born
Moscow, Soviet Union
age 68- Birth name
- Viacheslav Alexandrovich Fetisov
- Also known as
- Slava Fetisov
- Detroit years
- 1995–1998
- Field
- Sports
01 / The Detroit story
The Detroit story
After 13 seasons captaining Soviet hockey's flagship club, CSKA Moscow, and years of resistance from Soviet authorities, Fetisov finally reached the NHL in 1989 with the New Jersey Devils. Traded to Detroit in April 1995, he joined fellow Russians Sergei Fedorov, Igor Larionov, Vladimir Konstantinov and Slava Kozlov to form the "Russian Five," a unit whose passing game reshaped how the Red Wings played. Detroit reached the 1995 Stanley Cup Final, then won the championship outright in 1997 and again in 1998, giving Fetisov both of his Stanley Cup rings in Detroit. Days after the 1997 title, tragedy struck the team when a limousine carrying Fetisov, teammate Vladimir Konstantinov and team masseur Sergei Mnatsakanov crashed in Birmingham, a Detroit suburb, seriously injuring Konstantinov and Mnatsakanov; Fetisov escaped largely unhurt. He retired after the 1998 title and later became Russia's sports minister.
Highlights
- Key figure in ending the ban on Soviet players joining the NHL
- Anchor of the Red Wings' "Russian Five" unit
- Won back-to-back Stanley Cups with Detroit in 1997 and 1998
- Survived the June 1997 limousine crash that badly injured teammates Konstantinov and Mnatsakanov
02 / Their Detroit places
Their Detroit places 1
Where they lived, worked, performed and liked to hang out. Closed and demolished places stay here too, because they are part of the city's history.
Played here · 1995–1998
Joe Louis Arena
Demolished · 1979–2019
Home ice of the Red Wings' Russian Five and the 1997 and 1998 championship teams; demolished in 2019–2020.