Pavel Bure: The Russian Rocket

Pavel Bure began playing hockey at the age of 16, representing the Soviet Red Army Team. The Russian Rocket was the nickname given to him due to the tremendous speed and skill with which he played the game. He was picked 113th overall in the sixth round of the 1989 NHL Entry Draft by the Vancouver Canucks. November 5, 1991 saw the debut of No. 10 against the Winnipeg Jets. On that first shift, the Russian took the puck in his own zone and went through the Jets team to get a good scoring chance. There wasn't a goal on that shift, or even in the entire game for that matter. However, Bure gave the people a little taste of things to come. Racking up 60 points (34g, 26a) in 65 games that year, Pavel won the Calder Memorial Trophy as the rookie of the year. Next season, he registered 110 points (60g, 50a), and 107 points (60g, 47a) the following. "Sophomore slump" wasn't a part of his vocabulary, I guess. This kid was the real deal. In the 1993-1994 season (in which he totaled 107 points in the ... (link)