Zubov introduced by the KHL

by James Mirtle on Aug 12, 2009 2:07 PM CDT Comment 15 comments

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A few comments from Sergei Zubov, provided by the KHL (more pictures here):

"When I decided to play in the KHL for SKA, I hoped that I would play at the same level I did in the NHL. Now I think I have come to the peak of my physical form. I would not like to predict, but I hope that during the season I will [play at] my former level.

"The last two weeks I just could not sleep, thinking that my career in many ways is to start all over again. For me and my family to move to Russia was a difficult step. I think I fairly quickly will cope with the pressure.

"Living in the United States, I kept my eye on Russian hockey, and therefore I have some notion of what to expect. In my opinion in recent years hockey styles from different countries have been integrated, and now there is no Russian, Swedish or Canadian hockey. This integration allows our sport to progress, and it is great to see these processes take place in the KHL."

Most points by defenceman (1994-95 to present):

Rk	Player	GP	G	A	PTS	PTS	+/-
1	Nicklas Lidstrom	1082	200	640	840	0.78	323
2	Sergei Zubov	941	132	519	651	0.69	129
3	Sergei Gonchar	929	191	443	634	0.68	58
4	Scott Niedermayer	1018	141	464	605	0.59	133
5	Brian Leetch	768	144	438	582	0.76	-27
6	Chris Pronger	941	137	439	576	0.61	156
7	Mathieu Schneider	934	163	392	555	0.59	20
8	Rob Blake	904	178	376	554	0.61	-27
9	Roman Hamrlik	1026	133	389	522	0.51	-25
10	Sandis Ozolinsh	757	134	343	477	0.63	-51
11	Bryan McCabe	986	130	327	457	0.46	36
12	Al MacInnis	613	127	325	452	0.74	132
13	Teppo Numminen	941	80	367	447	0.48	90
14	Wade Redden	919	104	332	436	0.47	154
15	Ed Jovanovski	903	118	315	433	0.48	-57

I think that's the peer group Zubov should be remembered in. He was quietly one of the best blueliners in the game for a long, long time.

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jeez

Nicklas Lidstrom’s stats are ridiculous. Nobody even comes close to his level of awesome

by detroitnick on Aug 12, 2009 2:21 PM CDT reply actions 0 recs

I love talking about Lidstrom, especially in a thread about Zubov.

by hallock on Aug 12, 2009 2:21 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

bah

who cares about 3ybob?

NICK LIDSTROM!!!!111

by detroitnick on Aug 12, 2009 5:51 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

He leads every category on that chart. Games Played, Goals, Assists, Points (obviously), Points per Game, and Plus/Minus. Better than that, it isn’t even the result of cherry-picking the start point, since 1994-95 was probably the weakest season of his career, and there are at least two better prior to that year.

This is Zubov’s peer group, and I never really appreciated how good he was. It’s just that there is one person on this list who belongs in a different group.

by J. Michael Neal on Aug 12, 2009 4:54 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

Yeap, but that’s not even worth debating. I could have started this list at No. 2 and it wouldn’t make a difference.

Blogging on hockey at fromtherink.com

by James Mirtle on Aug 12, 2009 7:29 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

I’m glad Sergei Zubov is getting some press, even if he’s going to the KHL. Seeing Zubov and Teppo Numminen so prominently on that list illustrates how underrated they both were playing in over 940+ games in that time frame with very little fanfare.

Supporter of the Sergei Berezin "Give and Go" - You give me puck, then you go to hell

by bkblades on Aug 12, 2009 5:12 PM CDT reply actions 0 recs