THN Archive: Fedorov Was Superstar Who Did It All – Including Three Stanley Cup Victories

In his stellar NHL career, Russian forward Sergei Fedorov never shied away from the spotlight. And in this cover story from THN’s March 14, 2003 edition – Vol. 56, Issue 27 – contributor Jonathan Davis sat down with Fedorov for an exclusive interview.

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As a member of the Detroit Red Wings at the time the article was published, Fedorov was a well-established star. But the 2002-03 campaign would prove to be his final season in the Motor City before he left for the Anaheim Ducks. But in the interview with Davis, Fedorov sounded like he wanted to be a Wing for life.

“Honestly now, not a chance,” Fedorov said when asked if he could envision playing elsewhere. “It’s not even an issue for me at this point…I’m confident that with my new representation from IMG that a deal to keep me in Detroit will be able to get worked out.”

Fedorov won three Stanley Cups with Detroit, and he went a long way toward underscoring the impact of European players at the NHL level.

“The European style of play focuses more on the skills and our critics don’t like the fact that we don’t spend as much energy driving someone through the boards,” Fedorov told Davis. “I remember people accusing many of us on the Wings during our first Stanley Cup run that we just didn’t care about winning a Cup. We just wanted to go home for the summer. That was the farthest thing from the truth and we proved it by winning it all.”

Fedorov was the first European player to win the Hart Memorial Trophy as the NHL’s most valuable player in 1994, and though his offensive production fell off in later years, he fully bought into the team concept under legendary coach Scotty Bowman.

“The focus in Detroit has been 25 guys all committed to winning a Stanley Cup and that meant making sacrifices,” Fedorov said. “Scotty Bowman’s system didn’t really allow for a guy to put up 120 points a season. Scotty felt that putting up those types of numbers during the regular season wouldn’t make you hungry enough come playoff time. Scotty really liked to treat everyone the same. We rolled four lines, four very dominating lines. Gone were the days of ‘93-94 when I was playing 28 minutes.”

Fedorov was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 2015, and his place as an all-time great was assured by his consistently excellent play. But that doesn’t mean he didn’t have crises of confidence.

“I want to be that guy, but I don’t know if I am that guy,” Fedorov said when asked if he wanted to be the go-to guy on his team. “The first part of the season I felt I was that guy, but as the season progressed that wasn’t the case anymore. I think the coaches and myself lost confidence in one another. For the past two months hockey has been a job for me. It wasn’t until recently when I let my feelings known to the coaching staff that things got better. I’m back playing in those key situations and I feel I’ve been successful and with that (came) a restored confidence in myself.”

FEDOROV UNPLUGGED

By Jonathan Davis

March 14, 2003

THN Why did you change agents during the season and leave Octagon to go to IMG?

FEDOROV For many reasons, to be honest with you. I wanted to make a fresh start with both my personal and professional life. I needed to make a complete change from what had gone on with the last four years that I was being represented by Octagon. There were some things that happened when I was being represented by Octagon that I found out about after the fact…I just don’t think they had my best interests at heart.

(Editor’s Note: THN contacted Octagon hockey director Brian Lawton for a response. “That’s absolutely false,” Lawton said. “We never wanted anything but the best for Sergei Fedorov. The work we did for him was exceptional. It’s difficult for me to understand why he would even say that. I can tell you that he never said that to me.”)

THN It has been reported you turned down a five-year, $50-million deal. Is this true?

FEDOROV What I can say is that there were offers made by the Red Wings, but I don’t want to get into specifics of how many years or how much money was involved because I don’t want Red Wings fans and hockey fans to get the wrong impression about me. At the time it was made in November I was going through a very difficult situation personally. I really wanted to focus all my energies to just playing hockey. I asked (Wings GM) Ken Holland and (Wings owner) Mr. (Mike) Hitch if they could give me some time to take care of some issues that I needed to deal with both personally and professionally because I was trying to make a fresh start with my life.

THN You tried to leave Detroit a few years back when Carolina signed you to an offer sheet. Are you happy with the way things worked out? Any regrets?

FEDOROV I really didn’t know where my future (lay) at the time. I didn’t have an offer from the Red Wings. I just wanted to play somewhere so I accepted the offer sheet from Carolina. I was very happy when the Red Wings matched the offer.

THN Can you picture yourself elsewhere next season?

FEDOROV Honestly now, not a chance. It’s not even an issue for me at this point…I’m confident that with my new representation from IMG that a deal to keep me in Detroit will be able to get worked out.

THN Did your splitting up with Anna Kournikova (she is represented by Octagon) also contribute to your changing agents?

FEDOROV Not at all.

THN There have been rumors that you and Anna were actually married. True or false?

FEDOROV They are true. We were married, albeit brief, and we are now divorced.

THN Do you keep in touch with Anna? Are you dating anybody else right now?

FEDOROV I don’t keep in touch with her and I’m not going to be dating anyone for a while.

THN Why do you think there is such an infatuation - with both the media and fans - over your relationship with Anna? Does that bother you?

FEDOROV It didn’t bother me. I think the reason the media made such a big deal was because of the age difference (Anna is 21, Sergei is 33). We were friends for quite a while…We were just so much apart and those things when you fell in love or are falling in love, it happens at such a young age…It’s just impossible because I was a little bit older, I think. People didn’t realize we have parents. She has parents, I have parents. Everything was normal as far as I’m concerned.

THN Because of the age difference, did your teammates ever give you a hard time about it?

FEDOROV No, they were quite supportive because they knew we came from the old world and pretty much, to us, it was normal. But no one really knows our story. We didn’t really speak about it. I don’t think my teammates had any problems. They had problems later, though…they wanted to support me, I guess.

THN Pavel Bure was linked to her as well. Did that ever affect your relationship with him?

FEDOROV I still don’t know what it was. I read only in magazines what was going on and I basically tried to break up. But she had an explanation and I really believed that it was true and I, sort of…we patched things up.

THN Is it a priority for you to marry a Russian woman, or does it enter into the equation at all?

FEDOROV It was back then, but right now I’m kind of confused on that issue. I’m not really sure where the answer is going to lie.

THN Vladimir Konstantinov - what do you think about when someone mentions his name?

FEDOROV Sadness. What if. It was a very high price we’ve paid for winning. I’d trade winning the Stanley Cup for his health and happiness. It has been very tough for me because he is such a close friend. We were roommates back in the Soviet Union. I just don’t understand how something like that could happen to a person like him.

THN There have been suggestions made by some North American players that there should be a European quota in the NHL. In fact, when he was with Pittsburgh, Jaromir Jagr once said his team had too many Europeans.

FEDOROV My feeling is the best players should play in the best league in the world, end of story.

THN Why do you think the stereotype of Europeans being less committed than North Americans still exists?

FEDOROV The European style of play focuses more on the skills and our critics don’t like the fact that we don’t spend as much energy driving someone through the boards. I remember people accusing many of us on the Wings during our first Stanley Cup run that we just didn’t care about winning a Cup. We just wanted to go home for the summer. That was the farthest thing from the truth and we proved it by winning it all.

THN It has been nearly 10 years since you became the first European to win the Hart Trophy. Are you surprised you haven’t won another one?

FEDOROV I’m not surprised. The focus in Detroit has been 25 guys all committed to winning a Stanley Cup and that meant making sacrifices. Scotty Bowman’s system didn’t really allow for a guy to put up 120 points a season. Scotty felt that putting up those types of numbers during the regular season wouldn’t make you hungry enough come playoff time. Scotty really liked to treat everyone the same. We rolled four lines, four very dominating lines. Gone were the days of ‘93-94 when I was playing 28 minutes.

THN Does it bother you that you haven’t put up those 100-point seasons?

FEDOROV Not at all, because that’s why this team has been so successful and won championships. Don’t get me wrong. I’d like to score more goals and put up a lot of points, but not at the expense of what we are trying to do as a team.

THN Do you feel you’ve met your expectations as a player in the NHL?

FEDOROV Oh yeah, I’ve had a long career. The idea of winning Olympic gold is still out there. But as far as my NHL career goes, I’ve won Stanley Cups. I’d like to win more and I feel that I’ve still got five or six great years ahead of me and a chance to win a few more championships before I will say goodbye to the game.

THN What do you think about Brett Hull’s comments that 75 per cent of today’s players are overpaid? What was the team’s reaction to Hull’s piece in The Hockey News?

FEDOROV On the humorous side, I’d like to know which percentage Brett feels he falls under. On the serious side, money is a very touchy subject. I really don’t think hockey players are overpaid. The pounding we take on our bodies from an 82-game season plus playoffs, I know when I eventually walk away from the game I’m going to be physically handicapped in some form. You have to understand that when a contract is signed the people that are negotiating the deal on both sides are intelligent people and I don’t think the people on management side are going to offer a lot of money to someone who just isn’t worth it.