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Tarasenko's dream about to come true.
09.02.2014.Strauss, Joe. McClatchy - Tribune Business News
A year ago Vladimir Tarasenko dealt with a concussion and what seemed like skating in a bathtub.
Sunday he returns to his homeland to celebrate an almost seven-year-old dream.
Of 10 Blues players chosen as Olympians to represent their country in
the Sochi games, none will cherish the honor more profoundly than the
right winger. On the day the International Olympic Committee awarded
these games to the Russian resort town, Tarasenko's father and
grandparents waited half a nanosecond before issuing a challenge:
You work to be there.
"It was a dream we all had," Tarasenko remembers of words he heard that
Siberian summer day half a world away from an announcement made in
Guatemala City.
The challenge came with a fair amount of pressure attached. Vladimir's
father, Andrei, spent 21 years playing right wing in the Kontinental
Hockey League, twice leading the world's second-best league in scoring.
Andrei also scored twice for the Russian national team in the 1994
Winter Games in Lillehammer, Norway.
Imagine growing up the son of a star in the national sport. Imagine
having the goal of a faraway Olympics placed before you even before
turning professional at 17, getting drafted by a foreign team at 18,
wrestling for two years whether to stay or go, and meanwhile getting
traded from the local team to St. Petersburg. Then, upon deciding to
jump, finding the NHL convulsed in a lockout.
"I think 100 percent right now that it's right to be," in the NHL,
Tarasenko said last week. "But it was a tough time when the Blues were
after me."
Tarasenko and eight teammates were to travel to Newark, N.J., following
Saturday afternoon's game against Winnipeg, a contest in which
Tarasenko scored the decisive shootout tally in his team's 4-3 victory.
(Honored by the Czech Republic, Blues center Vladimir Sobotka had
Olympic experience sabotaged by a fractured kneecap.) The trip's second
leg will take Tarasenko to the Russian coastal town and a reunion with
family members he hasn't seen since July.
Tarasenko's parents divorced when he was 3, two years before he first
laced on skates. His grandparents raised him for the final 11 years of
his father's career. Now the son occasionally plays in games involving
retired players, his father among them. In deference Vladimir moves to
left wing with Andrei on right.
The challenges keep coming.
"They tell me right away it's not enough just to make it," he recalled
of the message he received immediately after the Russian roster became
official. "Play good there. Start preparing. Be more focused."
Compared to the last 14 months, the request should be a snap.
Barely a year has passed since Tarasenko left the KHL to join the Blues' abbreviated training camp.
The language was new, the ice narrower, the players faster and the play more physical.
Strangers approached at the mall for photos or an autograph, something
that would not happen back home. Tarasenko scored on his first two
shots. Folks quickly tried to call him "Tank." (Nyet.) He got blasted
into the sideboards one night. A concussion followed, further
distancing him from his team.
"It's a different country. Different people. Different culture.
Different game. The rink is smaller. The game is faster with more
contact," he explained. "The time after my injury was hard."
The international game plays on ice 200 feet long and 100 feet wide.
NHL ice is the same length but narrower by 15 feet. Contact is
inescapable. Less room exists for creativity. Compounding the
difference, Blues coach Ken Hitchcock emphasizes a decidedly
north-south style. As Tarasenko learned a new language he also learned
a new philosophy. The Olympics seemed very far away.
Asked if he remained committed to his decision to leave Russia, he
admitted, "It was hard to say right away. This is my second season. We
have a great team. I have some great relationships. I have more
experience now. After this I can say it's been the right decision."
If Tarasenko a year ago resembled what Hitchcock commonly refers to as
a "passenger," he has become an offensive force this season. He notched
an assist Saturday and has 34 points in 54 games, nearly twice what he
managed in 38 contests as a rookie. He now plays bigger. Barely 6 feet
and pushing 220 pounds, he is a load to take off the puck.
"Playing with and against men has taught him how hard he has to train
away from the rink," Hitchcock says. "It's different training with
junior players than training with real men."
A rink that once seemed restrictive now fits Tarasenko like a properly altered suit.
"He's learned to play in a small room," Hitchcock says, noting the NHL
style that demands more stops and starts. "Now you're seeing his skill
level. It's awesome. His awareness on the ice is strong now."
Tarasenko possesses a lightning lefthanded release. He is nimble on the
puck and gives as good as he gets. Only 22, his ceiling is considered
stratospheric.
"He's really smart, really strong," said Hitchcock, who will be behind
the bench next week for Team Canada. "For a young man to fend off
30-year-old players is really nice to see. For a guy his age, he's
really a strong man."
For an extended interview Tarasenko keeps an interpreter nearby, mostly
to confirm what he already suspects. His responses rarely require an
intermediary. His game is now unfiltered.
"I feel more comfortable in practices,'' he said. "I know the drills. I
know what the coaches want from me and the forwards. I don't need to
think about everything now. I can just play hockey."
The 16th selection of the 2010 draft hoped for this week but never
allowed himself to assume it. His family challenged him at 15 with this
moment. Tarasenko had yet to play professionally. It seems like a
lifetime ago. Now it's as close as tomorrow.
"I still can't believe I made it,'' he said. "I can't wait to go there.''
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Страничка Владимира Тарасенко на сайте "Звёзды с Востока"
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