Hockey's 1972 Summit Series between the Soviet Union and Canada built bridges between people across the Cold War divide, Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin said Friday.
World hockey stars have descended on Moscow for a legends’ game Saturday to mark the 40th anniversary of the pulsating series of eight matches played in Canada and Russia throughout September of 1972.
Played at the height of the Cold War, the series went to a deciding game won by Canada that went down as one of the country's greatest sporting moments, but also one that gripped audiences in both hemispheres in hostile times.
“Regardless of all the tension, these games contributed to establishing more human, more normal relations between people,” Putin said at a reception for the participants, including 70-year-old Phil Esposito, the Canadian captain in the series.
Putin said that the series was “viewed through the prism of international relations,” but rose above politics to bring West and East together and would live long in the memory.
“The ’72 series was absolutely one of the most brilliant events in world hockey in the 20th century,” he said.
“The main thing isn’t the points. You were all such bright stars that continue to shine not only on the hockey landscape, but also on sport as a whole.”
Esposito, the joint top points scorer in the Summit Series alongside the Soviets' Alexander Yakushev, said that the series was the best he ever played.
“We thought it would just be an all-star game, that’s nothing serious, just playing for the crowd, but it was the hardest and best series of my life,” he said to the Soviet players.
“You played with all your passion, and we gave it everything.”
Esposito, who has three half-Russian grandchildren, said one of them was becoming “a very good player.”
“We’re happy to hear that,” Putin replied.
