Dinosaur of Russian Hockey: ILYA BYAKIN

Of the minority of current veterans representing the Russian Hockey Championships there are not  many athletes who can boast their excellent play and immense shape at the age of 37.

Indeed there is only a couple of big names of the game whose glory still gives no indication of fading away. They are Alexander Zybin (CSKA Moscow) who is 40 years of age, Dimitri Frolov (CSKA Moscow), Lev Berditchevsky (Dynamo Moscow), Alexei Tkachuk (Metallurg Magnitogorsk) and Ilya Byakin (Lada Togliatti).

Byakin is the most prominent athlete of the majority of current Russian veterans.

It is impossible to enumerate all his achievements in hockey. He made his pro debut in senior Soviet Hockey Championships  at the age of 17 in the line-up of Avtomobilist Sverdlovsk, nowadays known as Dynamo Energia, then won the Junior Soviet Hockey Championships. In 1983 he was the gold medallist of the Junior World Hockey Championships where he was named the best defenseman of the tournament and after it he joined legendary Spartak Moscow. In the year of 1987 he returned his local club team and went on playing for it. In 1988 Ilya won Olympic gold of Calgary with national team of Soviet Union, by the way he is the only product of Sverdlovsk hockey school who managed to do this, and Byakin was also three times senior world champion, in 1989,1990, 1993.

It is also difficult to trace the wide geography of places the hockey destiny (familiarized) presented the native of Ekaterinsburg, formerly known as Sverdlovsk. He played in the Swiss Hockey Championships, Deutch League then moved to the North America where he played for many teams of minor leagues then followed an invitation to join NHL teams   Edmonton Oilers and San Hose Sharks. Imagine this was not the end of his non-stop hockey travelling. He played for some time in the Swedish Elite Hockey League and then came back to Russia.

His wife, Natalya Byakina, commented on their return homeland, “Actually it were our children who made us to return Russia. They are already forgetting how to speak Russian fluently. While being abroad we tried to speak Russian at home but the teachers and coaches conducted the lessons in the best case in English.   For the time that we live here the girls, Nastya 14 years of age and Katya 13 years old, seems have started to feel free at speaking Russian. By the way they go in for tennis. Nastya and Katya are coached by Larisa Preobrazhenskaya, under her supervision Anna Kournikova grew-up into a pro tennis player."

It was the year of 1998 when Ilya Byakin appeared on the ice of Sokolniki Arena which was as native for him as that of his local club team Avtomobilist Sverdlovsk where he started his pro career. Alexander Yakushev was so pleased to have such a prominent player on the roster of  Spartak Moscow that he started to use him both as a defenseman and forward. He demonstrated an immensely good play and could serve as the brightest example for the young generation of Spartak’s products. Many of them were very proud to play with the idol of their childhood but unfortunately the team was not a great success that year, it left Russian Elite League according to the bad final season results, and Ilya had to search for the better team to continue his pro career.

He has been invited by Molot-Prikamye Perm and Lada Togliatti for which he plays now. Through Ilya’s attitude towards hockey and his play at the age of 37 one couldn’t but realize what it means to be a pro to the core. Imagine that this 1999/00 regular season Ilya Byakin finished second in the all-league scoring race among defenseman, just one point behind a very promising NHL prospect Andrei Markov, with 9 goals and 13 assists.

When asked if NHL experience is helpful for him here in Russia he answers, “Their [American] system is a little bit different from ours. In Russia the coach is a kind of “baby-sitter” for each player. Nothing changed everything here is like it has been ten years ago. All the players must do the same things: visit long-time isolated training camps, ice practices, have monotonous physical training, to face the same menu each day for dinner, breakfast and supper. It’s a kind of “kindergarten”. As for NHL it’s thoroughly up to the player how to stay in shape and what to do during their spare time.  Every pro player knows that if he is not in shape there will be no empty place on the roster of the team for him. There is another guy who is always ready to replace him.”

HockeyZonePlus - Are not you bored by hockey?
Ilya Byakin - It happens from time to time. One must learn to be a “muzhik”, a variant of American cool guy, and learn how to overcome all the difficulties if there are any indeed. It happens in everybody’s life.

HockeyZonePlus - Which season do you consider the best in your life?
Ilya Byakin - The one when I became an Olympic champion in Calgary. Though every win is memorable for me.

HockeyZonePlus - Have you any desire to join the national team of Russia this year?
Ilya Byakin - It’s the aim of all my life to play for Russia but it’s up to the coaches to decide whom to call-up. Possibly the coaches think that there are some better defensemen than me. Oh! It would be great to win the World Championships in St. Petersburg just before quitting with hockey. Nevertheless Team Russia must do the best even without Baykin. We must keep our traditions.

HockeyZonePlus - Have you any regrets about something which is not still done or achieved by you in hockey and your life?
Ilya Byakin - I want to win Russian hockey Championships at last. You see I managed to do it only as a junior many years ago. I never was the champion of Soviet Union/Russia as a senior player.

HockeyZonePlus - Could you reveal the secret of sporting longevity?
Ilya Byakin - There is no prescription at all. I love this game! I want to make people enjoy my play.

After this talk I memorized what Ilya’s wife said when she visited hockey plays with her daughters, “Look at your father! He is 37 not a youngster anymore but still he is so committed to the game.”

Possibly yet very young son of Byakin, named Misha, will see the tape with his father’s play in some years and his mother will repeat him the phrase once told to her daughters which will predetermine the destiny of Misha Byakin as a hockey player who will become even more prominent than his father has been.  After all hockey is a family business here in Russia!