They didn't call him the Russian Rocket for nothing.
One of hockey's fastest players to ever lace up the skates - if not the fastest - Pavel Bure, is often compared to the game's current roadrunner, Connor McDavid.
Although their playing styles differ decades apart, one question hockey fans have pondered over the years is who would win in a race hypothetical between the two speedsters.
While we'll likely never know, although someone out there could likely calculate their speeds and match them up with old footage to find out if they really wanted to.
Back home residing in Russia, the former Vancouver Canuck doesn't do much media these days, but he did recently catch with Thomas Drance of The Athletic in a wide-ranging interview that is worth your read.
Asked about McDavid, Bure didn't get too detailed but did say he thinks McDavid is faster than he was during his prime.
Have you seen much of Connor McDavid?
I see the highlights sometimes, yeah.
Does it look familiar to you at all?
Oh, no. I think he’s much faster and much stronger, you know?
He is?
I think so.
Does the way his speed plays and the way he can split defenders ever look familiar to you?
That's some high praise from the man who once wore No. 96 with the Canucks for No. 97
Bure also touched on his favourite memories in Vancouver, the 1994 Stanley Cup run, the rocky ending that saw him end up in Florida, and a fantastic story about his good friend and legendary Canucks enforcer Gino Odjick coming to Russia to surprise him one year.
Do you have a great Gino story that you particularly hold dear?
Well, my best Gino story is when he came to Russia. He came to Moscow and wanted to surprise me, but nobody met him at the airport.
So he grabbed a cab and he went to KGB building. So he started knocking on the door of the KGB building, saying, “I’m Gino Odjick, I’m here to see Pavel!” One hour later they brought him to me. That was pretty funny.
Testing his luck a little there, huh?
Well, yeah. Those guys were surprised, because it’s like a 230-pound guy, scary, not shaved, with the scars — banging on the KGB’s door! Those guys came up with machine guns!
With the Canucks bringing various alumni back to celebrate the team's 50th anniversary fesitivities, could we soon see Bure back in Van City in the coming months?
I will try. I can’t promise you.
I’m really good friends with Francesco Aquilini. I’ve talked to him a lot and we go for vacation together. So I will try to make it.
I assume for the Sedin brothers’ jersey retirement?
Well, we will see. I have three little kids, so it can be a bit difficult, but we will see.
Bure's .59 goals per game is the highest percentage in Canucks history, as the Russian finished with 478 points (254 goals, 224 assists) in 428 games from 1991-1998.
(h/t The Athletic's Thomas Drance)
