Viktor Hatulev
Encyclopedia
Viktor Khatulev was a Latvian ice hockey
defenseman
and left winger
who played for Dinamo Riga in the Soviet Hockey League
. He was the first Soviet
player drafted in the National Hockey League
(NHL) Amateur Draft
but never had a chance to play in North America since Soviet players were not allowed to play for foreign teams.
, ice hockey was the number one sport. Riga's Dinamo, under Viktor Tikhonov
, rocketed into the big league and competed with Moscow
teams as an equal.
Khatulev played in the first World Junior Championships in Leningrad and second World Junior Championships in Winnipeg and Brandon, Manitoba. The two unofficial tournaments helped set the stage for the first official World Juniors in 1977. He was the best player in the World Youth hockey championship in 1974/75, and in 1973/74 he was the best goal scorer.
At age of 20, Khatulev became the first Soviet-born and trained player ever drafted by an NHL team. The Philadelphia Flyers
made the historic selection at the 1975 NHL Amateur Draft
in the ninth round, 160th overall, even though there was no chance of getting him out of the USSR. Khatulev was also selected by the Cleveland Crusaders
in the ninth round, 116th overall, of the 1975 WHA Amateur Draft
.
But instead of being allowed to play in North America, he was banned from Soviet hockey for five years in 1975 for fighting, though the suspension was later lifted. He was also not allowed to leave the USSR.
There are rumors that he was banned from playing because he was drafted, in order to prevent other players from thinking about playing in foreign countries and to make American teams forget about getting any Soviet players.
Khatulev himself learned that he had been drafted only in 1978 when he returned to hockey after his suspension was lifted. He also played also 6 games for Team USSR in 1977–1978 in the Izvestia Cup in Moscow.
He turned down an offer to move to Moscow and play for the USSR Central Red Army hockey club, instead preferring to remain in his native Latvia
. (It should be mentioned that in Soviet times most of the best players were transferred to the Central Red Army club, and refusing such a transfer resulted in punishment.)
In 1981 Khatulev was banned for life from the Soviet Hockey League for hitting a referee during a fight with another player.
Khatulev was found dead in the street in mysterious circumstances at age 39 on October 7, 1994.
were exhibition games between an NHL team and Soviet teams (usually a club from the Soviet Championship League). Khatulev competed in one such series.
Ice hockey
Ice hockey, often referred to as hockey, is a team sport played on ice, in which skaters use wooden or composite sticks to shoot a hard rubber puck into their opponent's net. The game is played between two teams of six players each. Five members of each team skate up and down the ice trying to take...
defenseman
Defenceman (ice hockey)
Defence in ice hockey is a player position whose primary responsibility is to prevent the opposing team from scoring...
and left winger
Winger (ice hockey)
Winger, in the game of hockey, is a forward position of a player whose primary zone of play on the ice is along the outer playing area. They typically work by flanking the centre forward. Originally the name was given to forward players who went up and down the sides of the rink...
who played for Dinamo Riga in the Soviet Hockey League
Soviet Hockey League
The Soviet Championship was the highest level ice hockey league in the Soviet Union, running from 1946 to 1992. Before the 1940s the game of ice hockey was not cultivated in Russia, instead the more popular form of hockey was bandy, with history of the game in Russia dating several centuries into...
. He was the first Soviet
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
player drafted in the National Hockey League
National Hockey League
The National Hockey League is an unincorporated not-for-profit association which operates a major professional ice hockey league of 30 franchised member clubs, of which 7 are currently located in Canada and 23 in the United States...
(NHL) Amateur Draft
NHL Entry Draft
The NHL Entry Draft is an annual meeting in which every franchise of the National Hockey League systematically select the rights to available amateur ice hockey players who meet draft eligibility requirements...
but never had a chance to play in North America since Soviet players were not allowed to play for foreign teams.
Playing career
Khatulev played for Dinamo Riga in the 1970s. In Latvia, then a part of the USSRSoviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
, ice hockey was the number one sport. Riga's Dinamo, under Viktor Tikhonov
Viktor Tikhonov
Viktor Vasilyevich Tikhonov is a Russian former ice hockey player and coach. He was the coach of the Soviet team when it was the most dominant team in the world...
, rocketed into the big league and competed with Moscow
Moscow
Moscow is the capital, the most populous city, and the most populous federal subject of Russia. The city is a major political, economic, cultural, scientific, religious, financial, educational, and transportation centre of Russia and the continent...
teams as an equal.
Khatulev played in the first World Junior Championships in Leningrad and second World Junior Championships in Winnipeg and Brandon, Manitoba. The two unofficial tournaments helped set the stage for the first official World Juniors in 1977. He was the best player in the World Youth hockey championship in 1974/75, and in 1973/74 he was the best goal scorer.
At age of 20, Khatulev became the first Soviet-born and trained player ever drafted by an NHL team. The Philadelphia Flyers
Philadelphia Flyers
The Philadelphia Flyers are a professional ice hockey team based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. They are members of the Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League...
made the historic selection at the 1975 NHL Amateur Draft
1975 NHL Amateur Draft
The 1975 NHL Amateur Draft was held at the NHL office in Montreal, Quebec. The two-time defending Stanley Cup champion Philadelphia Flyers made the most noise at the draft, trading Bill Clement, Don McLean, and the 18th overall pick to the Washington Capitals for the number one overall selection,...
in the ninth round, 160th overall, even though there was no chance of getting him out of the USSR. Khatulev was also selected by the Cleveland Crusaders
Cleveland Crusaders
The Cleveland Crusaders were a professional ice hockey team from Cleveland, Ohio. The Crusaders were founded by Nick Mileti, and played in the World Hockey Association from 1972 to 1976...
in the ninth round, 116th overall, of the 1975 WHA Amateur Draft
1975 WHA Amateur Draft
The 1975 WHA Amateur Draft was the third draft held by the World Hockey Association.-Selections by Round:Below are listed the selections in the 1975 WHA Amateur Draft.-Round 1:1 Claude Larose - Cincinnati Stingers2 Bryan Maxwell - Indianapolis Racers...
.
But instead of being allowed to play in North America, he was banned from Soviet hockey for five years in 1975 for fighting, though the suspension was later lifted. He was also not allowed to leave the USSR.
There are rumors that he was banned from playing because he was drafted, in order to prevent other players from thinking about playing in foreign countries and to make American teams forget about getting any Soviet players.
Khatulev himself learned that he had been drafted only in 1978 when he returned to hockey after his suspension was lifted. He also played also 6 games for Team USSR in 1977–1978 in the Izvestia Cup in Moscow.
He turned down an offer to move to Moscow and play for the USSR Central Red Army hockey club, instead preferring to remain in his native Latvia
Latvia
Latvia , officially the Republic of Latvia , is a country in the Baltic region of Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by Estonia , to the south by Lithuania , to the east by the Russian Federation , to the southeast by Belarus and shares maritime borders to the west with Sweden...
. (It should be mentioned that in Soviet times most of the best players were transferred to the Central Red Army club, and refusing such a transfer resulted in punishment.)
In 1981 Khatulev was banned for life from the Soviet Hockey League for hitting a referee during a fight with another player.
Banishment and death
After he was banned for life from the Soviet Hockey League in 1981, Khatulev became a taxi driver. He later worked in a warehouse and struggled with alcoholism. He had also served time in prison for dealing drugs during his playing days.Khatulev was found dead in the street in mysterious circumstances at age 39 on October 7, 1994.
Awards
- World Junior Championships - Gold (19741974 World Junior Ice Hockey Championships-Scoring leaders:-Tournament awards:-References:* . Retrieved 2011-10-08....
) (Unofficial Tournament) - World Junior Championships Points Leader (1974)
- World Junior Championships - Gold (19751975 World Junior Ice Hockey Championships-Scoring leaders:-Tournament awards:-References:* . Retrieved 2011-10-18....
) (Unofficial Tournament) - World Junior Championships Best Forward (1975)
- World Junior Championships All-Star First Team (1975)
Career statistics
GP = Games played; G = Goals; A = Assists; Pts = Points; PIM = Penalty minutes;| Regular season | ||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season Season (sports) In an organized sports league, a season is the portion of one year in which regulated games of the sport are in session. For example, in Major League Baseball, one season lasts approximately from April 1 through October 1; in Association football, it is generally from August until May In an... |
Team | League | GP | G Goal (ice hockey) In ice hockey, a goal is scored when the puck completely crosses the goal line between the two goal posts and below the goal crossbar. A goal awards one point to the team attacking the goal scored upon, regardless of which team the player who actually deflected the puck into the goal belongs to... |
A Assist (ice hockey) In ice hockey, an assist is attributed to up to two players of the scoring team who shot, passed or deflected the puck towards the scoring teammate, or touched it in any other way which enabled the goal, meaning that they were "assisting" in the goal. There can be a maximum of two assists per goal... |
Pts Point (ice hockey) Point in ice hockey has three official meanings:* A point is awarded to a player for each goal scored or assist earned. The total number of goals plus assists equals total points. In some European leagues, a goal counts as two points, and an assist counts as one... |
PIM Penalty (ice hockey) A penalty in ice hockey is a punishment for inappropriate behavior. Most penalties are enforced by detaining the offending player within a penalty box for a set number of minutes, during which, the player can not participate in play. The offending team usually may not replace the player on the ice,... |
|||||
| 1973-74 | Dynamo Riga | Soviet | 18 | 7 | ||||||||
| 1974-75 | Dynamo Riga | Soviet | 16 | 2 | ||||||||
| 1975-76 | Dynamo Riga | Soviet | 27 | 6 | ||||||||
| 1976-77 | Dynamo Riga | Soviet | 32 | 4 | ||||||||
| 1977-78 | Dynamo Riga | Soviet | 29 | 7 | ||||||||
| 1978-79 | Dynamo Riga | Soviet | 34 | 8 | 12 | 20 | 48 | |||||
| 1979-80 | Dynamo Riga | Soviet | 19 | 3 | 6 | 9 | 12 | |||||
| 1980-81 | Dynamo Riga | Soviet | 24 | 4 | 3 | 7 | 24 | |||||
| Soviet totals | 199 | 33 | ||||||||||
Super Series statistics
The Super SeriesSuper Series
The Super Series were exhibition games between Soviet teams and NHL teams that took place on each NHL opponents' home ice in North America from 1976 to 1991. The Soviet teams were usually club teams from the Soviet hockey league. The exception was in 1983, when the Soviet National Team represented...
were exhibition games between an NHL team and Soviet teams (usually a club from the Soviet Championship League). Khatulev competed in one such series.
| Year | Team | League | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1978-79 | Krylia Sovetov PHC Krylya Sovetov PHC Krylya Sovetov or PHC Krylya Sovietov are a professional ice hockey team based in Moscow, Russia. They played in the Russian Major League in the 2009–10 season... |
Soviet | 4 | 2 | 0 | 2 | |