Anitoliy Buliga

Druzhba 78 -The Surprise – Meeting “The Magician” (XXV)

Posted by Jim on September 24, 2018
Posted in: Anitoliy Buliga, Druzhba 78, Hockey, hockey Skills, how to succeed in hockey, Jim Serba, mike serba, mike serba memorial golf tournament, Russian hockey skills, Truth about hockey, understanding hockey.

Druzhba 78 – Follow-Up  – The Surprise

Meeting Anatoliy “The Magician” Buliga

Although I never met him way back in 1992, I did watch him play with a Peewee hockey team named Druzhba 78 from Kharkov Ukraine.

It was one of the most astonishing things I have ever witnessed and this experience had a profound effect.

The Druzhba 78 team played a Bantam all-star team from the Richmond Hill – Vaughan Hockey Association. A team made up of the best players from that association all of who were 2 years older than the players on the Druzhba 78 team. This was an exhibition game played in the evening after the Druzhba team had already played a game that  day in another hockey tournament.

The Vaughan all-star team lost. They didn’t stand a chance.

It’s difficult to paint a picture in words of what I witnessed that day. I had watched a lot of  minor hockey league games, many of which were very competitive and exiting to see, but what I witnessed during this particular game left me awestruck. The skill level of the Druzhba team was beyond belief. But I had to believe it because I was there and I witnessed it first hand.

As good as all of the players Druzhba were, there was one player that just stood out and I never forgot his name. Anatoliy Buliga was the smallest player on the team. Time after time I watched him go into the corner in the all-star team’s zone to get the puck and time after time even though at least two and many times three of the opposition would try to check him; he would come out of the corner with the puck. His skill level was incredible and his name stuck in my mind.

This last weekend I had the thrill of meeting Anatoliy after 26 years.

How This All Started

Earlier this year I started a segment in this series titled “Can Hockey Skill Be Taught”. Of course I knew the answer and as evidence of my position, I recounted the experience of watching the Druzhba 78 team play back in the early spring of 1992.

In the process of fact checking my memory I did some Google searches on the Druzhba team and came across some links to Anatoliy. He was connected to some hockey school/hockey training in Europe, but also some connections in the Detroit area. Using these links I was eventually able to contact him.

I found out that he is still very much involved in hockey and part of the coaching staff of the under 14 girls team of the very well know Detroit Little Caesars Hockey Club. During our communications Anatoliy advised that his team would likely be in a preseason tournament in Ontario as prep for their upcoming season and he would let me know when it was set.

Finally I received and email with the schedule of games to be held this past weekend in Stoney Creek Ontario and we were able to meet.

Meeting “The Magician” 

I arrived in Stoney Creek in time to watch the team play and witnessed a very skilled team play a very good game of hockey.

After the game I met up with Anatoliy and in typical Canadian fashion I took him to a Timmy’s for a coffee and to talk.

Anatoliy now lives in the Detroit area, is married and has a young son. His son is a competitive swimmer and doesn’t play any hockey. He said he had no objection if his son wanted to play hockey and would support him if that were the case, but I got the strong impression that he was quite happy with just the way it is.

I asked Anatoliy about his experience back in the day with the Druzhba team and he said right away that it was not something he likes to think about let alone talk about. It was obvious that I just shouldn’t go there but I did ask him if he ever keeps in touch with any of the old team mates. Anatoliy said that he went back to Ukraine once and met with a couple of the old team mates but it was not pleasant; he used the word cold. Again it was apparent that this was a subject that needed to be dropped. He also mentioned that one of his best friends from the team had passed. I never did ask who or how and I just let it all go.

We did spend a ton of time talking about hockey in general; training and teaching hockey skills, coaching teams, problems inherent in hockey as it is in North America and much more. It was a wonderful conversation and what was most pleasing to me was  a validation of my views in that we were 100% in sync with our views. At times on various topics he was saying the same things that I have been writing about and many times using a lot of the same words and phrases that I’ve written in my blogs.

It became apparent to me during our talk that Anatoliy cares deeply about helping people because of his background and knowledge of the hockey world. He is dedicated to using his experience in hockey to help people achieve success. He repeatedly said, “if I can help just one person, that will be a good thing”. In my opinion, if anyone gets advise from Anatoliy, I strongly urge them to take it seriously.

I’m hoping we keep in touch. I’m certain his team will be back in Ontario for tournaments in the future maybe during the Christmas break or March break and I hope to meet with him again. One mistake I made when we met was that out of my excitement of meeting him, I just spoke to much. Next time I’ll talk less and listen and learn more.

Meeting Anatoliy was a great experience and I’m thrilled that I had this opportunity.

Finally Meeting “The Magician”

 

I recently had a “newbie” to minor hockey relay some bad experiences relating to hockey try-outs with his son. I know try-outs for this season have now passed but this is a topic on which the uninitiated need some advise. Stay tuned for the real goods on minor league hockey try-outs.

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Druzhba 78 – Follow-Up – The Surprise – (XXI)

Posted by Jim on August 9, 2018
Posted in: Anitoliy Buliga, Druzhba 78, Hockey, hockey Skills, how to succeed in hockey, Jim Serba, mike serba, mike serba memorial golf tournament, Russian hockey skills, understanding hockey.

Druzhba 78 Surprise Ending

To Set The Stage

While planning to write the initial blog about the Druzhba 78 team, I was recollecting the experience of watching the team play. What I saw was do different and so amazing that there are certain memories and images seared into my brain.

The bench management was highly unusual to say the least. The lone coach, Ivan Pavilov, for the most part stood in the middle behind the bench although occasionally he would move to the end where players were coming off the ice to give a player crap for something. All of the players leaving the ice after a shift come onto the bench from the defense side and it was the spare goalie that opened the bench gate for them. All players going on to the ice left the bench from the offense side gate and the first player would open the bench gate.

The team frequently changed on the fly not just waiting for a stoppage in play. When changing on the fly players leaving the ice were skating so hard to the bench that by the end of the period snow was piled high up the boards at the defense side of the bench from their hard stops (by the way, this is not an exaggeration). From time to time just one player would leave the ice and change on the fly and this would happen at what seemed like odd times. In one instance I saw a player change in the middle of a power play in the middle of a prolonged time of control of the puck in the other teams end. I could never figure out why that change was made.

There was a lot more that is seared into my brain; mainly their amazing stick handling and puck control. There was also the typical “Russian” puck control style of game. They were like the Harlem Globetrotters of hockey. They just never gave up the puck.

One More Thing That Amazed Me

And Then The Surprise

The size of the players on the Druzhba team was all over the place; although they were all the same age, they ranged from very tall to very small.

There was one diminutive player by the name of Anatoliy Buliga that was just amazing with his skating and puck handling skills. On an offensive play, he could go into the corner with the puck and have 2 or 3 of the opposition try to take the puck away against the boards and yet somehow he would come out of the corner with the puck. He was given the nickname Anatoliy “The Magician”.

As written in a previous blog, the Richmond Hill – Vaughan hockey association arranged for an exhibition game with Druzhba 78. Now this exhibition game was played against a put together all-star team of players from Richmond Hill – Vaughan and their players were at least a year older than the Druzhba team. Also, the Druzhba team was in the middle of a tournament and had played earlier in the day. It was at the exhibition game that my sons were in awe and inspired by the skill of Anatoliy Buliga. The hockey association was selling memorabilia to raise money. We bought a hockey puck signed by Buliga and I still have the puck to this day.

The Surprise

In prepping for the initial blog, I used the ‘Google Machine” to check the spelling of Buliga’s name. God bless the “Google Machine” because I came up with a number of links to sites for Anatoliy. It looked like he was still involved in hockey and was operating as a skills instructor. I found sites linked to hockey instruction in Europe however there were sites that were linked to hockey training near Detroit Michigan. The thought struck me right away that it would be great to talk to him and maybe get a chance to meet him. I tried calling phone numbers on some of the sites but they were no longer active.

Some of the site had links to Facebook pages so I looked them up and sent messages to the pages. Surprisingly I received a response from one of the pages. After a bit of writing back and forth as to what my request was all about, I was advised that the he had been in contact with Anatoliy and I was given his cell number and told I could reach out to him any time.

Well, I really couldn’t wait so I called right away and Anatoliy answered. He was in some swimming pool area where his son was training as a competitive swimmer. We spoke for quite a while and he said he was coaching with the Detroit Little Caesar’s  hockey organization. He said in all likelihood the team he coached would be entering a tournament in Ontario in August or September as a warm-up for their upcoming season. He said he didn’t know the schedule or where the would play yet but he would let me know so the we could get together.

I can’t wait.

Stay tuned for more ……

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Can Hockey Skills Be Taught – Druzhba 78 Update – (XX)

Posted by Jim on August 3, 2018
Posted in: 1972 Canada Russia Hockey Series, Anitoliy Buliga, Druzhba 78, Hockey, hockey Skills, how to succeed in hockey, Jim Serba, mike serba, mike serba memorial golf tournament, Russian hockey skills, understanding hockey.

Follow Up On Last Blog

Druzhba 78

And A Surprise Ending

In my last blog I wrote about the singular amazing experience that had a profound impact on me and gave me proof that hockey skills (just like any skill really) can be taught.

That event was watching the Druzhba 78 team play several games in the Toronto area back in 1992.

I know  I wasn’t the only person that was in awe and affected by watching Druzhba 78 play. Quite a few people were so impressed that they organized and paid for the team to play on exhibition tours across North America. For me, I saw the possibilities for skills development for my 2 hockey playing sons. At that time I was a typical father with hopes and dreams for my boys.

Now there are a couple of reasons for this follow-up. First; just to once again emphasize, this experience was definitive proof of the possibilities of teaching and learning.  I was convinced of it then and my view has not changed. Second, there is a serious back-story that you should know about regarding the Druzhba 78 team.

The Back-Story Of Druzhba 78

At the Quebec international peewee hockey tournament in 1992, the Druzhba team from Kharkov Ukraine was a phenomena. They were so dominant in their play that everyone took notice.

They came to the Quebec tourney with hockey equipment that was worn out and older than the boys were in age. The people of Quebec in a way adopted them and donations of money, new hockey equipment and gifts poured in to the team. In true “fairy tale” fashion the team went on to win the hockey tournament. As I wrote in my previous blog, there were people who were so impressed that they made the arrangements to bring them to Toronto and that’s where I saw the team play.

But there were early hints of problems. The team’s coach, Ivan Pravilov, started to ask for donations of more money stating the team was in debt and needed funds to get though. Local Quebec residents became suspicious. The Ukrainian National Congress (who at first was so proud so the team and assisted them) checked back with the people in Kharkov and were told that the City and local government had funded the trip to Quebec.

But There’s A Lot More

Word eventually came out that the coaching and training methods of Ivan Pravilov were not particularly “enlightened”. Carefully hidden from public view was the abusive methods of Pravilov.

Word later came out of the extreme physical and mental abuse by Pravilov to his players to get results.

The players never spoke of the abuse until  years later when they had escaped from Pravilov’s influence and were then living as young men in the United States pursuing a career in hockey.

In January 2012, (by this time Pravilov was making a living off of the reputation of the Druzhba team and travelling extensively on exhibition tours) Ivan Pravilov was accused of fondling two 14-year-old Ukrainian players who he had invited to his home in the Philadelphia. He was taken into custody and placed in a Federal Detention Center but was found later to be unresponsive and was pronounced dead at the hospital. Evidence suggested was that he had committed suicide and this was confirmed by the city medical examiner’s office.

A tragic revelation and ending to what appeared to be a great fairy tale story.

However there is another “real” surprise ending to my story of Druzhba 78. You’ll find out in my next blog.

You’ll Have to Wait For An Amazing Surprise Ending

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The Truth About Hockey Continued (XIX) – Can Hockey Skills Be Taught – Druzhba 78

Posted by Jim on July 25, 2018
Posted in: 1972 Canada Russia Hockey Series, Anitoliy Buliga, Druzhba 78, Hockey, hockey Skills, how to succeed in hockey, Humboldt tragedy, Jim Serba, mike serba, mike serba memorial golf tournament, Russian hockey skills, understanding hockey.

Can Hockey Skills Be Taught – Continued

This Is All The Proof I Needed

 

Some Background

In February of 1992 my 2 sons, Andrew & Michael, were into playing hockey. At that time Andrew had just turned 13 years old and Michael was 11 years old. For myself I was very much into all levels of hockey, but still very much into minor hockey and coaching in the Toronto area.

I got wind of a team that had just recently won the prestigious Quebec International Peewee Hockey Tournament. They were known as Druzhba from the city of Kharkov in Ukraine. The Quebec Tournament started in 1960 and quickly grew in stature to be one of the most respected and prominent hockey tournaments world-wide. Triple A hockey teams from Toronto would plan and do their best to get into the tournament as there were only a few entries available from the Toronto area.

Some Background On Druzhba

In Ukrainian Druzhba means friendship. The team was from Kharkov located on the eastern border not far from Russia. In 1992 it was just 1 year since the fall of the iron curtain and the end of the Soviet Union. My understanding is that they were all students at the same school and that their hockey coach was also their soccer coach. Somehow they obtained entry into the Quebec International hockey tournament and were able to raise the funds to make the trip to Canada. I wasn’t in Quebec to watch any of the tournament, but my understanding is that they came with the most dilapidated used and worn out equipment. The people of Quebec City were so taken by the skills of the team that they arranged to buy and supply the team with new equipment.

The team was so dominant and spectacular that someone put together the money and paid to bring them to a Toronto tournament that was being held at the then named Double Rinks arena; now named The Vaughn Iceplex (which was at that time and still is today a real crap hole of a facility; but I digress). I watched them play in the tournament and couldn’t believe what I was seeing. At the same time while they were in the middle of the tournament someone arranged for the Druzhba team to play a Bantam all-star team of players for Vaughan. The results of the game against the Bantam Vaughan all-star team (these players were 2 years older) was the same; I couldn’t believe my eyes.

What I Witnessed

The players from the Druzba team covered the full range of sizes; from quite tall to quite small.

There was only one coach on the bench. On changes on the fly from the bench, the first player on the bench on the offence side of the bench opened the gate and any to follow whether a forward or a defense man  would be right behind. The spare goalie opened the gate on the defensive side and all players leaving the ice whether a forward or defense man came off the ice the defense side gate. The team more often that not changed on the fly and it could be at any time during any situation on the ice. I witnessed a kid peel off in the middle of a prolonged power play in the other team’s end and go back to the bench. This was almost unheard of in our Canadian hockey system and for the life of me I couldn’t figure out why the change was made at that time. The players leaving to go back to the bench when changing on the fly were skating so hard that at the end of the period the snow from their hard stops was piled up the boards.

In the play of the game Druzhba controlled the play. The skating, puck handling, passing and play making was almost magical. They played the typical Soviet style of hockey of absolute puck control and never giving away the puck. Amazingly they refused to shoot on goal in many instance where a a Canadian hockey player would be coached to shoot opting instead to make a play that ended in a tricky tip-in type goal from an unexpected series of passes that had all of the opposition out of position.

There was one diminutive player named Anatoliy Buliga; nicknamed Anatoliy “The Magician”. He could go into the corner with the puck and have up to 3 guys try to take it away from him and somehow come out of the corner with the puck.

This Was All I Needed As Proof

After watching Druzhba in about 4 games back in 1992, that was all the proof I needed that hockey skills could be taught. Eleven of the team members went on to a pro hockey career and Dainius Zubrus and  Andrei Zyuzin were first round NHL draft picks and went on to successful NHL careers. Not at all bad for one team of students from one school in Ukraine.

Can Hockey Skills Be Taught? – Yes They Can!

 

PostScript

There’s a lot more you need to know about the Druzhba 78 team. So this segment absolutely has to be extended. It will probably be in 3 parts and in the end there’s one hell-of-a surprise; something that I just found out about today.

Note:

If you’re new to this blog and reading it from Facebook or Twitter, make sure to click on the BLOG/NEWS link in the menu at the top of the page and scroll down to read previous blogs on this and other subjects.