Sergei Fedorov's Defection, Jul. 22, 1990 - This Day in Red Wings History

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Sergei Fedorov's Defection, Jul. 22, 1990 - This Day in Red Wings History

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On the night of July 22, 1990, in Portland, Oregon, the Detroit Red Wings pulled off the boldest move in franchise history -- not a trade or a signing, but an escape. A year earlier they'd spent a fourth-round pick, 74th overall, on Sergei Fedorov, a jewel of the Soviet Red Army team they had no legal way to sign. Executives Jim Lites and Nick Polano, with Free Press newsman Keith Gave, spent nearly a year planning to get him out. When the Soviet team came to Portland for the Goodwill Games, the window opened -- and owner Mike Ilitch's private jet carried Fedorov to Detroit. He became the 1994 NHL MVP, a three-time Stanley Cup champion, and the first thread of a Russian wave that reshaped the team.

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