13 Valeri Kamensky
1996-1997 Second Season
Starter Mesh. Set 2. Hem tagging 56R-1LS7.
MeiGray No. 103225
This jersey was acquired from a private owner via consignment to Meigray. The jersey shows the typical nuances of the 96-97's, specifically the slightly straighter nameplate, wrinkling and puckering of the crest, and the size tag located in the rear hem. The sleeves have also been shortened slightly.
One curiosity of this jersey is that the number "1" on the back is cut slightly wider than normal, and looks to just be some kind of factory error, since the attachment stitching on the inside of the shirt connects both the "1" and the "3" to each other, indicating they were both sewn on at the same time at the factory.
The sleeve numbers are a combination of layering, with the 1's being the inlaid style that was phased in this season, and the 3's being the traditional top-down style. The neck tag shows the very faint remnants of the set "2" marking .The jersey shows very good game wear, with some large repairs on both sleeves. The crest and front body shows numerous stick marks. The rear "3" shows some blue board marks. There is a nice unrepaired tear close to the hem on one side. The repairs on the sleeves are heavily stitched with jersey material backing the repair. The jersey is accompanied by the Avalanche LOA, as well as Meigray registration documents.
[ click on individual thumbnails to see larger images ]
Neck tagging
Hem tagging
Size tag
Wash tag
Nameplate
Back number marks
Sleeve repair
Sleeve repair
Crest
Hem damage
At the age of 19, when Pavel Bure and Alexander Mogilny were still only prospects for the future, Valeri Kamensky made his international debut in two games against the NHL All-Star Team at the Rendez-vous 87' tournament. The Bykov-Kamensky-Khomoutov trio scored three goals, with Kamensky getting two of them, and Gretzky and Kamensky voted the best players of the series.
Before Kamensky left Moscow for the NHL's Quebec Nordiques, the team who had drafted him back in 1988, Kamensky's agent Paul Teophanos said, They are waiting for Valery impatiently. Some say he will be one of the NHL's five superstars.
He did not make the top five, but he was not a disappointment either. He played for four years with the Nordiques in Quebec and another four years when he moved with the team from Quebec City to Denver helping the Avalanche capture the franchises first Stanley Cup in 1996. 1996 turned out to be Kamensky's best season in the NHL, finishing the season with 85 points on the strength of 38 goals and 47 assists. In the end, Kamensky made his mark on the game. Over the space of his career, he played in the Soviet Union, Canada and the U.S. And he scored crazy goals from impossible angles following improvised attacks. He did what he could given the painful adjustment that tended to follow Soviet players who were transplanted to the NHL. He did not become a goal-scoring machine, but together with Igor Larionov and Vyacheslav Kozlov, he helped an obscure provincial Voskresensk gain international acclaim as a pool for hockey talent. He made a name for himself as one of three players from Voskresensk who went on to become Stanley Cup winners.
In 1999 at the age of 33, Kamensky was still on a forward rush, being signed on by the New York Rangers. The talented winger spent two seasons on Broadway before splitting his 2001-02 season with the Dallas Stars and New Jersey Devils. Following the 2001-02 season Valeri Kamensky left the NHL.
Left wing - Shoots right
Born: April 18, 1966 - Voskresensk, Russia
6-2, 198 lbs.
Quebec's 8th choice, 129th overall in the 1988 Entry Draft. Missed majority of 1991-92 season recovering from ankle injury suffered in game vs. Tampa Bay, October 27, 1991. Transferred to Colorado after Quebec franchise relocated, June 21, 1995. Signed as a free agent by NY Rangers, July 7, 1999. Signed as a free agent by Dallas, July 5, 2001. Traded to New Jersey by Dallas for Andre Lakos and future considerations, January 16, 2002. Officially announced retirement August 10, 2002.
- USSR First All-Star Team (1990, 1991)
- USSR Player of the Year (1991)
- WEC-A All-Star Team (1991)
- Named Best Forward at WEC-A (1991) Played in NHL All-Star Game (1998)
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