Nikolai Konstantinovich Borschevsky (; born January 12, 1965) is a

Russian Russian(s) may refer to: *Russians (), an ethnic group of the East Slavic peoples, primarily living in Russia and neighboring countries *A citizen of Russia *Russian language, the most widely spoken of the Slavic languages *''The Russians'', a b ...

former professional

ice hockey Ice hockey (or simply hockey in North America) is a team sport played on ice skates, usually on an Ice rink, ice skating rink with Ice hockey rink, lines and markings specific to the sport. It belongs to a family of sports called hockey. Tw ...

player and the current head coach of the

Atlant Moscow Oblast Hockey Club Atlant Moscow Oblast (, ) was a Russian professional ice hockey team based in Mytishchi, Moscow Oblast. They were members of the Bobrov Division of the Kontinental Hockey League in the 2014–15 season, but have not been active si ...

of the

KHL The Kontinental Hockey League (KHL; ) is an international professional ice hockey league founded in 2008. It comprises member clubs based in Russia (20), Belarus (1), Kazakhstan (1), and China (1) for a total of 23 clubs. It was considered in ...

. Nicknamed "Stick" due to his diminutive frame, he was a star in the

Soviet Union The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...

and went on to play in the

National Hockey League The National Hockey League (NHL; , ''LNH'') is a professional ice hockey league in North America composed of 32 teams25 in the United States and 7 in Canada. The NHL is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United States and Cana ...

for the

Toronto Maple Leafs The Toronto Maple Leafs (officially the Toronto Maple Leaf Hockey Club and often referred to as the Leafs) are a professional ice hockey team based in Toronto. The Maple Leafs compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the A ...

Calgary Flames The Calgary Flames are a professional ice hockey team based in Calgary. The Flames compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Pacific Division (NHL), Pacific Division in the Western Conference (NHL), Western Conference. The ...

and

Dallas Stars The Dallas Stars are a professional ice hockey team based in Dallas. The Stars compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Central Division (NHL), Central Division in the Western Conference (NHL), Western Conference. The Stars ...

. Despite a successful NHL debut in 1992–93, he never achieved the same level of success in North America, with injuries limiting his effectiveness. He retired in 1998 after a second stint with

Spartak Moscow Spartak Moscow may refer to the following teams based or formerly based in Moscow, Russia: * FC Spartak Moscow, an association football club * HC Spartak Moscow, a professional ice hockey team * Spartak GM Moscow, a semi-professional rugby club * ...

Russian career

He spent the majority of his career playing in the

, becoming a mainstay with

Dynamo Moscow MGO VFSO "Dynamo" (), commonly known as Dynamo Moscow (), is a Russian sports club based in Moscow. Founded by Felix Dzerzhinsky on 18 April 1923, Dynamo Moscow was the first institution created from the All-Union Dynamo Sports Club. Dynamo Mosco ...

and later rivals

. At Dynamo, he became a regular with the team and showed signs of future stardom, recording a high of 11 goals and 18 points in 37 games in 1987–88. Two years later, he moved to Spartak where he blossomed into a star. His goal totals improved every year and he scored at a point-a-game pace, leading the team in scoring in each of the three years he spent at Spartak. His success at club level later translated to success at the international level, where he figured prominently for the Unified Team that won

gold Gold is a chemical element; it has chemical symbol Au (from Latin ) and atomic number 79. In its pure form, it is a brightness, bright, slightly orange-yellow, dense, soft, malleable, and ductile metal. Chemically, gold is a transition metal ...

at the

1992 Winter Olympics The 1992 Winter Olympics, officially known as the XVI Olympic Winter Games () and commonly known as Albertville '92 (Franco-Provençal, Arpitan: ''Arbèrtvile '92''), were a winter multi-sport event held from 8 to 23 February 1992 in and aroun ...

, scoring seven goals in eight games.

NHL career

His success at Spartak and at Albertville drew the attention of NHL scouts, who began to look more attentively at Russian hockey after the

dissolution of the Soviet Union The Soviet Union was formally dissolved as a sovereign state and subject of international law on 26 December 1991 by Declaration No. 142-N of the Soviet of the Republics of the Supreme Soviet of the Soviet Union. Declaration No. 142-Н of ...

allowed for an influx of Russian hockey players to North America. The Leafs made him their third choice, 77th overall in the 1992 NHL Entry Draft. He made an immediate impact upon arriving to the NHL, scoring 34 goals and netting 40 assists in 78 games for Toronto in 1992–93, including the Game 7 overtime winner for the Leafs in their division semi-final series with the

Detroit Red Wings The Detroit Red Wings (colloquially referred to as the Wings) are a professional ice hockey team based in Detroit. The Red Wings compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Atlantic Division (NHL), Atlantic Division in the East ...

. Despite his early success, he was limited to 45 games in 1993–94 due to injuries, although he managed to record 14 goals and 35 points. During the

1994–95 NHL lockout The 1994–95 NHL lockout was a lockout that came after a year of National Hockey League (NHL) hockey that was played without a collective bargaining agreement. The lockout was a subject of dispute as the players sought collective bargaining a ...

he returned to Spartak for nine games recording six points, but his return to the Leafs once hockey resumed saw him limited to 19 games where he recorded only five points- none of them goals. Borschevsky was traded at the

trade deadline In professional sports within the United States and Canada, a trade is a sports league transaction between sports clubs involving the exchange of player rights from one team to another. Though player rights are the primary trading assets, draft ...

that year to the Calgary Flames for a sixth-round pick, where he lasted another eight games and picked up five more points (none goals). He failed to appear in a single game in Calgary's first round playoff loss to the

San Jose Sharks The San Jose Sharks are a professional ice hockey team based in San Jose, California. The Sharks compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Pacific Division (NHL), Pacific Division in the Western Conference (NHL), Western Con ...

, leading to his departure in the offseason to the

. In Dallas, he managed to score for the first time in the NHL since the 1993–94 season (just once though), but injuries again curtailed his season, allowing him to dress only in 12 games until parting ways with the Stars in early December. His NHL career over, Borschevsky subsequently moved to

Kölner Haie The Kölner Haie (English: ''Cologne Sharks'') are an ice hockey club based in Cologne, Germany, that plays in the professional Deutsche Eishockey Liga (DEL). The team was one of the founding members of the DEL. The ''Kölner Haie'' play their ho ...

of the

Deutsche Eishockey Liga The Deutsche Eishockey Liga (for sponsorship reasons called Penny (supermarket), PENNY Deutsche Eishockey Liga) (; English: ''German Ice Hockey League'') or DEL, is a professional ice hockey league in Germany and the highest division in German i ...

later in the 1995–96 season, appearing in eight games and recording four assists, before finishing his career with Spartak, winning the Russian scoring title in 1996–97 before retiring after a 27-point campaign in 1997–98.

Post-retirement

In 1998, Borschevsky opened a hockey school in

Mississauga Mississauga is a Canadian city in the province of Ontario. Situated on the north-western shore of Lake Ontario in the Regional Municipality of Peel, it borders Toronto (Etobicoke) to the east, Brampton to the north, Milton to the northwest, ...

Ontario Ontario is the southernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Located in Central Canada, Ontario is the Population of Canada by province and territory, country's most populous province. As of the 2021 Canadian census, it ...

, running weeknight sessions at the Hershey Centre. By 2000, the school had relocated to

Concord, Ontario Concord is a suburban industrial district in the Vaughan, City of Vaughan in Regional Municipality of York, Ontario, York Region, located north of Toronto, Ontario, Canada. According to the Canada 2001 Census, 2001 Census, Concord has 8,255 resi ...

, just north of

Toronto Toronto ( , locally pronounced or ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, most populous city in Canada. It is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. With a p ...

. The school was geared towards minor hockey players, aged 5 to 14. The program was largely successful, allowing Borschevsky to run four hour practice sessions every night of the week, catering to players of skills levels ranging from "recreational" to "AAA". As part of the school's extended program, Borschevsky and his hockey school trainers travelled to

Detroit, Michigan Detroit ( , ) is the List of municipalities in Michigan, most populous city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is situated on the bank of the Detroit River across from Windsor, Ontario. It had a population of 639,111 at the 2020 United State ...

Guelph, Ontario Guelph ( ; 2021 Canadian Census population 143,740) is a city in Southwestern Ontario, Canada. Known as The Royal City, it is roughly east of Kitchener, Ontario, Kitchener and west of Downtown Toronto, at the intersection of Ontario Highway 6, ...

, and

Huntsville, Ontario Huntsville is a town in Muskoka district, Ontario. It is located north of Toronto and south of North Bay. Of the three major Muskoka towns (the others being Gravenhurst and Bracebridge), Huntsville has the largest population (21,147 per 2 ...

each year to host his renowned camps remotely. These camps were well received by locals due to their unique and intense style. Certain sessions featured guest appearances by former and current NHL players, namely

Danny Markov Daniil Yevgenyevich Markov (; born 30 July 1976) is a Russian former professional ice hockey defenceman who played a nine-year career in the National Hockey League. He also played 11 seasons in the top tier Russian leagues. Playing career As a ...

Nik Antropov Nikolai Alexandrovich Antropov (; born February 18, 1980) is a Kazakhstani-Canadian former professional ice hockey centre who played in the National Hockey League (NHL) with the Toronto Maple Leafs, New York Rangers, Atlanta Thrashers and Winni ...

, and

Boris Mironov Boris Olegovich Mironov (; born 21 March 1972) is a Russian former professional ice hockey defenceman. He is the younger brother of Dmitri Mironov. Playing career Mironov began his hockey career with five seasons playing for HC CSKA Mosc ...

. Each summer, Borschevsky hosted tune-up camps for NHL players and prospects. These were attended by personalities such as

Alexander Radulov Alexander Valerievich Radulov (; born 5 July 1986) is a Russian professional ice hockey player for Lokomotiv Yaroslavl of the Kontinental Hockey League (KHL). He had previously had two separate stints with the Nashville Predators, the NHL team w ...

Andrew Cogliano Andrew Cogliano (born June 14, 1987) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey player who played for the Edmonton Oilers, Anaheim Ducks, Dallas Stars, San Jose Sharks, and Colorado Avalanche of the National Hockey League (NHL). On December 31, ...

, and

Steve Montador Steven Richard "The Matador" Montador (December 21, 1979 – February 15, 2015) was a Canadian professional ice hockey Defenceman (ice hockey), defenceman who played 571 games in the National Hockey League (NHL) for the Calgary Flames, Florida Pan ...

. Borschevsky always stressed an attacking, finesse-oriented brand of hockey, which was offered by very few, if any,

-based hockey programs. Borschevsky's hockey programs were shut down in 2006 when he accepted a coaching job in the

Russian Super League The Russian Superleague (, ''Russian Championship Superleague''), commonly abbreviated as RSL, was the highest division of the main professional ice hockey league in Russia. It was considered the second-best league in the world, after the Nation ...

Coaching career

Between 2004 and 2006, Borschevsky coached AAA minor hockey in the

Greater Toronto Hockey League The Greater Toronto Hockey League (GTHL), formerly known as the Metro Toronto Hockey League, is a minor level ice hockey organization based in the Greater Toronto Area of Ontario. The league was founded in 1911 as the Beaches Hockey League by ...

. He spent two seasons as the head coach of the Toronto Red Wings, and the Wexford Raiders, achieving mediocre results. During the 2006–2007

season, Borschevsky served as the head coach of

Lokomotiv Yaroslavl Hockey Club Lokomotiv (, ), also known as Lokomotiv Yaroslavl, is a professional ice hockey club based in Yaroslavl, Russia. It is a member of the Tarasov Division in the Kontinental Hockey League (KHL). The name of the team is derived from its ...

, succeeding

Vladimir Yurzinov Vladimir Yurzinov (born February 20, 1940, in Moscow, Soviet Union) is a retired ice hockey player who played as a centre in the Soviet Hockey League. He played for HC Dynamo Moscow. He was inducted as a player into the Russian and Soviet Hockey H ...

. In 34 regular season games, he guided the squad to a 14–14–6 record, before being replaced by incoming head coach, and Canadian former NHLer, Paul Gardner. He served the rest of the season as the team's assistant coach, seeing the squad through to the second round of the Super League playoffs. Borschevsky served as the head coach of Lokomotiv-2, the farm club of the Super League team. The club finished the regular season in third place, boasting a 23–17 record, but was eliminated in the quarter-final round of the playoffs by Khimik. He later accepted a job as head coach with the Atlant Moscow Oblast.

Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs

International

References

External links

*
Lokomotiv Yaroslavl Hockey Club
{{DEFAULTSORT:Borschevsky, Nikolai 1965 births Living people Calgary Flames players Dallas Stars players HC Dynamo Moscow players HC Spartak Moscow players Kölner Haie players Olympic gold medalists for the Unified Team Olympic ice hockey players for the Unified Team Sportspeople from Tomsk Russian expatriate ice hockey people Russian expatriate sportspeople in Canada Russian expatriate sportspeople in Germany Russian expatriate sportspeople in the United States Russian ice hockey coaches Russian ice hockey right wingers Soviet ice hockey right wingers Toronto Maple Leafs draft picks Toronto Maple Leafs players Olympic medalists in ice hockey Medalists at the 1992 Winter Olympics Ice hockey players at the 1992 Winter Olympics