DETROIT Red Wings create a tribute to Konstantinov

A construction helmet sits in a dressing room stall as a symbol.
THE WASHINGTON POST
DETROIT -- After each Detroit Red Wings victory, one of the players so designated by the team will return to the dressing room to find a gift awaiting him. In his stall will sit a construction helmet adorned with team stickers and with No. 16 taped on the front, the number no player in Detroit has worn since all-star defenseman Vladimir Konstantinov suffered life-threatening and career-ending head injuries in June 1997.
Coach Dave Lewis and his assistants wanted to do something symbolic to recognize a player who performed with the determination that Konstantinov brought to the game, while keeping the fallen defenseman's spirit alive as well. Konstantinov remains a stirring figure in the Red Wings organization, six years removed from the limousine accident that robbed him of his life's passion at the pinnacle of his career and left him unable to function normally or care for himself.
"This is just a way for us to keep the memory of what kind of player Vladdie was [before his accident]," said Lewis, who started the tradition this season and was an assistant coach in Detroit during Konstantinov's career. "He always had a way to aggravate the other team, to show up, to play hard, to excite his teammates and to do all the things everybody wishes they could do, and the coaches thought we should have some kind of award for someone who exemplifies that type of performance."
Symbolism
The hard hat is symbolic of Konstantinov's work ethic and physical approach to hockey. He was one of the sport's true intimidating figures, a devastating open-ice hitter who also had the soft hands, insight and instincts to skate on Detroit's famed "Russian Five" unit with skilled countrymen Sergei Fedorov, Igor Larionov, Slava Kozlov and Slava Fetisov, a combination spawned by Hall of Fame coach Scotty Bowman.
Six days after winning the 1997 Stanley Cup, Konstantinov, Fetisov and team massage therapist Sergei Mnatsakanov were returning from a club function when their car swerved off the road and struck a tree head-on. The driver was later jailed for driving with a suspended license.
All faced near-death experiences, requiring multiple surgeries and lengthy rehabilitation. Mnatsakanov was paralyzed from the waist down, Fetisov returned to Detroit's lineup early the following season and Konstantinov suffered severe head trauma, leaving him unable to complete even the most simple of tasks.
Shows some improvement
His limited mental capacity rendered him childlike, with scant memory of his previous life and meager motor skills. When he did speak, it was mostly in short Russian words and phrases. But slowly, quietly, and, to the surprise of many, Konstantinov has regained a bit of self-reliance in what has been an arduous recovery.
Konstantinov, now 36, is able to get around with a walker for brief periods of time, exudes a gleeful personality and is able to hold short but relatively detailed conversations before losing focus after five minutes or so.