Colorado Avalanche: Honoring Ruslan Salei and Karlis Skrastins

It's old news by now, but the deaths of the Kontinental Hockey League's Lokomotiv Yaroslavl team still hits home with everybody in the hockey world.

Among the 43 killed in the plane crash were former Colorado Avalanche players Ruslan Salei and Karlis Skrastins.

The loss of life is never an easy thing to deal with; whether it be loved ones or players that you get used to watching for your favorite teams, it's still difficult.

So it is with a heavy heart that I will do my best to honor these two gentlemen who spent their life playing the great game of hockey and shared that gift with those of us in Colorado for a short time.

Skrastins was the epitome of "iron man" during his NHL career. For 495 straight games, the man that was called "Scratch" would suit up and go out and play his game.

By "his game" I mean a rough defender who was always blocking shots. Several former teammates referred to Scratch as a second goalie because of how good he was at just getting in the way of shots.

This makes his streak even more impressive simply because of how many times that solid piece of rubber met his body.

Over the course of just one season, most NHL players are playing hurt in some way, shape or form; imagine having that punishment for more than six straight seasons and never taking a night off from the abuse. That's what you got from Skrastins.

Skrastins was only a part of the Avalanche for a short period of time, playing only two full seasons and part of a third for the burgundy and blue, but that didn't stop him from being a leader in the locker room.

Well-loved by his teammates and respected in the hockey world, Skrastins made an impact both on his team and in his community and will be sorely missed.

Salei was a horse of a different color; an imposing force on the ice who looked every bit as mean as his Belarussian accent made him sound.

Then you took a moment to listen to the words he was speaking and suddenly this imposing figure with the thick Belarussian accent looked like a big teddy bear.

Salei was, in the words of L.A. beat writer Chris Foster, both "unmerciful" and "impossible not to like."

Foster recounts several different occasions of being on the business end of a verbal zinger from "Rusty" in several different locations.

My favorite one mentioned in Foster's article was when Rusty compared Foster to a movie star, and not favorably so.

"

"One rainy day after practice, I was cruising through the dressing room, wearing a duster raincoat. Rusty nodded at me and said, 'Hey, you look like that guy in the movie—you know, I Know What You Did Last Summer.

Meaning matinee idols Freddie Prinze Jr. or Ryan Philippe?

No.

'The guy with the hook,' Salei said, smirking."

"

On the ice, one might think the same of Salei who made a name for himself with is physical play and occasional questionable hit.

He was truly a beast to play against and he wanted you to remember that it was him that hit you the following day.

Aside from his hit on Mike Modano, Salei is probably best remembered for his goal that he scored in overtime of Game 3 of the Stanley Cup Finals when he still played for the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim.

New Jersey had won the first two games of the series and Anaheim desperately needed a win if they were going to have any shot of staying in the series.

Salei provided the heroics for his team on that night and is still fondly remembered for that goal. Sadly, the Ducks still lost in seven games, but that goal is still etched in the memory of Duck fans.

The worst part about tragedies like this is the fact that so many of us sports fans forget the human aspect of this game.

We tune in and watch from home or in the arena always expecting to see our favorite players out there giving their all, almost as if they are something grander than us, but these guys are human too.

Gladiators, as the Romans proved so many years ago, are just as frail as the rest of us. These marvelous hockey players were far more than just that; they were good men. Family men.

Karlis Skrastins is survived by his wife Zane and his two daughters, Karolina and Laurena.

Ruslan Salei is survived by his wife Bethann and his three daughters; Ava, Alexis and Aleksandra.

May these two iron men, gladiators, husbands, fathers and sons rest in peace.

The Avalanche Guild and Mile High Hockey are collaborating to honor these two men, and Wade Belak, who lost their lives tragically this summer.

Should you wish to pay your respects, here is information on when and where the memorial will be held.