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Pavel Bure remains the most exciting player in the history of the
Vancouver Canucks and arguably the most talented.

— Jim Robson

 

Canucks fans rise out of their seats every time he touched the puck.”
Bure’s debut ended without him recording a point, and the game
was a 2-2 tie, but none of that mattered—Vancouver Canuck fans had just
witnessed the team’s first real superstar. Bure played on the fourth line
that evening, alongside Gino Odjick and Ryan Walter; Robson remembers
Walter's thoughts about his new linemate: “Walter said later he turned to
Gino at the bench and said, ‘| don’t think he'll be on our fourth line again.’”
In his first season as a Canuck, Bure played 65 games and finished with
60 points (34 goals and 26 assists), resulting in a Calder Trophy (top rookie)
for the 1991-92 season. The Russian Rocket followed up his sensational
start by scoring 60 goals in back-to-back seasons (1992-93 and 1993-94).

 

Illustration by CJ Sommerfeld

In the spring of 1994, the Canucks made a run to the Stanley Cup Final but
ultimately lost to the New York Rangers in the seventh game at Madison
Square Garden. Bure’s postseason stats were predictably remarkable: 24
games played with 31 points (16 goals and 15 assists).

Bure’s mercurial rise resulted in him becoming a fan favourite, and his
profile and popularity increased exponentially; he became a local celebrity,

even being photographed with Chicago Bulls’ star, Michael Jordan, in the
mid-1990s at Rogers Arena (then called GM Place). However, it appeared at
times that Bure did not enjoy the media spotlight, as Robson states, “| don’t
think Pavel ever enjoyed the stardom around town and found it tough to
‘hide’ in Vancouver like he could later in Florida [and] even New York.”

On the ice, however, there was no spotlight too bright for him, and Bure
showed that he was more than just an exciting goal scorer—even proving
to have a mean streak when provoked. Bure’s edge was evident when he
delivered a vicious elbow to Dallas Stars enforcer Shane Churla during game
two of the Canucks’ second-round series against Dallas in May of 1994. Don
Cherry, in his video compilation, Don Cherry’s Rock’em Sock'em 6, called
it “the mother of all elbows.” Robson recalls that play very well: “I sure
remember the elbow on Shane Churla in Dallas in the playoffs. It would have
been suspendable today but went undetected in [1994], although | think
the league fined Pavel $500, the maximum allowed. Pavel was sending a
message for Churla’s stick work on him. Pavel was very [competitive] and
well-built but didn’t take a lot of penalties.”

After the game, Churla was incensed, telling reporters: “If it was the
other way around, I'd be gone for 15 games at least. People would be
calling me the biggest goon in hockey.” Bure defended his actions when he
spoke with reporters: “It's not my style, but | had no choice. They're trying
to kill me. I’m lucky | didn‘t get hurt.”

In the late 1990s, the Canucks were a team in turmoil. Despite signing
Mark Messier in July 1997 to a three-year contract worth $18 million, the
team struggled the following season. The front office also faced instability.
Head coach Tom Renney and general manager Pat Quinn were both fired in
November 1997. Mike Keenan was later hired as head coach. Unfortunately,
the coaching change did not help, and the Canucks missed the playoffs—
finishing the 1997-98 season with a 25-43-14 record (seventh place in the
Pacific Division and 13th and last in the Western Conference).

Amidst the team’s failings Bure was the lone bright spot—finishing the
season with 51 goals and 39 assists for 90 points; it would also be his final
season as a Vancouver Canuck. Bure held out the following year (with one
year remaining on his contract). The star winger asked management for a
trade and his wish was granted when he was dealt to the Florida Panthers
in January 1999. Robson understood why Bure wanted to leave Vancouver
and why a change of scenery was perhaps was what he needed: “I give him
credit in many ways. He was not getting paid and just waited for a trade.
| don‘t know all the reasons but the Canucks of the late [1990s] were a
team in turmoil from the top down. Ownership, management, coaching all
factors. It was hard to imagine a team with Pavel, Mogilny, Messier, Linden,
Naslund, Lumme, Ohlund, etc. [And also] missing the playoffs in [1998], but
they did even with Mike Keenan at the bench.”

Bure played four seasons in Florida and found some success—including
scoring 58 goals during the 1999-2000 season and 59 goals the next year.
The Russian Rocket eventually retired due to injuries with the New York
Rangers in 2003.

Although Bure’s time as a Canuck did not end on the best of terms, fans
still remember the impact he made during his seven seasons with the team
(1991 to 1998). The winger was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in
November 2012, and in November 2013, the Canucks retired Bure’s number
10 jersey. Prior to his jersey retirement ceremony, Bure, in an interview
uploaded by the Vancouver Canucks to YouTube in October 2013, reflected
on his first game as a Canuck: “But obviously, when | stepped on the ice
here for the first time, it was incredible. It was [a] full building and the energy
and everybody supporting you [was overwhelming].”

Three decades after Bure made his Vancouver Canuck debut, Robson
still can’t say enough about him: “Pavel Bure remains the most exciting
player in the history of the Vancouver Canucks and arguably the most
talented. Everything he did was at top speed and some of the goals he
scored rank as the team’s best ever. He scored 254 goals for Vancouver in
only 428 games and still holds a team record for shorthanded goals (24). He
also produced in the playoffs despite tight checking, with 34 goals and 66
points in 60 playoff games. And who can forget his two consecutive 60-goal
seasons. Despite his bitter departure, he certainly deserved to have his
number 10 retired.”