In case you didn’t know people in Russia love hockey. In case you didn’t know people in Russia also love NHL. In case you didn’t know there are people in Moscow, Russia that love Pittsburgh Penguins! These fearless warriors call themselves Penguins Support Crew. Some of you might take it for granted to watch NHL games here in America and Canada but once there was a time when NHL was off limits for USSR/Russian TV viewers. Only limited NHL coverage became possible after USSR fall in 1990. Yet the roots of Penguins Support Crew could be traced as far back as 1989. At that time Pittsburgh Penguins beat visiting powerhouse Red Army team 4-2 in an exhibition game. In 1991 after USSR fall a Moscow Newspaper Sports Express at last made it easier to somehow follow Pittsburgh Penguins. This is during the time when Penguins went on to win 2 Stanley Cup titles in a row. Nowadays the internet helped to solidify the group of Penguins fans. There are many fans now that span several cities from the old Soviet Union such as St. Petersburg (Russia), Kiev (Ukraine), and Minsk (Belarus). For those fans that live in Moscow there is a local sports bar where the crew occasionally meets at night to watch Pens play live on a satellite feed. The group now has an internet website http://letsgopens.ru where members can keep in touch and talk about hockey and their favorite team.
In 2006 two members of the crew Evgeni Mihkeyev, 33, and Yaroslav Tretiakov, 27, have made the pilgrimage from their hometown of Moscow for a whirlwind tour that is to include three Penguins games — against the New York Rangers — and one at the home of the club’s top minor-league team. During their visit they were able to meet and talk to Sergei Gonchar and Konstantin Koltsov. [post-gazette.com] [penguins.nhl.com]
Here are also some pictures from when Evgeni Malkin paid a visit to the Penguins Support Crew. Look how happy they are! Priceless!
For The Motherland!!! LETS GO PENS!!!
For The Motherland!!! LETS GO PENS!!!
that quote, under that picture, absolutely killed me
Awesome that Geno decided to go and give those guys the ride of their lives! GO PENS!
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I am visiting Moscow in early September – Where does the crew hang out? We would love to meet with the crew.
your best bet is going to http://letsgopens.ru website and asking there … hopefully one of them speaks English and will be able to point you in the right direction
[...] flag i have seen before during the off season. This flag, from when Bylsma visited Malkin and the Russian Penguins Support Crew in [...]