KLM Line

Group of Soviet ice hockey players From left: Krutov in 2011, Larionov in 2008, Makarov in 1979 KLM Line is the name given to a group of forwards of the USSR national ice hockey team and the Russian club CSKA in the 1980s. The line was composed of left wing Vladimir Krutov (1960–2012), centre Igor Larionov (born 1960), and right wing Sergei Makarov (born 1958). "KLM" comes from the first letters of the players' last names. In Russia, the KLM Line is widely considered to be the best offensive lineup ever. In the 1990s, Larionov became part of another notable ice hockey unit, the Russian Five of the Detroit Red Wings. Origin It was a long tradition in the Soviet Union to discover and promote such ranks over the years. In the 1940s and 1950s, there were Yevgeni Babich, Vsevolod Bobrov and Viktor Shuvalov. In the 1960s, there were Konstantin Loktev, Alexander Almetov and Veniamin Alexandrov; Boris Mayorov, Vyacheslav Starshinov and Yevgeni Mayorov; Vladimir Vikulov, Viktor Polupanov and Anatoli Firsov. In the 1970s, there were Boris Mikhailov, Valeri Kharlamov and Vladimir Petrov, who were then included in the KLM series 'that dominated the Soviet and international scene during the 1