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John Wharton, the Wings' trainer, on Larionov's Workout Regimen: "He's just a machine," Wharton said. "If his body was hooked up to a computer, he could tell you on a daily basis what the readout would look like. He knows his body better than anybody I've ever met.

"He knows where his weaknesses occur during the year, he knows how he needs to practice, how he needs to work out, the specific exercises he needs to do, and he's very regimented. His body doesn't change because he has such a keen awareness of where he is at all times."

Larionov's daily workout regimen: road work, running stairs, skipping rope, push-ups, weightlifting. Larionov, the NHL's oldest player, has maintained the same playing weight -- 165 pounds -- through nearly two decades of professional hockey. "It's my trademark," Larionov said.

The Hockey News 1999-2000 YearBook, Chuck Carlton on Igor Larionov: Detroit Red Wings UnSung Hero At 38, and the oldest Red Wing, Larionov remains one of hockey's great playmakers. His importance was underscored when the Red Wings made a side deal before the expansion draft to protect him when a handful of teams began contacting Atlanta about selecting Larionov and then trading him.

Wayne Gretzky on Igor Larionov: Mirror Images On Ice. "We grew up playing against each other. He was a little older than me, but we started in 1981. When I started to get to know Igor a little, we would be able to communicate. Once I knew he spoke English, we would talk about hockey when were were alone... He was the first guy who communicated to me about Soviet hockey. Definitely, he saw the ice the same way as me, passing the puck, hockey sense, probably as similar to me as any player who has played the game."

Scotty Bowman: He can pinpoint one injury that affected the Wings more than others during last spring's playoff loss to the Avalanche.

"I knew when we lost Igor (Larionov) that it would hurt us," Bowman said. "But I didn't know how much it would hurt us. Sometimes you can sustain injuries, but it's tougher in the playoffs because you're facing better teams."

Scotty Bowman on Igor's play during the Av's game 102999: "I was looking at the (Colorado) game and when it turned in our favor, he was a big key in turning it," Bowman said. "He's got so much patience with the puck. He's underrated. He plays on the same team with (Sergei) Fedorov and Yzerman and other players. Igor is playing as well this year as he has since he's been in Detroit."

Pavel Bure on Igor, October 1999: When Pavel Bure arrived in North America as a member of the Vancouver Canucks, he lived with Igor Larionov for about a month.

Bure is amazed that Larionov, 38, is as spry as ever.

"Last season, when I saw him in Detroit, I told him, 'You know Igor, you were 26 when I met you. Now you're about 40 and you haven't changed at all. You've still got the same face, the same body,'" Bure said.

Beckett Hockey Collector Magazine, October 1999, Ratings Game column (lists 5 cards they think are underrated in value). "#5 1990-91 Upper Deck #128 Igor Larionov ($1) It's not a stretch to call Larionov one of the greatest ever to play the game. Detroit's third leading scorer last season (14-49-63). Larionov has posted 460 points in 584 NHL games - not bad for a guy who didn't hit the league until he was 30. If Larionov had spent his most productive years in North America rather than with the Red Army, it's likely his numbers would have trailed just those of Lemieux and Gretzky."

1998 All Star Notebook: "I was really, really impressed with two people in particular: Igor Larionov and Slava Fetisov. Those two players commanded such respect along with Jari Kurri in the room that it was remarkable, especially the admiration and the respect; that respect that Fetisov had as a player, especially from some of the younger Russian players. Dallas and North America Coach Ken Hitchcock on his memories from coaching the World Team in 1998.