What Yashin taught me

Yashin and his 90s turtleneck 

My first hockey hero was Alexei Yashin.

I first saw Yashin play when I was 10.  My grandfather took me to see the Ottawa Senators host the Montreal Canadiens, and I was not even sure I wanted to go.

The game was incredible. Yashin scored two goals, Ottawa won the game 3-2 and the loudmouthed boy in the Canadiens jersey sitting next to me cried. I was hooked on the sport, the team and the player.

I collected Yashin's hockey cards, put his poster on my wall and used his name when I played street hockey.

The city of Ottawa loved Yashin too. When he gave $1 million to the National Arts Centre, it endeared him as a role-model in the community.

That didn't last long.

It turned out, as a condition of the donation, the NAC was supposed to pay Yashin's parents $85,000 a year in consulting fees. The NAC refused and Yashin pulled the donation.

Yashin's public relations problem in Ottawa became much worse when he refused to play for an entire season to get more money.

The Senators ended up trading Yashin to the New York Islanders for Zdeno Chara, Bill Muckalt and the pick they used to select Jason Spezza.

While the Yashin ordeal hurt at the beginning, by the end I was happy to see him go.

The Yashin trade helped me grow up as a hockey fan. I learned that hockey is a business, and my favourite players may disappoint me or leave the team. This lesson served me well when the Senators lost Zdeno Chara, Dany Heatley, Jason Spezza, and most shockingly Daniel Alfredsson.

Now when I watch hockey I don't get as emotionally invested. While it still hurts when my favourite player leaves the franchise or my favourite team loses to a rival, enjoying the sport is the most important thing to me.