Valeri Vladimirovich "Val" Bure (Russian: Валерий Владимирович Буре, born June 13, 1974) is a Russian-American former professional ice hockey right winger. He played 10 seasons in the National Hockey League (NHL) for the Montreal Canadiens, Calgary Flames, Florida Panthers, St. Louis Blues, and Dallas Stars from 1995 to 2004. A second round selection of the Canadiens, 33rd overall, at the 1992 NHL entry draft, Bure appeared in one NHL All-Star Game, in 2000.
Valeri Bure is the 205th most popular hockey player. His biography is available in 19 different languages on Wikipedia.
Among hockey players born in Russia, Valeri Bure ranks 45.
The Truth About Candace Cameron Bure's Marriage
Let's delve into the life and career of this multifaceted individual.
Read also: Features of Custom Hockey Gloves
Valeri Bure was born on June 13, 1974, in Moscow, which was then part of the Soviet Union. His parents are Vladimir and Tatiana Bure. His father, Vladimir, was an Olympic swimmer. Valeri's family had a special history; his ancestors made valuable watches for Russian tsars from 1815 to 1917.
Bure was around nine years old when his parents separated. In 1991, he joined his father and brother, Pavel, in moving to North America as his elder sibling embarked on a National Hockey League (NHL) career with the Vancouver Canucks. His mother arrived two months later. They settled initially in Los Angeles where Vladimir continued to train and coach both Valeri and Pavel in hockey and physical conditioning.
However, by 1998 both became estranged from their father, along with his second wife and their half-sister, Katya.
Before leaving the Soviet Union, Valeri Bure played three games for HC CSKA Moscow in the 1990-91 season.
When he arrived in North America at 17, he joined the Spokane Chiefs in the Western Hockey League (WHL). In his first WHL season (1991-92), Valeri scored 49 points in 53 games for the Chiefs.
Read also: The story of Craig Needham
The Montreal Canadiens chose him in the second round of the 1992 NHL entry draft, as the 33rd overall pick. Scouts said he was a good skater and smart around the net.
He was the first Russian player in that league's history. As a 17-year-old, Bure was eligible to play junior hockey upon his arrival in North America, and joined the Spokane Chiefs of the Western Hockey League (WHL).
Valeri returned to Spokane for the 1992-93 season. He led his team and was second in WHL scoring with 147 points. His 68 goals that season are still a record for the Chiefs. He was named to the WHL's West Division First All-Star Team.
In his final WHL season (1993-94), he scored 102 points. Overall, he had 298 points in three seasons with Spokane.
The NHL Central Scouting Bureau praised Bure as being a good skater. In its assessment, the Bureau added: "very smart around the net; good passer, playmaker. Good shot, quick release. Will take a hit to make the play."
Read also: Inside Aaron Ness's Career
In the 1994-95 season, Valeri became a professional player. He spent most of that season with the Fredericton Canadiens, Montreal's minor league team.
Valeri was called up to Montreal late in the season. He made his NHL debut on February 28, 1995.
His first NHL goal came on March 15. In his first full season with Montreal (1995-96), Valeri scored 22 goals and 42 points. However, he scored only 14 goals the next season. He also dealt with injuries, including two concussions and a kidney injury.
At five feet ten inches (178 cm) tall, Bure was a smaller player in the NHL. His linemates Saku Koivu (five foot ten) and Oleg Petrov (five foot nine) were similarly diminutive, and the trio were known in Montreal as the "Smurf line".
After playing 50 games in the 1997-98 season, Bure was traded. He went to the Calgary Flames on February 1, 1998. He was happy about the trade, as it brought him closer to his family.
Valeri's scoring ability emerged in Calgary as he became one of the team's top scorers. In the 1998-99 season, his 26 goals and 53 points were third best on the team; at one point of the season, Bure scored the game-winning goal in four consecutive victories for Calgary.
When star player Theoren Fleury left the Flames, Valeri had to step up as a leader. He did just that in the 1999-2000 season. He used his speed and skating skills very well. By mid-December, he was eighth in league scoring. Valeri was chosen for the World team at the 2000 All-Star Game. He played on a line with his brother Pavel. Pavel was named the game's most valuable player. Valeri finished the season as the Flames' top scorer with 35 goals and 75 points. He was 14th overall in the NHL. He was also the only player on the team to play in all 82 games. His brother Pavel scored 58 goals for the Florida Panthers that year.
In the 2000-01 season, Valeri's scoring went down a bit, but his 27 goals were still second on the team. He had 55 points. He had some disagreements with his coaches, who wanted him to play more defensively. Valeri found it hard to change his style. He was rumored to have asked for a trade from Calgary.
As his contract had expired, Bure was a restricted free agent. Initially unable to come to an agreement with the Panthers on salary, Bure did not sign until late September. The delay resulted in his being a brief hold-out from Florida's training camp in advance of the 2001-02 season.
Injury interrupted the start of Bure's Panthers career as a knee ailment that began bothering him before the season worsened as he played the first games of the campaign.
A second knee injury ended Bure's season in mid-March as the Panthers had fallen out of playoff contention.
In the 2002-03 season, Valeri stayed with the Panthers but struggled to score. He also broke his wrist. With only 5 goals and 26 points in 46 games, he was traded to the St. Louis Blues on March 11, 2003, in exchange for defenceman Mike Van Ryn.
Another knee injury kept him out for most of the rest of that season. He had two assists in five regular season games and two assists in six playoff games for St. Louis.
Free of injury for the first time in two seasons, Bure was one of the Panthers' offensive leaders in 2003-04. He reached 20 goals for the fifth time in his NHL career.
As the trade deadline neared, he was Florida's leading scorer with 45 points. The Panthers traded him to the Dallas Stars on March 9, 2004.
Bure was placed on the Stars' top line with Mike Modano and Jere Lehtinen, and he recorded 7 points in 13 games to conclude the regular season.
An unrestricted free agent following the 2004 playoffs, Bure did not play anywhere in 2004-05 as the entire NHL season was canceled due to a labour dispute.
He signed a one-year contract with the Los Angeles Kings for the 2005-06 season when the league resumed operations; however, he never played a regular season game for the Kings.
A back injury during the preseason required surgery. A second surgery on his hip caused him to miss the whole season.
Bure first played for the Russian national junior team at the 1994 World Junior Championship. He was the top scorer for Russia with eight points in six games. Russia won the bronze medal, and Valeri was named to the tournament's All-Star Team. That same year, he played for the senior team at the 1994 World Championship.
After playing one game at the 1996 World Cup of Hockey, Bure played in his first of two Olympic Games in 1998. The tournament marked the first time he played with his brother Pavel since they were briefly teammates with CSKA Moscow in 1991.
Valeri scored one goal in the tournament, and Russia advanced to the gold medal game. They settled for the silver medal after being shut out by Dominik Hašek and the Czech Republic.
Bure returned for the 2002 Salt Lake Games. Bure scored a goal in that tournament, and Russia won the bronze medal.
Russia invited him to play at the 2004 World Cup of Hockey. However, he did not have an NHL contract at the time.
Bure married actress Candace Cameron on June 22, 1996. They were introduced by Cameron's Full House castmate Dave Coulier at a charity hockey game in 1994.
They have three children: a daughter named Natasha (born 1998) and two sons, Lev (born 2000) and Maksim (born 2002).
Bure became an American citizen in December 2001.
Bure cited his family as the reason he retired from hockey in 2005. He felt he could have returned from his surgeries. However, he wanted to spend time with his children and allow his wife to return to acting.
In 2007, Bure and his wife opened a restaurant in Florida called The Milk and Honey Café. They closed it when the family moved to California.
Now, they run a winery in Napa Valley called Bure Family Wines.
Bure developed an interest in wine early in his NHL career. He said it grew into a passion. He loves the process of making wine, from the vineyard to the bottle.
He uses a special label for his company: "I fell in love with the behind-the-scenes work and being able to start from the vineyard and put it into a bottle."
In 2010, Bure returned to the ice for a TV show. He was a contestant on the second season of Battle of the Blades. This show paired former professional hockey players with figure skaters. Bure's partner was Ekaterina Gordeeva.
The pair won the competition and shared a $100,000 prize donated to charities of their choice.
Career Statistics
Here's a summary of Valeri Bure's NHL career statistics:
| Season | Team | Games Played | Goals | Assists | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1995-2004 | NHL Teams | 643 | 174 | 228 | 402 |
Valeri Bure's journey from a promising hockey player in Russia to an NHL star and then a successful winemaker is a testament to his determination and passion. His contributions to the sport and his entrepreneurial spirit continue to inspire many.