Slava Fetisov, right, and Jari Kurri at a Last Game event in Finland. Last Game is the series of charity games Fetisov has organized to being attention to climate change. Sept. 11, 2019 Photo Credit: Jon Alpert
To say Lou Lamoriello is close with Slava Fetisov is to underestimate the depth of their friendship, which dates to when Fetisov took on the Soviet government and, with Lamoriello’s constant support, forced his way to the Devils in 1989.
In many ways, Lamoriello, the longtime NHL executive now running the Islanders, and the Hall of Fame defenseman, active as a Russian politician, hockey executive and activist, are similar, headstrong in their beliefs and unflinchingly loyal to their friends.