Shtalenkov began his career with Dynamo Moscow
With the departure of Myshkin, Shtalenkov took over as the number one goaltender for the 1990-91 season and guided the club to their second consecutive Soviet League championship. This would earn him his first international opportunity, as he would join the Soviet National Team for the 1991 Canada Cup tournament where he would start all five of the Soviet's games.
Shtalenkov began his international career in the
1991 Canada Cup with the Soviet Union
1991-92 would be a memorable season for Shtalenkov, as he would play 25 games for Dynamo and win another league championship, 8 games for the Unified Team at the 1992 Olympics, where he would play 8 games with a 1.64 goals against and a 92% save percentage to backstop the team to a gold medal just a matter of weeks following he breakup of the Soviet Union and finally 6 games for Russia at the 1992 World Championships.
With two consecutive league titles and a gold medal on his resume, Shtalenkov brought his game to North America and signed with the Milwaukee Admirals, then of the IHL. He led the team in games played with 47 while finishing the season with a 26-14-5 record with a 3.03 GAA to earn the Garry F. Longman Memorial Trophy as the IHL's top rookie.
Shtalenkov was the IHL Rookie of the Year in 1993
This attracted the attention of the NHL, and Shtalenkov was drafted by the Mighty Ducks of Anahiem in the 1993 NHL Entry Draft. He would play 28 games for the San Diego Gulls of the IHL, going 15-11-2, and then make his NHL debut for the Mighty Ducks, seeing action in 10 games with a 3-4-1 record. He would also then play 6 games for Russia at the 1994 World Championships.
Shtalenkov while with the San Diego Gulls of the IHL
He was back with Anaheim for the 1994-95 season, seeing action in 18 games before playing in 30 games of the 1995-96 season. He would once again play for Russia at the 1996 World Championships in the spring and later be named to their roster for the 1996 World Cup of Hockey later in the fall.
Shtalenkov made his NHL debut with Anaheim
In 1996-97 Shtalenkov played 24 regular season games for Anaheim and then made his playoff debut with 4 games in goal for the Mighty Ducks.
He would play a career high 40 games in 1997-98 while splitting time with Guy Herbert. Shtalenkov would also return to the Olympics in 1998, the first Games for which the NHL would take a break to allow it's top players a chance to compete. He would play in 5 of Russia's games, winning 4, and come back with a silver medal.
Shtalenkov backstopped Russia to a silver medal in 1998
The NHL would expand for the 1998-99 season, and Shtalenkov would be claimed by the Nashville Predators, who would in turn trade him to the Edmonton Oilers. After 34 games with Edmonton during the 1998-99 season, he would be dealt to the Phoenix Coyotes in March of 1999.
Shtalenkov while with the Coyotes
Shtalenkov would play just 15 games for Phoenix in 1999-00 before being traded yet again, this time to the Florida Panthers, with whom he would play the final 15 games of his NHL career.
The final games of Shtalenkov's career were with the Panthers
For the 2000-01 season, Shtalenkov would return to Dynamo Moscow, where he would play in 25 games, with six shutouts and a 1.95 GAA. Later in the spring, he would play in his fourth and final World Championships for Russia.
Shtalenkov would play one final season for Dynamo in 2001-02, playing in 28 games with a 2.02 goals against average.
His final NHL totals were 190 games played, with a 62-82-19 record with 8 shutouts and a 2.88 goals against average.
Since 2009, Shtalenkov has been a goaltending coach for various teams in the KHL.
Today's featured jersey is a 1991-92 Dynamo Moscow Mikhail Shtalenkov jersey as worn the year Shtalenkov took over as the team's number one goaltender and led Dynamo to the league championship.
Bonus jersey: Today's bonus jersey is a 1997-98 Mighty Ducks of Anaheim Mikhail Shtalenkov jersey as worn by Shtalenkov during the season he set an NHL career high with 40 games played.
The Mighty Ducks would break new ground in 1993 when they debuted their new jerseys with the first diagonal waist striping in league history in addition to their never before seen colors of jade and eggplant.
This jersey would serve the club well, lasting through thirteen seasons until a change in ownership led to a modified team name and all new colors to mark the team's new era, bringing to an end the groundbreaking color scheme of the Disney owned Mighty Ducks.
Extra bonus jersey: Today's extra bonus jersey is a 1998-99 Phoenix Coyotes Mikhail Shtalenkov jersey. This wild alternate jersey as worn by Shtalenkov during the season he was claimed by Nashville, traded to Edmonton and then sent to Phoenix.
The Coyotes home and road jerseys of the day were thought to be strange enough by traditional hockey fans, but this eerie alternate jersey took things to a whole new level, causing some to refer to it as "Peyote Ugly", after the plant known in the southwest for it's hallucinogenic properties.
This jersey was worn by Phoenix for five seasons until a complete overhaul of the team's identity led to not only an all new logo, but all new team colors and jerseys as well.
Today's video section is the Top Five Saves of the Week - and Shtalenkov makes the number one save of them all.
Classic hockey
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