Vladimir Tarasenko: Why does he wear number 91 on his jersey?

Vladimir Tarasenko, born on Dec. 13, 1991, is a Russian ice hockey player who currently plays as a right winger for the New York Rangers in the NHL.

Vladimir Tarasenko wears jersey number 91 as a tribute to fellow Russian hockey player Sergei Fedorov. In 2019, he became a Stanley Cup champion just like the player he admires. He contributed to the St. Louis Blues' championship victory by scoring 11 goals in 26 playoff games, helping them secure their first Stanley Cup win since joining the NHL in 1967.

Vladimir Tarasenko recently moved to the New York Rangers

Vladimir Tarasenko was selected 16th overall by the St. Louis Blues in the 2010 draft and went on to make his NHL debut in 2012. He was a standout player in his rookie season and received recognition, finishing 12th in the Calder voting. Tarasenko had the best year of his career in 2021-22, scoring 34 goals and 48 assists, and was a crucial player in the Blues' playoff run.

Tarasenko was recently traded to the New York Rangers, a team that is currently sitting in third place in the Metropolitan division. This trade adds more depth and skill to the Rangers' already-loaded top-six line combination. Tarasenko will provide yet another scoring threat to a top-six that includes talented players such as Mika Zibanejad, Artemi Panarin, Chris Kreider, Vincent Trocheck, and promising young players like Kaapo Kakko, Alexis Lafreniere and Jimmy Vesey.

The Rangers have paired two of the top Russian wingers in the NHL, Artemi Panarin and the former Blues captain.They have the option to place the two skilled wingers together on their top line, centered by Mika Zibanejad, or put Tarasenko on the second line to complement scoring forwards Chris Kreider and Vincent Trocheck.

For the Blues, the trade made sense as Tarasenko was rumored to have requested a trade last season around the trade deadline. Although the team held on to their star player for a playoff run, they are now 12 points out of the Wild Card spot and have lost seven out of their past nine games.

In exchange for Tarasenko, the Blues received a familiar player, Sammy Blais, who was originally drafted by the team in 2014 and played his first four seasons in St. Louis. He was later traded to the Rangers along with a second-round pick for Pavel Buchnevich in July 2021. The trade also involved a defenseman prospect, Hunter Skinner, who was assigned to the Rangers' AHL affiliate, the Hartford Wolf Pack.