# 1979 Challenge Cup (ice hockey)

The 1979 Challenge Cup was a series of international ice hockey games between the Soviet Union national ice hockey team and a team of All-Stars from the National Hockey League. The games were played on February 8, 10, and 11 at Madison Square Garden in New York City. It replaced the NHL's all-star festivities for the 1978–79 NHL season. The Soviets defeated the NHL All-Stars two games to one.
The team of All-Stars from the National Hockey League included 23 Canadians and three Swedish players. Bobby Orr, Canadian ice hockey player, commenting in the post-game interviews after game two, accidentally called the NHL All-Stars "Team Canada" (because of the number of Canadians on the roster). The Challenge Cup, unlike its predecessor, the Summit Series, included non-Canadian born players in the NHL rosters.
The NHL All-Stars team was coached by Scotty Bowman, and the Soviet Union national team was coached by Viktor Tikhonov.

## NHL All-Stars roster

| No. | Player | Pos. | Team |
| 10 | Guy Lafleur | RW | Montreal Canadiens |
| 19 | Larry Robinson | D | Montreal Canadiens |
| 23 | Bob Gainey | LW | Montreal Canadiens |
| 22 | Steve Shutt | LW | Montreal Canadiens |
| 11 | Gilbert Perreault | C | Buffalo Sabres |
| 17 | Marcel Dionne | C | Los Angeles Kings |
| 27 | Darryl Sittler | C | Toronto Maple Leafs |
| 8 | Lanny McDonald | RW | Toronto Maple Leafs |
| 16 | Bobby Clarke – C | C | Philadelphia Flyers |
| 20 | Bryan Trottier | C | New York Islanders |
| 25 | Mike Bossy | RW | New York Islanders |
| 9 | Clark Gillies | LW | New York Islanders |
| 4 | Barry Beck | D | Colorado Rockies |
| 18 | Serge Savard | D | Montreal Canadiens |
| 3 | Guy Lapointe | D | Montreal Canadiens |
| | Robert Picard | D | Washington Capitals |
| 5 | Denis Potvin | D | New York Islanders |
| 7 | Bill Barber | LW | Philadelphia Flyers |
| 21 | Don Marcotte | LW | Boston Bruins |
| 35 | Tony Esposito | G | Chicago Blackhawks |
| 29 | Ken Dryden | G | Montreal Canadiens |
| 30 | Gerry Cheevers | G | Boston Bruins |
| | Ron Greschner | D | New York Rangers |
| 26 | Börje Salming | D | Toronto Maple Leafs |
| 12 | Ulf Nilsson | C | New York Rangers |
| 15 | Anders Hedberg | RW | New York Rangers |

## Soviet Union roster

| No. | Player | Pos. | Team |
| 12 | Sergei Starikov | D | Traktor Chelyabinsk |
| 22 | Viktor Zhluktov | F | CSKA Moscow |
| 5 | Vasili Pervukhin | D | Dynamo Moscow |
| 9 | Vladimir Kovin | C | Torpedo Gorky |
| 24 | Sergei Makarov | RW | CSKA Moscow |
| 10 | Mikhail Varnakov | LW | Torpedo Gorky |
| 11 | Aleksandr Skvortsov | RW | Torpedo Gorky |
| 25 | Vladimir Golikov | F | Dynamo Moscow |
| 23 | Aleksandr Golikov | F | Dynamo Moscow |
| 13 | Boris Mikhailov – C | F | CSKA Moscow |
| 16 | Vladimir Petrov | F | CSKA Moscow |
| 17 | Valeri Kharlamov | F | CSKA Moscow |
| 7 | Gennadiy Tsygankov | D | CSKA Moscow |
| 6 | Valeri Vasiliev | D | Dynamo Moscow |
| 8 | Sergei Kapustin | F | CSKA Moscow |
| 2 | Yuri Fedorov | D | Torpedo Gorky |
| 14 | Zinetula Bilyaletdinov | D | Dynamo Moscow |
| 19 | Helmuts Balderis | RW | CSKA Moscow |
| 18 | Irek Gimayev | F | Salavat Yulaev Ufa |
| 21 | Viktor Tyumenev | F | Krylya Sovetov Moscow |
| 4 | Sergei Babinov | D | CSKA Moscow |
| 20 | Vladislav Tretiak | G | CSKA Moscow |
| 1 | Vladimir Myshkin | G | Krylya Sovetov Moscow |

## Uniforms

The NHL vastly simplified their white All-Star uniforms, removing most of the striping and stars. The NHL shield on the front was enlarged, while the logos on the shoulders remained the same. The striping was reduced to two thin stripes, orange over black, separated by a thin white stripe. The names on the back remained in black with orange trim, and the numerals remained orange with black trim.
The Soviet team used their standard red national uniforms, which they also used when touring against the teams of the World Hockey Association (while billed as the "Soviet All-Stars"). The jerseys featured two white stripes at the waistline - one thin stripe over a wider stripe studded with red diamonds. The sleeve stripes followed a similar pattern, but without the diamonds on the wide stripes, and an additional white stripe below the wide band. While the Soviet team normally used the Russian language on its uniforms, the names on the back of the jerseys for the Challenge Cup were romanized for the event. The front of the jerseys retained the Russian СССР initials.

## Game log
### Game 1

* Date: Thursday February 8, 1979
* Time: 8:00pm
* Location: New York City: Madison Square Garden
* Attendance: 17,438

#### Score

NHL All-Stars 4 – Soviet Union 2
Goals :
| Period | Score | Team | Player | Assist | Power Play | Goal |
| 1st | 0:16 | NHL | #10 Guy Lafleur | #16 Bobby Clarke, #22 Steve Shutt | | 1-0 |
| 1st | 6:22 | NHL | #25 Mike Bossy | #11 Gilbert Perreault, #10 Guy Lafleur | PP | 2-0 |
| 1st | 11:25 | URS | #13 Boris Mikhailov | #6 Valeri Vasiliev, #17 Valeri Kharlamov | PP | 2-1 |
| 1st | 15:48 | NHL | #23 Bob Gainey | #7 Bill Barber, #4 Barry Beck | | 3-1 |
| 2nd | 8:14 | NHL | #9 Clark Gillies | #25 Mike Bossy | | 4-1 |
| 3rd | 3:02 | URS | #25 Vladimir Golikov | #23 Aleksandr Golikov, #24 Sergei Makarov | | 4-2 |
Penalties :
| Period | Pen. Score | Team | Player | Pen. Min. | Penalty |
| 1st | 0:59 | URS | #22 Viktor Zhluktov | 2:00 | Hooking |
| 1st | 5:13 | URS | #16 Vladimir Petrov | 2:00 | Hooking |
| 1st | 8:31 | NHL | #8 Lanny McDonald | 2:00 | High-sticking |
| 1st | 10:59 | NHL | #9 Clark Gillies | 2:00 | Charging |
| 1st | 12:21 | URS | #22 Viktor Zhluktov | 2:00 | Interference |
| 2nd | 10:48 | URS | #7 Gennadiy Tsygankov | 2:00 | Holding |
Shots on Goal :
| Team | 1st Period | 2nd Period | 3rd Period | Total |
| NHL All-Stars | 10 | 9 | 5 | 24 |
| Soviet Union | 6 | 5 | 9 | 20 |
Goaltenders :
| Min. | Goalies | Team | Saves | Goals Against |
| 60:00 | #29 Ken Dryden | NHL All-Stars | 18 | 2 Goals |
| 60:00 | #20 Vladislav Trekiak | Soviet Union | 20 | 4 Goals |

#### Officials

* Referee – Bob Myers
* Linesman – Ray Scapinello
* Linesman – John D'Amico

### Game 2

* Date: Saturday February 10, 1979
* Time: 2:00pm
* Location: New York City: Madison Square Garden
* Attendance: 17,438

#### Score

NHL All-Stars 4 – Soviet Union 5
Goals :
| Period | Score | Team | Player | Assist | Power Play | Goal |
| 1st | 8:10 | URS | #8 Sergei Kapustin | #12 Sergei Starikov | | 0-1 |
| 1st | 13:35 | NHL | #25 Mike Bossy | #20 Bryan Trottier, #9 Clark Gillies | PP | 1-1 |
| 1st | 18:21 | NHL | #20 Bryan Trottier | #9 Clark Gillies, #25 Mike Bossy | | 2-1 |
| 2nd | 0:27 | NHL | #11 Gilbert Perreault | #27 Darryl Sittler | | 3-1 |
| 2nd | 2:05 | URS | #10 Mikhail Varnakov | #11 Aleksandr Skvortsov | | 3-2 |
| 2nd | 5:06 | NHL | #19 Larry Robinson | #10 Guy Lafleur, #17 Marcel Dionne | | 4-2 |
| 2nd | 17:02 | URS | #13 Boris Mikhailov | #16 Vladimir Petrov, #6 Valeri Vasiliev | PP | 4-3 |
| 2nd | 7:47 | URS | #8 Sergei Kapustin | #22 Viktor Zhluktov | | 4-4 |
| 3rd | 1:31 | URS | #25 Vladimir Golikov | #24 Sergei Makarov | | 4-5 |
Penalties :
| Period | Pen. Score | Team | Player | Pen. Min. | Penalty |
| 1st | 12:32 | URS | #9 Vladimir Kovin | 2:00 | Cross-checking |
| 1st | 15:13 | NHL | #11 Gilbert Perreault | 2:00 | Holding |
| 2nd | 8:04 | NHL | #26 Börje Salming | 2:00 | Interference |
| 2nd | 15:07 | NHL | #4 Barry Beck | 2:00 | Boarding |
Shots on Goal :
| Team | 1st Period | 2nd Period | 3rd Period | Total |
| NHL All-Stars | 5 | 5 | 6 | 16 |
| Soviet Union | 7 | 14 | 10 | 31 |
Goaltenders :
| Min. | Goalies | Team | Saves | Goals Against |
| 60:00 | #29 Ken Dryden | NHL All-Stars | 26 | 5 Goals |
| 60:00 | #20 Vladislav Tretiak | Soviet Union | 12 | 4 Goals |

#### Officials

* Referee – Viktor Dombrovski
* Linesman – Matt Pavelich
* Linesman – Ron Finn

### Game 3

* Date: Sunday February 11, 1979
* Time: 8:00pm
* Location: New York City: Madison Square Garden
* Attendance: 17,545

#### Score

NHL All-Stars 0 – Soviet Union 6
Goals :
| Period | Score | Team | Player | Assist | Power Play | Goal |
| 2nd | 5:47 | URS | #13 Boris Mikhailov | #23 Aleksandr Golikov | | 0-1 |
| 2nd | 7:44 | URS | #22 Viktor Zhluktov | #19 Helmuts Balderis, #6 Valeri Vasiliev | PP | 0-2 |
| 3rd | 8:44 | URS | #19 Helmuts Balderis | #18 Irek Gimayev | | 0-3 |
| 3rd | 10:21 | URS | #9 Vladimir Kovin | #11 Aleksandr Skvortsov, #10 Mikhail Varnakov | | 0-4 |
| 3rd | 12:44 | URS | #24 Sergei Makarov | #8 Sergei Kapustin | | 0-5 |
| 3rd | 14:46 | URS | #23 Aleksandr Golikov | | | 0-6 |
Penalties :
| Period | Pen. Score | Team | Player | Pen. Min. | Penalty |
| 2nd | 6:27 | NHL | #21 Don Marcotte | 2:00 | Elbowing |
| 2nd | 10:48 | URS | #6 Valeri Vasiliev | 2:00 | Holding |
| 2nd | 12:27 | URS | #1 Vladimir Myshkin | 2:00 | Roughing | Served by #18 Irek Gimayev |
| 2nd | 12:27 | NHL | #20 Bryan Trottier | 2:00 | Roughing |
| 3rd | 14:22 | URS | #13 Boris Mikhailov | 2:00 | Holding |
Shots on Goal :
| Team | 1st Period | 2nd Period | 3rd Period | Total |
| NHL All-Stars | 7 | 7 | 10 | 24 |
| Soviet Union | 6 | 6 | 7 | 19 |
Goaltenders :
| Min. | Goalies | Team | Saves | Goals Against |
| 60:00 | #30 Gerry Cheevers | NHL All-Stars | 13 | 6 Goals |
| 60:00 | #1 Vladimir Myshkin | Soviet Union | 24 | 0 Goals |

#### Officials

* Referee – Andy Van Hellemond
* Linesman – Leon Stickle
* Linesman – Claude Bechard

## Broadcasters

In the United States, Game 2, which was held on a Saturday afternoon, was shown on CBS as part of CBS Sports Spectacular. The network refused to expand CBS Sports Spectacular to carry the game in full so instead, the show came on during the second intermission, showed taped highlights of the first two periods, and then showed the final period live. The lead-in to Sports Spectacular was The World's Strongest Man. The then-CBS affiliate in Boston, the old WNAC-TV, broadcast a local college hockey game that led into Sports Spectacular.
The network, the show and their sponsors had a problem with the rink board advertising that the NHL sold at Madison Square Garden, and refused to allow them to be shown on television. As a result, CBS viewers were unable to see the far boards above the yellow kickplate, and could only see players' skates when the play moved to that side of the ice. Games 1 and 3 were shown on the NHL Network, where the advertising was no problem.
Dan Kelly and Lou Nanne called the game for CBS while Dick Stockton served as the host.