 Bure played three games during the 1990 – 91 season with HC CSKA Moscow of the Soviet Championship League prior to leaving the Soviet Union. 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). In doing so, he became the first Russian player in the league's history. He joined the team one year before the Canadian Hockey League, of which the WHL is a member, instituted an import draft.
