Phil Esposito, famed for his two Stanley Cup victories and his place as the top scorer of the 1972 Super Series between the USSR and Canada, speaks about a surprising connection he has drawn with Russia’s president, Vladimir Putin. The conversation, as recounted through a Russian news agency, offers a window into how sport and politics sometimes intertwine at the highest levels. Esposito recalls a moment in Moscow during a team presentation when Putin, curious and candid, asked him whether he felt embarrassed after a fall on the ice. The former center forward answered with a practical, almost defiant humor: in such moments, one can either cry or laugh, and he chose the latter. This anecdote, attributed to the agency TASS, underscores a sense of shared humanity that can exist even in scenes far removed from the usual political theater.
