They say “business in the front, party in the back.” Petr Klima’s hair met the criteria, but from the sounds of things, he was all about the party – the one in the front and the one in the back.
I guess I was too young to realize it at the time, but Klima got himself into a lot of trouble (and had a lot of fun), especially when he was a Detroit Red Wing early in his career and he was buddies with a fellow named Bob Probert. You could either say he adjusted very well or very poorly to life beyond the Iron Curtain, depending on your perspective.
There are probably lots of people who remember Klima for his lifestyle choices, but I choose to remember him in a bit of a different way. I remember him as the guy who brought the Czechoslomullet to the NHL, and possibly North America, before Jaromir Jagr made it mainstream. I also remember him for his terrible helmet, which was probably designed to fit the hair properly. Wayne Gretzky made the Jofa cool. Petr Klima did not.
And who can forget him coming off the bench (where he’d spent most of the game) to score the triple overtime winner in Game 1 of the 1990 Stanley Cup Final? I’ll bet that was a fun evening.
Uh-Oh, Rexy 