Short answers, pulled from the story.
Russia joined the Ligue Internationale de Hockey sur Glace, the body now known as the IIHF, on the 12th of February 1911, as the seventh member. The organization's founding congress had taken place on the 15th of May 1908 without Russian participation.
Anatoly Tarasov is considered the father of Russian ice hockey. He shaped the playing style that drove Soviet dominance in international competition from the 1950s through the 1980s.
Viacheslav Fetisov, Alexander Mogilny, and Sergei Fedorov were among the notable Russian players who defected to the United States to play in the National Hockey League during the 1980s.
Vladislav Tretiak is a legendary Soviet goaltender and three-time Olympic champion. He was elected president of the Russian Hockey Federation on the 21st of April 2006, following the resignation of Alexander Steblin.
Russia won the 2008 World Championship in Quebec by defeating Canada in a dramatic final. Russia trailed 2-4 before the game went to overtime, where Russia won 5-4. The 2008 championship also marked the official 100th anniversary of international hockey.
The International Ice Hockey Federation suspended Russia and Belarus from all levels of competition following the Russian invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.