One of the best hockey players of the 80's, Krutov was one third of the deadly KLM Line in the Soviet League and international competitions with the Soviet National Team, along with Sergei Makarov and Igor Larionov. He won the 1984 and 1988 Olympic titles for the U.S.S.R., as well as a silver medal in 1980. He also won a Canada Cup and six World titles.