Alexander Mogilny selected to Hockey Hall of Fame

Alexander Mogilny, whose defection from the Soviet Union and subsequent record-setting tenure with the Buffalo Sabres made him a trailblazer for Russian players in the NHL, has been selected to the Hockey Hall of Fame as a member of its Class of 2025.

Mogilny, who was selected in his 17th year of eligibility, will be inducted alongside Jennifer Botterill, Zdeno Chara, Brianna Decker, Duncan Keith, Jack Parker, Daniele Sauvageau and Joe Thornton on Monday, Nov. 10. He is the 14th Sabres player to earn induction.

The Sabres drafted Mogilny with the 89th pick in 1988, a calculated gamble at a time when young Soviet players were restricted from playing in the NHL. Former Sabres forward Don Luce, then working for the organization in a player development role, had scouted Mogilny at the 1988 World Junior Championship in Moscow and left with a glowing report for general manager Gerry Meehan.

"I told Gerry he was the best player in the world at the time but chances of him coming were slim to none," Luce recalled in 2020. "So, we decided to take a chance and draft him in the fifth round."

Luce met Mogilny the following year at the World Junior Championship in Anchorage, Alaska, and informed him of his selection by the Sabres. Luce and Meehan traveled to Stockholm, Sweden, that spring to aid Mogilny in his defection to the United States, a three-day operation during which the parties met in secret locations and changed hotels nightly to avoid detection by the KGB.

"You didn't know what was going to happen,” Luce said. “You didn't know what they were going to do. Every time Gerry came from the embassy he said, 'We've got to be careful, they're after us.' You don't sleep easy when that's happening."

Mogilny was 20 years old when he made his NHL debut on October 5, 1989, a Buffalo win over Quebec in which he scored and had seven shots. He finished his rookie season with 15 goals and 43 points in 65 games, offering only a glimpse of what he would quickly become.

Mogilny scored 30 or more goals in each of the following four seasons, aided by the arrival of linemate and future Hall of Fame centerman Pat LaFontaine in 1991-92. The duo combined for the most prolific offensive season in Sabres history in 1992-93, when Mogilny established a franchise record that stands today with 76 goals in 77 games and finished second to LaFontaine with 127 points.

“The season was just a marvel,” Meehan said. “I mean, I remember one thing, I think Alex had more breakaways that he missed than he scored on. The question is, would he have scored 100 goals if he had scored on the breakaways?"

Mogilny went on to play 16 seasons and accumulate 1,032 points (473+559) with Buffalo, Vancouver, New Jersey, and Toronto. He won the Stanley Cup as a member of the Devils in 2000.

His decision to defect, meanwhile, paved the road for other Russian players to follow, including Hall of Fame forwards Sergei Fedorov and Pavel Bure. Fedorov campaigned for Mogilny to join him at the time of his induction in 2015.

“He deserves that honor,” Fedorov said. “Alex was faster than all of us and Alex was a machine. He was built like a machine. Plus, on top of all the crazy skill he had, he’s better than all of us. He’s amazing.”

Mogilny was inducted into the Buffalo Sabres Hall of Fame in 2011. He is one of 30 members of the “Triple Gold Club,” comprised of players who have won the Stanley Cup, Olympic gold, and gold at the IIHF World Championship.