TORONTO -- Pat LaFontaine was inducted into the Hockey Hall
of Fame on Monday after starring for the New York Islanders,
Buffalo Sabres and New York Rangers in a career cut short by
concussions.
He entered the shrine with Grant Fuhr, one of his Buffalo
teammates and the first black player to enter the hall. Detroit Red
Wings owner Mike Ilitch and amateur coach Brian Kilrea joined the
hall in the builders' category.
"To be here with these three guys, I feel like the luckiest guy
in the world," LaFontaine said after the four received rings and
blazers.
LaFontaine scored 468 goals, getting 40 or more in six
consecutive seasons, and assisted on 545. He was on the U.S. team
that won the 1996 World Cup and played in the Olympics in 1984 and
1998. A head injury on March 16, 1998, ended his career.
"Guys who have gone through postconcussion syndrome will tell
you it changes your perspective on life," LaFontaine said. "You
don't have as much control as you think you do.
"You reflect and you learn to appreciate the little things . .
. and truly embrace what you have."
LaFontaine and Fuhr were Sabres teammates from 1993-95. Fuhr
earned five Stanley Cup rings with the Edmonton Oilers. He had a
great glove hand and supplied the big-moment saves.
Fuhr plays down the racial significance of his entry to the hall
in deference to Willie O'Ree. In 1957, O'Ree became the NHL's first
black player and is now involved in the league's minorities
programs.
"Having got to know Willie and all the things Willie went
through, by the time I got to play all the doors had been opened,"
Fuhr said. "I was just another player by the time I got there."
Ilitch bought the Red Wings, a terrible team with only 2,100
season ticket holders, for $8 million and turned it into a
three-time NHL champion, spawning the Hockeytown culture.
"I sometimes wonder how it all happened," Ilitch said. "But
we brought in colorful players and the fans related to them
immediately."
Kilrea briefly played in the NHL, scoring the first goal in Los
Angeles Kings history. He was an Islanders assistant when
LaFontaine was breaking into the league. He went on to develop
junior players in Ottawa and passed the 1,000-win mark.
"I feel like I'm representing a lot of amateur coaches who
prepare players for the NHL," Kilrea said. "I'm here mainly
because of the players who played for me."