TORONTO, Ontario, 13 June 2003 — Hockey superstar Wayne Gretzky will embrace his goaltender from the Edmonton Oilers’ dynasty in the Hockey Hall of Fame.
Canadian Grant Fuhr, a first-time candidate, and centre Pat Lafontaine were the only players elected on Wednesday.
Two members of the non-playing staff - Detroit Red Wings owner Mike Illitch and long-time junior coach Brian Kilrea - join Fuhr and Lafontaine in the National Hockey League’s class of 2003.
Dino Ciccarelli and Glenn Anderson, another former Oiler, were not elected.
After winning five Stanley Cups with the Oilers and ranking sixth on the all-time list with 403 career wins, Fuhr was considered a virtual automatic selection in his first year of eligibility.
“Nothing is a shoo-in and I didn’t think about it too much, but it’s really special,” Fuhr said.
Fuhr was the starting goaltender on the Oilers teams that won four Stanley Cup titles in a five-year span (1984, 1985, 1987, 1988).
Gretzky and Jari Kurri were among the star players and Glen Sather was the coach.
When the Oilers won their last title in 1990, Fuhr served a suspension for admitting to drug use and lost his starting job to Bill Ranford.
A six-time All-Star, Fuhr was a first-round pick of the Oilers in 1981 and played 19 years in the NHL with Edmonton, Toronto Maple Leafs, Buffalo Sabres, Los Angeles Kings, St. Louis Blues and Calgary Flames.
Only five goaltenders - Patrick Roy with 551 wins, Terry Sawchuk, Jacques Plante, Tony Esposito and Glenn Hall have more career wins.
Lafontaine, of the United States, had his career cut short by post-concussion syndrome after recording 468 goals and 1,013 points in 865 NHL games.
The third overall pick in the 1983 draft, Lafontaine played the first eight years with the New York Islanders.
In his first season, the Isles attempted to win their fifth straight Stanley Cup, but lost to Edmonton.
