It's the Old Boys Network, is what it is. David Poile, who is actually on the selection committee, is part of this year's class (he recused himself from voting) despite never winning a championship as a GM. I'm not saying Poile is undeserving, but if he's in, then Eddie Johnston absolutely should be in. The Penguins don't exist without Johnston, who is the definition of a hockey lifer and builder.

But back to Mogilny and the crime of keeping him out. Bettman and every single member of the 18-person selection committee should be ashamed. The committee is chaired by former NHL star Mike Gartner and includes a mix of media members, ex-players and executives: David Branch, Brian Burke, Cassie Campbell-Pascall, Mark Chipman, Marc de Foy, Ron Francis, Cammi Granato, Anders Hedberg, Jari Kurri, Igor Larionov, Pierre McGuire, Bob McKenzie, Scott Morrison, Mike Murphy, Poile, Luc Robitaille and Joe Sakic.

Burke, incidentally, was one of the few who rushed to Campbell's defense after the email scandal. These people should be made to publicly defend their choices. They actually left a male player vacancy in this year's class, one that Mogilny should have filled.

A candidate needs 14 votes to get in. Who's keeping Mogilny out? Who voted against him? Was he even nominated by one of the members? Has another former Soviet star, Larionov, nominated Mogilny and aggressively pushed his candidacy? These are the kinds of questions that will go unanswered. Unlike voters in other sports, hockey voters are protected by a vow of silence and lack of transparency.

One could make an argument that Mogilny should be enshrined simply for being the first Soviet defector, at a time when it was incredibly dangerous to flee. He despised his dictator coach, Viktor Tikhonov, on the Soviet national teams and hated the military lifestyle players were forced to lead. He had the guts to leave. A rush of legendary Soviet players followed.

But Mogilny also was a must-see player, one who put up 473 goals and 1,032 points in just 990 NHL games, won a Cup, became the first Soviet team captain in NHL history and produced an iconic 76-goal season, topped only by Wayne Gretzky, Mario Lemieux and Brett Hull.

Mogilny also had one of the great quotes in NHL history, saying this of the abhorrent Tikhonov: "Only his wife and his dog like him, and I do not understand how they do."

Back in 2015, Mogilny's former Soviet linemate, Sergei Fedorov, said this to Ken Campbell of The Hockey News on Mogilny's HOF candidacy: "He deserves that honor. 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."

What's truly amazing is that Mogilny is still waiting and Colin Campbell is in.

What a disgrace.

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