Red Wings Share Their Memories of Fedorov

Patrick Kane is unique among Detroit Red Wings players in that he can speak of watching Sergei Fedorov up close. The beginning of his NHL career intersected with the final years of Fedorov’s NHL tenure.

“He just seemed like he was on a different level,” Kane said. “Skating-wise, kind of like, you look at (Connor) McDavid now and the way he’s skating past guys. That’s kind of how Fedorov did it.”

What a night, 26 Dec 1996, Sergei Fedorov scores 5. Great call by Dave Strader and Mickey Redmond. The Russian 5 were unstoppable some nights.https://t.co/1LLPR2YH05

— Just another freak in the Freak Kingdom (@Dimitri_Kissov) December 27, 2025

Fedorov will be moving into iconic status alongside the legendary Red Wings players on Monday. His No. 91 will be honored, hoisted to a place of honor in the Little Caesars Arena rafters alongside the club’s other retired jersey numbers before Detroit’s game against the Carolina Hurricanes.

“It’ll definitely be fun to be a part of the ceremony,” Kane said.

Fedorov was awarded the Hart and Selke Trophies in 1993-94. He remains the only player in NHL history to win both awards in the same season.

For the vast majority of Red Wings players, they’ve seen more of Fedorov on YouTube than in person.

“I was so young. I don’t have any specific ones,” Red Wings center Andrew Copp said of Fedorov memories. “He had a certain aura about him. I think that’s probably the first thing that I think of when I think of Fedorov.”

Red Wings Fedorov Could Do It All

As much as they marvel at the incredible skill set that Fedorov possessed, it was his ability to be a complete player that the current Red Wings find even more impressive.

“His game matured over the years,” Kane said. “Obviously, when I watched him as a kid, he was flashy, had the flair, had the white skates, and was a very entertaining player to watch.

“And then, as his career went on, he seemed to become like a guy that could be a shutdown center. A guy that could play in all different roles.”

Sergei Fedorov did it all for the Detroit Red Wings#LGRW

pic.twitter.com/xvGGyePBO5

— Gershon Rabinowitz (@GershOnline) December 29, 2025

Naturally, as a coach, it was Fedorov’s versatility that Detroit coach Todd McLellan would love to be able to add to his lineup today.

“(Detroit coach) Scotty (Bowman) put him on defense, and it worked,” McLellan said. “He would play center, he’d play wing, he’d play low on the power play, he’d play the flank, he could command it from the top.

“He’d go out and penalty kill and end up anywhere on the ice, and he’d be able to get the job done. And then all the other skills, and five-goal games and stuff like that. You have memories of that. But just for me, I appreciate him, maybe because I’m a coach, as the utility-type player he was.

“How many different spots he could impact a game.”