Mullen and Savard Join the Hockey Hall of Fame

Winger Joe Mullen, the top U.S.-born scorer in NHL history, doesn’t consider himself a role model. But it’s impossible to think anything else of the New Yorker who grew up in the Hell’s Kitchen neighborhood and on Monday was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame.

“I didn’t go out and say, ‘I paved the way for other Americans,’ ” said Mullen, who scored 502 goals and 1,063 points in 16 NHL seasons. “But if people say I did, that’s fine with me. Any time you can give kids hope or pave the way, that’s great.”

Center Denis Savard, whose “Spinorama” move delighted fans for 17 seasons, was also honored Monday. He lamented the defenses that stifle finesse players and said the NHL should return to smaller ice surfaces like those in Boston Garden and Chicago Stadium.

“The game has changed. It used to be a lot more wide-open,” said Savard, who scored 473 goals and 1,338 points. “With access to videos, coaches have improved over the years. . . . I think things happen quicker on smaller rinks.”

Walter Bush, Jr., a longtime hockey executive at the amateur and NHL levels and a vice president of the International Ice Hockey Federation, was inducted as a builder.