Since the Soviet Union has not existed for decades, the record for most games played by a Soviet-born Defenseman (1,085) will never be broken.  Alexei Zhitnik is that record holder, and 712 of those games were as a Buffalo Sabre.

Alexei Zhitnik holds the distinction of being the first defenseman born in the former Soviet Union to play over 1,000 Games in the NHL.  Early in his career Zhitnik was a member of the famed Red Army and he would join his “comrades” to North America.  Zhitnik would go to two All-Star games and internationally would help the Unified Team win the Gold Medal at the Olympics in 1992.  He would win a Silver Medal with Russia in 1998.