gold star for USAHOF

Hockey

Established in 1943, and currently based in Toronto, the Hockey Hall of Fame is a quite simply a tribute to those who achieved excellence in hockey.  Criticized by some for their failure to recognize international stars, the WHA, women and the high amount of players inducted from the Original Six era, the Hockey Hall of Fame is still one of the most impressive facilities despite its lack of size.  The rich history of hockey is certainly well represented there.  For our list, we have focused on players as opposed to the builders and journalists categories; although we have included some people whom we felt could not be ignored.  Current enshrinement for players is based on receiving fourteen votes out of an eighteen member committee.  In terms of NHL players, it is based on being out of the league for three years.  We have selected one hundred figures of hockey (though honestly only a handful really has a reasonable shot) and again we encourage debate as to who you feel deserves enshrinement in Toronto.

 Until Then, keep your stick on the ice.

 Sincerely,

 The Not in Hall of Committee.

An intense workout machine whose gym work likely granted him twenty NHL seasons, Rod Brind’Amour was not just a physical anomaly, but one hell of a hockey player.
Should someone compile a list of the best all time hockey players from Sweden, Kent Nilsson often gets left out. Nilsson was a largely forgotten international star whose professional path may have made him the forgotten man. After a few years lighting up the Swedish league, Nilsson joined the WHA…
A major contributor to the Los Angeles Kings in the ’70s, Butch Goring tasted his greatest success when he was traded to the New York Islanders and became the “final piece of the puzzle”. Goring was a part of the Islander dynasty that won four consecutive Stanley Cup Championships and…
When you are taken 256th Overall in the NHL Amateur Draft, just making it to the largest North American hockey league is hard enough.  Putting that in perspective, what Finnish Goalie, Pekka Rinne accomplished was miraculous. Drafted in 2004, Rinne played a combined three NHL Games in his first three years in…
Vincent Lecavalier was saddled some lofty expectations when he entered the National Hockey League and while that level of excellence may not have been met (from the view he was seen at age 19), this is still a player who had one hell of a career.
One of the better offensive defenseman of the 1980’s, Randy Carlyle saw his career take off when he got traded to the Pittsburgh Penguins. Carlyle won the coveted Norris Trophy in 1981 and was consistently among the top points performers amongst defensemen in the 80’s. Carlyle’s career pinnacle may have…
Reggie Leach was one of the more prolific scorers in the Western Junior Hockey League. He was able to perform similar feats in the NHL, primarily when he arrived to the Philadelphia Flyers and joined the Broad Street Bullies. Interestingly, Leach’s best season may have been his most frustrating. Leach…
With 477 career NHL points (and 283 in the WHA), the professional statistics speak to a very good player but not that of the Hall of Famer. This is very much the consensus of most hockey pundits and fans alike. However, we all know of that intangible of the 1972…
It is hard to call someone with the skill set of Andy Moog unfortunate, but he did emerge as star goaltender around for the Edmonton Oilers around the same time as Grant Fuhr. As such, Moog did not receive as much playing time in Edmonton as he would have liked…
In the era of star centers, it is easy to forget about Bobby Smith. As a player who once scored more points than Wayne Gretzky to win the OMJHL scoring title, Smith entered the NHL with a bang winning the Calder Trophy with the Minnesota North Stars. Smith was a…
From the Soviet Union, Vladimir Krutov was one of the superstars of the Red Army team that terrorized International Hockey throughout the 1980’s.  The Left Wing was a superstar for the Soviets as he helped his country win two Olympic Golds, a Canada Dup Gold and five World Hockey Championships. …
A long tenured layer for the New Jersey Devils, Patrik Elias established himself as one of the top players ever to play in the Garden State. Elias would progress to a 1,025 point career and anyone who does that (especially after the dead puck era) is at least in the…
In 1999 Master Card named the all Canadian Junior Hockey Team. This team featured current Hall of Famers, Wayne Gretzky, Mario Lemieux, Guy LaFleur, Denis Potvin, Bobby Orr, and Bernie Parent. It also featured Saskatchewan native Brian Propp who lit up the lights for the Brandon Wheat Kings. Propp’s first…
A two time All Star with a 22 year professional career, Mathieu Schneider was one of the best American born blueliner in the game’s history.  Schneider was adept on the offensive side of the game as he scored over 700 Points and Internationally played for the U.S. on their 1996…
Now we have a real test of the reduced scoring totals of the new millennium as the career tallies of Markus Naslund do not approach many of Hockey Hall of Fame inductees, but were among the best of his time.
As a skill player for the Philadelphia Flyer,s the speedy and undersized Andre Lacroix was a star but not necessarily a superstar. Lacroix was one of the many who took the pay increase to join the WHA, and the more open game worked towards his style of play. Lacroix may…
Arguably the best player to come out of the hockey rich state of Minnesota, Neal Broten did not just come from the Gopher State; he played virtually his entire career there. Broten played his collegiate hockey for the University of Minnesota and played the bulk of his career for the…
Without a doubt there was a slew of phenomenal players who came out of the Soviet Union and the machine that was the Red Army.  One such great player is blueliner Alexi Kasatonov, who played for the elite national team throughout the 1980’s where he was a two time Olympic…
Although many people have laced up the skates for the New Jersey Devils, there were many who thought that Pat Verbeek may very well be one. Verbeek was a tough player who logged over 2,500 in penalty minutes and was as pesky a player as they came. Verbeek could put…
With the distinction the first ever Russian born player to be drafted in the first round by a team in the National Hockey League, Alexei Kovalev did not disappoint. Kovalev would score over 1,000 Points in the NHL and is a winner of the Stanley Cup and a Gold Medal…