As most of the regular visitors to Notinhalloffame.com are aware we are (very) slowly putting together our top 50 players of every franchise in the “Big 4” of North American sports.  After that is completed we will take a look at how each organization honors their past players and executives.  

As such, it is important to us that the New York Rangers retired the number 11 yesterday of Vic Hadfield in a pre-game ceremony.

Hadfield was a member of the Rangers’ famed “Goal A Game” Line that also consisted of Jean Ratelle and Rod Gilbert, both of who already had their number retired so this is a reunion of sorts. 

As a member of the New York Rangers, Hadfield played 13 seasons where he scored 262 Goals and 310 Assists.  He was also the captain of the team from 1971 to 1974.

This marks the tenth time that New York has retired a number.  Hadfield joins Mark Messier, who also had the #11 retired.  This has happened before as the #9 was retired for both Adam Graves and Andy Bathgate. The other retried numbers are Ed Giacomin #1, Brian Leetch #2, Harry Howell #3, Rod Gilbert #7, Jean Ratelle #19 and Mike Richter #35.

We here at Notinhalloffame.com would like to congratulate Vic Hadfield for earning this prestigious honor.

As most of the regular visitors to Notinhalloffame.com are aware we are (very) slowly putting together our top 50 players of every franchise in the “Big 4” of North American sports. After that is completed we will take a look at how each organization honors their past players and executives.

As such, it is important to note that last night the Boston Bruins retired the #16 of former forward, Rick Middleton.

After playing his first two seasons in the NHL for the New York Rangers, “Nifty” was traded to Boston prior to the 1976-77 season and it proved fruitful for the Bruins. In the 1979-80 season, Middleton would begin a five season streak of 40 Goals, which included a career high of 51 n the 1981-82 campaign. That season he would be named a Second Team All Star as well as winning the Lady Byng Trophy. Middleton would represent the Bruins in three All Star Games and also had a pair of 100 Point seasons. His overall statistical contribution to Boston would see the Right Wing score 402 Goals, 496 Assists and 898 Points.

Middleton becomes the 11th player to have his number retired. He joins Eddie Shore #2, Lionel Hitchman #3, Bobby Orr #4, Dit Clapper #5, Phil Esposito #7, Can Neely #8, John Bucyk #9, Milt Schmidt #15, Terry O’Reilly #24 and Ray Bourque #77.

We here at Notinhalloffame.com would like to congratulate Rick Middleton for earning this very prestigious honor.

As most of the regular visitors to Notinhalloffame.com are aware we are (very) slowly putting together our top 50 players of every franchise in the “Big 4” of North American sports. After that is completed we will take a look at how each organization honors their past players and executives.

As such, it is important to note the Winnipeg Jets Hall of Fame has announced that they will be inducting former players, Lars-Erik Sjoberg and Ab McDonald to their institution at their February 26 home game.

Sjorberg joined the Jets after playing in his native Sweden for various teams and twice at the Olympics (1968 & 1972). The Defenceman would be 30 when he arrived in Manitoba and he proved himself to be a good playmaker accruing 40 or more Assists in his first four years in the WHA. In the 1977-78 season Sjoberg would win the Dennis A. Murphy Trophy as the league’s best blueliner and he would help the team win three Avco Cups (1976, 1978 & 1979). When the team joined the National Hockey League, Sjoberg would become the first Jets Captain in the NHL. He would retire after the 1979-80 season.

Ab McDonald was a three time Stanley Cup Champion and five time Al Star who played fourteen years in the NHL before he joined the Jets in their inaugural season. McDonald was named the first Team Captain and he was with the team for two years scoring 70 Points with the team.

We do want to point out that while the Jets Hall of Fame includes players from the first incarnation, the current one does not own the history of the franchise hence when we do our all-time 50 for this team we have to base it on the beginning as the Atlanta Thrashers.

We here at Notinhalloffame.com would like to congratulate Lars-Erik Sjoberg and Ab McDonald for earning this very impressive honor.

It was announced that Willie Naulls passed away at the age of 84. He had been battling Churg-Strauss syndrome, a rare immunological condition.

Naulls played collegiately at UCLA under Hall of Fame Coach, John Wooden where he was a Second Team All-American in his final season. The St. Louis Hawks in the Second Round of the 1956 Draft would choose the big man but he would only play 19 Games there before being traded to the New York Knicks, which was a much better fit.

In New York, Naulls would find himself as the starting Small Forward and he would be chosen for four All Star Games and he would have five seasons where he averaged over 10 Rebounds per Game and three where he had over 20 Points per Game. He would be traded in 1963 to the San Francisco Warriors and after that he was sold to the Boston Celtics where he was a member of three consecutive Championship Teams (1964-66)

Naulls is ranked #95 on our Notinhalloffame.com list of those to consider for the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame.

We here at Notinhalloffame.com would like to extend our condolences to the friends, of Willie Naulls at this time.