A long-time defenseman in the NHL, Roman Hamrlik has appeared on many power plays and sent numerous attackers into the boards. The former first overall pick has not disappointed with a long and productive career, scoring 638 Points. The three-time All-Star, though, likely does not have the stat accumulation for the Hall of Fame, but throughout his career, he was always one of the better blue-liners in hockey.

Considering that the highest season points output for Ray Whitney is 83, it is incredible that he became the 79th player in NHL history to hit the 1,000 mark in a career.  This shows that he is very durable, underrated as many have claimed, and as many have stated, an asset on the NHL roster. The problem was that at no point in his career was he good enough for a Canadian Olympic or World Cup roster. Whitney was a good player, but if he was not good enough throughout his career to represent Canada at the world’s biggest tournament, how can he be a legitimate Hall of Famer?  Anyone with over 1,000 NHL career points might be discussed.

A long-tenured player 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 conversation for the Hall of Fame. Just how deep that conversation goes is yet to be determined.

While Nikolai Khabibulin actually has a losing won/loss record in the NHL, nobody can say that he did not have a very good career in the National Hockey League.  The “Bulin Wall” may never have been considered the top goaltender in the league (or maybe even in the top three), but he was always better than most of his peers and did backstop the Lightning to a Stanley Cup, becoming the first Russian to do so. Throw in the fact that he also had an excellent performance leading the Russians to the Olympic Gold Medal, and you have the makings of a fringe candidate for the Hall of Fame.