John Ziegler was a controversial figure for some (as is any President of one of the four major North American sports), but it can be easily argued that the NHL was in a better place in 1992 when he resigned than from the year he took over in 1977. He navigated the tough waters of the NHL/WHA merger, the dawn of Soviet players in the NHL and tougher suspensions. His end was not the prettiest, but wouldn’t anybody rather have him still in control over Gary Bettman?

Another key part of the Montreal Canadians dynasty of the 60’s, Jacques Laperriere brought a stable presence on the Habs blue line. He was a player who rarely made mistakes and was able to position himself perfectly to stifle attackers and strip them of the puck. He was not a goal scorer, but had respectable assist totals and was the ignition for many counter attacks. Laperriere won the Norris Trophy in 1966 and was a post season All Star four times. Most importantly, he hoisted the Stanley Cup over his head five times as a player and was a big reason those squads were able to do so.

Ed Giacomin may not have won a Stanley Cup during his career, but for a five year period he was one of the top Goaltenders in the National Hockey League. For five consecutive seasons, he was either a First or Second Team All Star and a major reason that the New York Rangers were a top contender. He won the Vezina Trophy in 1971 and three times led the NHL in wins. Giacomin’s playoff performances were always good, so he could not be blamed for not getting the Blueshirts over the hump. His best seasons also took place at the time of behemoth squads from Boston and Montreal which made hockey’s Holy Grail significantly harder to come by. The failure to win a Cup is likely why he waited a bit to get in the Hall of Fame where by Gerry Cheevers (who won twice in Boston, but had inferior statistics) got in quickly. Make no mistake how important winning a Cup is for HOF induction.

A severe diabetic, many thought for certain that Bobby Clarke would not have much of a career in the National Hockey League. Clarke won the Bill Masteron Trophy in 1972 for his perseverance in becoming a star for the Philadelphia Flyers. Often though, the awarding of the Masterton Trophy usually caps a career; for Bobby Clarke it was just the beginning.