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.
Darryl Sydor was never going to be considered the top blueliner for your team, but for years, he was an upper-echelon player for multiple National Hockey League teams. Sydor was a two-time All-Star and assisted two teams (Dallas & Tampa Bay) to win the Stanley Cup. Over a career that…
Evgeni Nabokov took his time to enter North America after being a late-round draft pick by the San Jose Sharks in 1994. Six years later, the Goalie would make his debut with the San Jose Sharks and is, without doubt, the best backstop in franchise history.
As one of the rare players in NHL history who has netted 60 Goals in a season, you would think that Dennis Maruk would have received more recognition in his career. Actually, he still is.
Claude Lemieux was known for being a playoff superstar, which he was! He is currently fourth all-time in Playoff Games, and he scored 158 Points in those postseason contests. Lemieux is one of only ten players to have captured the Stanley Cup with three different teams (Montreal, New Jersey, and…
One of the more successful Finnish players in professional hockey history, Kimmo Timonen, is one of the few players in the National Hockey League to accrue over 1,100 Games. A Stay-at-home blueliner, Timonen represented Finland internationally multiple times, which resulted in four Olympic medals. Timonen is also a Stanley Cup…
During the heyday of Pierre Larouche, few hockey players had a more gifted scoring touch. Larouche was (at the time) the youngest player to net 50 goals per season and was the first to score 50 goals a season for two different teams. Scoring was never a problem for him,…
Ron Ellis spent his entire professional career with the Toronto Maple Leafs, where, as one of the team's young guns, he helped the Buds win the 1967 Stanley Cup. Before that, Ellis established himself as the runner-up to the Calder Trophy in the 1964-65 season, and he was known in…
An All-Star four times over his career, Bob Nevin provided solid two-way hockey in his 1,100-plus games in the NHL. After helping the Toronto Maple Leafs win two Stanley Cups in 1961 and 1962, he was traded to the New York Rangers, where he would accrue five 20 Goal seasons,…
The sniper of the fabled Triple Crown Line, Charlie Simmer, scored an impressive 56 goals two seasons in a row for the Los Angeles Kings. Simmer was definitely at his best with L.A., but it wasn’t long before serious injury after serious injury would take their toll. Simmer’s peak would…
Was Kevin Stevens a superstar forward in the shadow of Mario Lemieux, or was he only a superstar because of Lemieux? Many asked that question as Kevin Stevens topped over 100 points twice and was among the league leaders. The answer may have been somewhere in between. Stevens may not…
Before Tiger Woods jumped upon the golf world, the most famous sports feline was that of Dave “Tiger” Williams. The rugged enforcer set the career mark for most penalty minutes of all time, and chances are if you saw a game with Tiger in it, he would be watching the…
Rene Robert is best known in hockey for his time with the Buffalo Sabers, where he was a member of the famed “French Connection” Line with Gilbert Perreault and Rick Martin. Robert helped Buffalo reach the 1975 Stanley Cup Finals (they would lose to Philadelphia), and that was the season…
A Defenceman with significant offensive skill, Dave Babych had five consecutive seasons where he accumulated 55 Points or more. Babych was with the Winnipeg Jets for the first of those four seasons, and the fifth would see him traded mid-way through to the Hartford Whalers. That year, he finished sixth…
It might surprise you to learn that Carol Vadnais is a six-time All-Star.
Ron Greschner played 984 Games in the National Hockey League, all of which were with the New York Rangers. While the Blueshirts were not always a star team when Greschner was there, the popular Ranger was more than capable of showcasing his exceptional skill against one in the league. Greschner…
Before we continue, can we state how much we love the hockey name of “Moose Vasko”? It is awesome, right? Let’s continue…
Seeing limited action with the San Jose Sharks, Miikka Kiprusoff was traded to the Calgary Flames where he would be a sensation for the team leading the NHL in Save Percentage in Goals Against Average finishing second in the Vezina in the 2003/04. The NHL Lockout prevented him from repeating…
Along with Ulf Nilsson, Anders Hedberg became one of the first European stars in North America when the pair joined the Winnipeg Jets of the World Hockey Association. Hedberg would be named the Lou Kaplan Trophy winner as the WHA’s version of the rookie of the year and was a…
From the famous Boucher hockey family (two of his brothers, Frank and George, are in the Hockey Hall of Fame), Billy Boucher was a very good player in his own right and won a Stanley Cup championship in 1924 with the Montreal Canadiens. Bucher debuted in Montreal in the 1921/22…
While Glenn “Chico” Resch was only part of the first New York Islanders Stanley Cup in their dynasty (albeit in a backup role to Billy Smith) his role in building up that team cannot be discounted.
