The winner of the 1959 Hart Trophy winner was one of the most complete forwards of his era, though had the misfortune of playing of having his peak while playing with below average New York Rangers squads. Bathgate was constantly in the top ten in scoring and did tie for the lead in 1962, losing out on the Art Ross to Bobby Hull who had more goals. However, Bathgate did win the assists title twice in the NHL. A spectacular stickhandler wick a devastatingly accurate slap shot, Bathgate could implore a physical game when needed, though was an outspoken advocate against violence for violence’s sake in the sport.

At the risk of breaking the illusion to many young donut fans, there really WAS a Tim Horton, and he was one hell of a Hockey player. Horton entered the NHL in the mid 50’s and immediately made an impact being named to the Second Team All Star squad in his second full season. A devastating collision with the New York Rangers’ Bill Gadsby slowed his career a bit, but when he returned to form, he was still a dominant force on the blue line.

An accomplished Goalie in his own right, Joseph Cattarinich would become known not only for his business acumen while running the Montreal Canadians, but also for his kindness and generosity. Along with Leo Dandurand and Louis Letourneau, he bought the Habs in 1921 and though he did not get the same credit that Danduran received, was part of an ownership group that made the Montreal Canadians a dominant power in the game of Hockey. He was a part owner of the franchise for fourteen years, though is not enough for a Hall of Fame induction? If it was any other team other than the Canadians, it probably wouldn’t be.      

Much like Bill Wirtz’ induction, we are guessing that Toronto fans felt the same way about the performance of Harold Ballard AFTER he was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame. Ballard was a longtime supporter of Hockey on multiple levels and did a lot financially for amateur hockey teams in the Toronto area for years. In the early 60’s, along with Stafford Smythe and John Bassett Sr., Harold Ballard became the owner of the Toronto Maple Leafs.   The Leafs would dominate the 60’s, and Ballard would see his team win three Stanley Cups under his partial ownership. With the buying out of Bassett and the death of Smythe, Ballard would become the sole owner of the team, and though they did not win a cup in the 70’s, were still competitive. By the 80’s though, Harold became a caricature of himself, and was the leader of a floundering team. He was never as disliked as Wirtz was in the end, but many people in Toronto questioned a lot more than Ballard’s Hall of Fame induction in the 1980’s.