TORONTO (June 26th, 2018) – Lanny McDonald, Chairman of the Hockey Hall of Fame announced today that six individuals have been elected to Hockey Hall of Fame Honoured Membership, four in the Player Category and two in the Builder Category. The vote took place today at the annual meeting of the Selection Committee in Toronto.

“The Hockey Hall of Fame is proud to welcome these hockey legends as Honoured Members,” said Lanny McDonald. “Their contributions to the game of hockey are well documented and their election to the Hockey Hall of Fame is richly deserved.”

In the Builder Category, Gary Bettman was elected. After being named NHL Commissioner in 1993, Bettman has led the NHL to unprecedented financial growth with league revenues increasing by over $3.5 billion (USF) during his tenure. Bettman also oversaw the league grow from 24 to 31 franchises and NHL attendance by 7 million fans per year.

“This is not something I was focused on and I’m speechless and grateful to be included with this group,” said Bettman. “I’m particularly honoured to be part of a class that includes Willie O’Ree.”

Willie O’Ree was also elected in the Builder Category. The native of Fredericton, New Brunswick split his hockey between his home province and Quebec. From there he went to Springfield and was called up to the Boston Bruins on January 18, 1958, making him the first black player in NHL history. After a long professional minor league career, O’Ree retired in 1979 at the age of 43. He has spent the past 20 years as an NHL ambassador and in 2008 received the Order of Canada for his work growing the game around the world.

“This honour would not be possible if I had not rejoined the league in 1996,” said O’Ree. “I was given a second wind to give back to the game and I am honoured to be recognized.”

In the player category, goaltender Martin Brodeur spent 20 NHL seasons with the New Jersey Devils, where he owns or shares 12 NHL records. The three-time Stanley Cup Champion is one of only two goaltenders to play in over 1,000 NHL games. On the international front, Brodeur was also part of two gold medal winning Olympic teams – in 2002 and 2010.

“As a player you get to meet Hall of Fame members and now to have my name in the same sentence makes me speechless,” said Brodeur. “I was fortunate to play on great teams that allowed me to play with my own personality, which is so important to a goaltender.”

Jayna Hefford was born in Trenton, ON and as a youth set scoring records in Kingston minor hockey that have never been surpassed – by either a male or female hockey player. After a stellar career at the University of Toronto, Hefford went on to star in women’s hockey, both at the CWHL and international levels. For Canada, she was a member of seven IIHL gold medal teams and also won four gold medals at the Olympic Games.

“I have chills and am very proud,” said Hefford. “I am happy for this incredible honour and especially want to share it with my family.”

Martin St. Louis went from not being drafted by any NHL team, to a 17-year NHL career, playing 1134 regular season games and registering 1033 points. A five-time NHL All-Star, St. Louis won the Stanley Cup with Tampa in 2003-04 and was on Canada’s gold medal Olympic team in 2014. A seven time NHL Award winner, he ended his career as only the 6^th undrafted NHL player with 1,000 career points.

“Hockey is all about the people who have supported you over the years – both your teammates and your family,” said St. Louis. “I tried to be the best player I could be every day and am proud of all of my NHL memories.”

Alexander Yakushev came into the North American hockey spotlight during the 1972 Summit Series and his play established him as one of the top players in the world. By that time Yakushev was already established in international hockey as a starring member of Spartak Moskva for almost a decade. Elected to the IIHF Hall of Fame in 2003, his accomplishments also include Olympic gold medals in 1972 and 1976.

The 2018 Induction Celebration will be held on Monday, November 12^th at the Hockey Hall of Fame in Toronto. For more information regarding the 2018 Induction Weekend/Celebration, visit http://www.hhof.com.

Established in 1943, the Hockey Hall of Fame’s (“HHOF”) mandate is to recognize and honour the achievements of players, builders and officials who bring special distinction to the game of hockey, and to collect, preserve, research and exhibit objects, images and resource materials connected with the game as it is played in Canada and throughout the world. As a non-profit corporation and a registered charity under the Income Tax Act, HHOF owns and operates a museum and place of entertainment offering state-of-the-art exhibits, multimedia presentations and educational programming from its premises at Brookfield Place, Toronto, Canada.

MARTIN BRODEUR

• Born May 6, 1972 in Montreal, Quebec
• Following in his Dad’s footsteps he became a goalie at a young age
• 1988, played for Montreal Bourassa Canadien Quebec Midget AAA
• 1989, selected 3rd round by the Verdun Jr Canadiens QMJHL
• Played 3 years with St Hyacinthe Lasers QMJHL -1989-92
• 1990, named to QMJHL All-Rookie Team
• 1990, selected 1st round by the New Jersey Devils (NHL)
• 1992, selected to QMJHL 2^nd All Star team
• Called up to New Jersey late in the 1991-92 season, played one game in playoffs
• 1992-93, played in Utica with the Devils farm club (AHL)
• Spent the next 20 seasons as #30 for the New Jersey Devils
• 1994, Named to the NHL All Rookie Team
• 1994, won Calder Trophy as NHL rookie of the year
• Owns or shares 12 NHL records
• Only goalie in history of the game to score a game winning goal
• Has 2 goals in regular season and 1 in the playoffs
• 4 time Vezina Trophy winner as league’s best goalie
• 5 time William Jennings Trophy winners as best goals against for the season
• 4 time Prince of Wales Trophy winner as Eastern Division Champion
• 3 time Stanley Cup winner 1995, 2000, 2003
• One of only 2 goalies to play in over 1000 NHL games
• Recorded 70+ games 12 times, including 10 seasons in a row
• Concluded his career with the St Louis Blues
• Finished his career with 691 wins and 125 shutouts
• Retired as a player January 30, 2015 remained on with Blues staff
• Represented his country Canada 8 times throughout his career
• Played in the ’98, ’02, ’06 and ‘10 Olympics; his father played in the ’56 Olympics
• Won 2 Olympic Gold medals ’02 and ‘10
• Won the 2004 World Cup of Hockey
• Won 2 silver medals at World Championships
• 2014, became Special Assistant to the General Manager of St Louis Blues
• 2015, Assistant General Manager of the St Louis Blue
• 2016, Goaltending coach for the St Louis Blues
• 2017, part of Team Canada staff from Karjala Cup, Spengler Cup
• Named to management team of Team Canada ’18 Olympic Games
• 2018, General Manager of Team Canada World Championships
• Appeared on NHL ’14 video game, only goalie to do so
• 2016, Statue unveiled in front of Prudential Center in New Jersey
• 2016, Number 30 retired by the New Jersey Devils
• 2017, Named as one of the Top 100 NHL players of all time

JAYNA HEFFORD

• Born in Trenton, Ontario, Canada on May 14, 1977
• Hometown is Kingston, Ontario, Canada
• Hefford recorded 234 goals and 300 points during a Pee Wee hockey season
• No player, male or female, ever registered more goals and points in Kingston minor hockey
• In 449 games with Kingston Kodiak minor hockey teams she scored 850 goals and more than 1,300 points
• Winner of three Gold medals and four Silver medals at the OWHA Provincial Championships (1988 – 1996)
• Played for Ontario at the U18 Nationals winning a Gold medal (1993)
• Played with the Ottawa Regional Select team in a series against the USA U18 National team (1995)
• Played for Ontario at the Canada Winter Games winning a Gold medal (1995)
• Played with the OWIAA University of Toronto Varsity Blues and COWHL Mississauga Chiefs (1996-97)
• OWIAA Rookie of the Year and led league in scoring (1996-97)
• Played with the NWHL/CWHL Brampton Thunder (1998-99 to 2012-13)
• Helped the Brampton Thunder win the first CWHL championship (200708)
• Hefford won the Angela James Bowl as the CWHL’s leading scorer (200809)
• Led the league in scoring four times prior to the creation of the Angela James Bowl
• Scored 20 + goals during the regular season, eleven times
• Scored 30 + goals during the regular season, four times
• Scored 40 + goals during the regular season, two times
• Led the league in goals during the regular season seven times
• Hefford played 17 years with Canada’s National Women’s Team
• Seven IIHF Ice Hockey Women’s World Championship Gold medals (1997, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2004, 2007, 2012)
• Five IIHF Ice Hockey Women’s World Championship Silver medals (2005, 2008, 2009, 2011, 2013)
• Hefford was named Top Forward IIHF Ice Hockey Women’s World Championship (2004, 2005)
• Hefford was named to the Media All-Star team at the IIHF Ice Hockey Women’s World Championship (2004)
• Four Olympic Gold medals in four consecutive Olympic Games (2002, 2006, 2010, 2014)
• One Olympic Silver medal (1998)
• Scored the Gold medal game winning goal on a forehand-to-backhand deke (2002)
• Announced her retirement as a player on September 10, 2015
• At the time of her retirement, ranked second in all-time games played (267), goals (157) and points (291) for Canada
• Wore her sweater out on one side like Wayne Gretzky
• Co-owner of the Lori Dupuis & Jayna Hefford Hockey School in Kingston, Ontario since 1998
• Kingston Athlete of the Year (1999)
• Inducted into Brampton (Ontario) Sports Hall of Fame as an Athlete (2002)

MARTIN ST-LOUIS

• Born June 18, 1975 in Laval, Quebec
• Played 1 season with Hawkesbury Hawks of CJHL & was undrafted in QMJHL
• Recruited by University of Vermont & played 4 seasons in NCAA
• Named to ECAC All-Rookie Team in 1993-94 & ECAC Player of Year in 1994-95
• Named All-ECAC 1st Team & 1st Team All-American in 1995, 1996 & 1997
• Led NCAA in scoring with 85 points & Vermont won first ECAC title in 1995-96
• Was not selected in the NHL Entry Draft
• Signed with Cleveland Lumberjacks for the 1997-98 IHL season
• Signed by Calgary Flames on Feb. 18, 1998 & played with Saint John in AHL
• Made NHL debut on October 9, 1998 with Calgary Flames
• Played parts of two seasons with Calgary Flames (1998-2000)
• Signed by Tampa Bay Lightning & played 13 seasons (2000-14)
• Played 2004-05 season for HC Lausanne in Switzerland (NHL season cancelled)
• Won Stanley Cup as a member of Tampa Bay Lightning in 2003-04
• Scored six 30 goals seasons, including career-high 43 goals in 2006-07
• Also recorded career-high 102 points in 2006-07
• Participated in six NHL All-Star Games
• Named a 1st Team All-Star in 2003-04
• Named a 2nd Team All-Star four times in 2007, 2010, 2011 & 2013
• Led the NHL in scoring twice to win the Art Ross Trophy in 2004 & 2013
• Recipient of the Lester B. Pearson Award & Hart Memorial Trophy in 2003-04
• Eighth player in history to win Stanley Cup, Art Ross & Hart in same season
• Recipient of the Lady Byng Memorial Trophy three times in 2010, 2011 & 2013
• Captain of the Tampa Bay Lightning in 2013-14 season
• Holds Tampa Bay team records with 588 career assists and 953 career points
• Traded to the New York Rangers on March 5, 2014 & played 2 seasons (2014-15)
• Led Rangers to 2014 Stanley Cup Final, losing to Los Angeles Kings
• Became just 6th undrafted NHL player to record 1,000 career NHL points
• Officially announced retirement from NHL on July 2, 2015
• Recorded career NHL regular season totals of 1,134gp, 391g, 642a & 1,033 points
• Recorded career NHL playoff totals of 107gp, 42g, 48a & 90 points
• Member of Canada at 2004 World Cup of Hockey, winning the tournament
• Member of Canada at two Olympic Games, winning gold medal in 2014
• Won silver medal for Canada at 2008 & 2009 World Championships
• Named to World Championship All-Star Team in 2009
• In 2007, inducted into University of Vermont's Athletic Hall of Fame
• In 2012, presented with University of Vermont's Alumni Achievement Award
• In 2016, jersey number '8' was retired by the University of Vermont
• In 2017, jersey number '26' was retired by Tampa Bay Lightning

ALEXANDER YAKUSHEV

• Born January 2, 1947 in Balashikha (Moscow region), Soviet Union (Russia).
• Played parts of 17 seasons (1963-64 to 1979-80) with HC Spartak Moscow
• Scored 50 goals in 42 games during the 1968-69 Soviet league season and led the Soviet league in regular season scoring
• Soviet league champion in 1966-67, 1968-69 and 1975-76
• Soviet league championship finalist in 1964-65, 1965-66, 1967-68, 196970, 1972-73
• Soviet league championship third place in 1971-72, 1974-75, 1978-79, 1979-80
• Played in the 1975-76 (Soviet Wings), 1977-78 (HC Spartak Moscow) Super Series vs NHL teams
• Soviet league All-Star Team in 1975-76
• Captain of Spartak Moscow in 1976-77
• Played three seasons (1980-81 to 1982-83) with Kapfenberger SV in Austria to finish his career
• Member of Soviet Union at the 1967, 1969, 1970, 1973, 1974, 1975, 1978, 1979 IIHF Men’s World Championship, winning Gold Medals
• Member of Soviet Union at the 1972, 1976 IIHF Men’s World Championship, winning Silver Medal
• Member of Soviet Union at the 1977 IIHF Men’s World Championship, winning Bronze Medal
• World Championship All-Star Team 1974 and 1975
• World Championship Best Forward in 1975
• Member of Soviet Union at the 1972 and 1976 Olympic Winter Games, winning Gold Medals
• Dominant player for the Soviet national team at the 1972 and 1974 Summit Series
• Led the Soviet national team in scoring at the 1972 Summit Series vs. Canada, featuring NHL players with 8gp, 7g, 4a, & 11 points and at the 1974 Summit Series vs. Canada, featuring WHA players with 7 gp, 5g, 3a & 8 points
• Four times out of eight games he was named the Soviet national team’s MVP of the game at the 1972 Summit Series
• Member of Soviet Union at the Izvestia Tournament, winning the Gold Medal ten times
• Played 201 games for the Soviet Union national team
• Head Coach of HC Spartak Moscow, 1989-90 to 1992-93
• Head Coach of EK Zell am See (Austria 2nd Division), 1993-94
• Head Coach of HC Ambri-Piotta (Switzerland), 1994-95 to 1996-97
• Head Coach of HC Spartak Moscow, 1997-98 to 1998-99
• Head Coach of HC Spartak Moscow (Russia 2nd Division), 1999-2000
• Head Coach of Vityaz Chekhov (KHL), 2009-10
• Head Coach of Russia, 1998-99, 1999-2000, 2002-03
• Team Manager of Russia at IIHF U20 Hockey Championship, 2014-15, winning Silver Medal
• Recorded career Soviet league regular season totals of 568gp & 339g
• Recorded career Austrian league regular and playoff season totals of 109gp, 108g, 145a & 253 points
• Recorded career Soviet national team totals of 201gp & 145 g
• Named as USSR Merited Sports Master in 1970
• Inducted into the Player category of the IIHF Hall of Fame in 2003

GARY BETTMAN

• Born in Queens, New York, USA on June 2, 1952
• Hired as NHL Commissioner in December, 1992 starting in that capacity officially in February 1, 1993
• First formal Stanley Cup presentation on June 9, 1993
• NHL franchises have increased from 24 to 31 during his tenure with a possible 32^nd franchise pending
• Realignment of franchises during league expansion over tenure
• Cost of an NHL expansion franchise has increased from $50,000,000 (1992-93) to $500,000,000 (2017-18)
• Number of players increased from 787 (1992-93) to 1000 + (2017-18)
• Regular season attendance has increased from 14,158,177 (1992-93) to 22,000,000 + (2017-18)
• NHL revenues have gone from $732 million (1993-94) to $4.54 billion (2017-18)
• NHL player salaries have increased from $467,000 (1992-93) to $3,012,785 million (2015-16)
• Television agreement with NBC that airs many games including every playoff game - $2 billion, ten year
• Television agreement with Sportsnet – $5.2 billion, 10 years
• Total NHL revenue has increased from $400,000,000 (1992-93) to $4.5 billion (2017-18)
• Stabilization of the labour situation that includes a salary cap and revenue sharing with the NHLPA
• Introduction of Outdoor Games
• 71,000 + fans attended the first Winter Classic in Buffalo, NY, USA (2008)
• NHL regular season games being played outside of Canada and the USA
• Increased international NHL broadcasts
• Information availability through platforms such as NHL.com and social media
• Participation in the Winter Olympic Games (1998, 2002, 2006, 2010 and 2014)
• Renewed World Cup of Hockey to further expand the NHL’s commitment to international competition and build upon the Canada Cup legacy
• Canadian Currency Assistance Program
• Support of the Hockey Hall of Fame as a corporate partner and also in the curatorial role for the Stanley Cup and the other NHL trophies
• Introduction of the Department of Player Safety
• Video review and the Situation Room
• Evolution of the NHL game that includes the introduction of the two Referee system, three on three overtime, removal of the centre ice red line, protective netting between the playing area and spectator area, NHL entry Draft lottery, hybrid icing and the coaches’ challenge
• Creating a role for an Ice Making expert to allow for a better quality of ice throughout the NHL
• Charitable growth initiatives and participation through Hockey is For Everyone, Hockey Fights Cancer, Hockey Talks, NHL Green and You Can Play and RISE

WILLIE O’REE

• Born on October 15, 1935 in Fredericton, New Brunswick
• Played two seasons of junior hockey for Fredericton Jr. Capitals (1951-53)
• Played parts of two seasons of senior hockey for Fredericton Capitals (1952-54)
• Played one season of junior hockey for Quebec Frontenacs (1954-55)
• Played one season of junior hockey for Kitchener Canucks (1955-56)
• Suffered serious eye injury from slap shot losing 90% of vision in right eye at age 19 (hid the injury throughout his playing career)
• Played three seasons of senior hockey for Quebec Aces of QHL (1956-59)
• Called-up by Boston Bruins & joined the AHL's Springfield Indians for 6 games
• Made NHL debut with Boston Bruins on January 18, 1958
• Became the first black player in NHL history (next was Mike Marson in 1974)
• Played two games for Boston Bruins in 1957-58
• Played three seasons in EPHL with Kingston & Hull-Ottawa (1959-62)
• Played 43 games for Boston Bruins in 1960-61
• Traded to Montreal Canadiens in June, 1961
• Traded to Los Angeles Blades (WHL) on November 10, 1961
• Played 13 seasons in WHL with Los Angeles & San Diego (1961-74)
• Named WHL 2nd Team All-Star in 1968-69 with San Diego Gulls
• Played one season in AHL with New Haven Nighthawks (1972-73)
• Retired following the 1978-79 season at age 43
• Recorded career NHL regular season totals of 45gp, 4g, 10a & 14 points
• Recorded career WHL regular season totals of 785gp, 328g, 311a & 369 points
• Remained living in San Diego, California & his number was retired by Gulls
• Named Director of Youth Development for the NHL/USA Hockey’s Diversity Task Force in 1998 (non-profit hockey program for minority youths
• Spent past 20 years travelling North America & the world spreading the game of hockey and NHL’s ‘Hockey is for Everyone’ initiatives through clinics & lectures
• In 1984, inducted into the New Brunswick Sports Hall of Fame
• In 2003, recipient of the Lester Patrick Trophy
• In 2005, named to the Order of New Brunswick
• In 2008, Willie O'Ree Place dedicated in Fredericton, New Brunswick
• In 2008, presented an award for Outstanding Commitment to Diversity and Cross Cultural Understanding by San Diego State University
• In 2008, inducted into the San Diego Hall of Champions (Breitbard Hall of Fame)
• In 2008, named to the Order of Canada
• In 2011, received the Hockey Legacy Award from The Sport Museum at TD Garden
• In 2015, jersey number '20' was retired by the San Diego Gulls
• In 2018, Willie O'Ree Rink at Smith Playground dedicated in Boston, MA