The Puck Stops Here
Hockey Hall Of Fame Inductions
by PuckStopsHere on 06/28/11 at 05:45 PM ET
Comments (6)
The 2011 Hockey Hall of Fame inductions were announced a few minutes ago. In are Ed Belfour, Doug Gilmour, Mark Howe and Joe Nieuwendyk. Four players is the maximum number that can be inducted in a year and with a backlog of eligible candidates who had been overlooked in years past there are more than four players who were eligible today and should be inducted. Surprisingly, no women players or builders were inducted, as both were expected.
The four players inducted today are all worthy candidates and I will write in the future about their specific Hall of Fame cases. Ed Belfour is in his first year of eligibility. Some thought he might be forced to wait a few years for induction because of some off-ice issues, but that is not the case. I applaud the Hall of Fame committee for that decision. After all if Belfour is good enough to make the Hall of Fame next year or the year after, he was good enough this year as well.
Doug Gilmour has been eligible since 2006 but has been overlooked for a few years in part because of the large number of players who retired at the lockout time making for large classes of eligible Hall of Famers and due to off-ice issues of his own. He should have been inducted a few years ago, but late is better than never.
Mark Howe has been eligible since 1998. He has long been thought of as one of the best eligible players. It was believed he was punished for having played in the WHA, which was the upstart rival of the NHL in the 1970’s. Many of the Hall of Fame committee members still held ill will toward that league and made Howe wait over a decade before inducting him. Finally this has been corrected.
Joe Nieuwendyk was first eligible in 2010 (last year). It isn’t clear to me why he was overlooked last year but he is inducted this year.
Other eligible players who have to wait for another year include Adam Oates, Sergei Makarov, Dave Andreychuk, Eric Lindros, Phil Housley and others. Next year there is a strong class of first time candidates. Joe Sakic, Brendan Shanahan and Mats Sundin are all first time eligible players who should be inducted. Curtis Joseph, Jeremy Roenick and Markus Naslund are first time eligible players who might get some consideration but I do not think are worthy.
All told, the Hall of Fame committee did a good job adding four players who should be there. In some cases they were adding long-time overlooked players. Ed Belfour, Doug Gilmour, Mark Howe and Joe Nieuwendyk are a good Hall of Fame class.
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Comments
I argue that Bure was well on his way on a Hall of Fame track but he never quite got there. He lost too much time to knee injuries and to holding out. He certainly wouldn’t be the worst player in the Hall (if he got there) but I don’t think he is quite worthy.
Your per game average stats unfairly flatter Bure as he didn’t play in the NHL in the part of his career where he would have began to decline. It would have been significantly lower if he had a more traditional end to his career.
Posted by PuckStopsHere on 06/28/11 at 06:41 PM ET
Your per game average stats unfairly flatter Bure as he didn’t play in the NHL in the part of his career where he would have began to decline
You’re assuming a decline was inevitable.
Posted by Lindas1st from New England on 06/28/11 at 07:05 PM ET
You’re assuming a decline was inevitable.
Every other player in history had one if their career lasted long enough. The fact he scored 30 points in 39 games in his last NHL season suggests that he had began to decline but injuries kept him from many games at that point in his career.
Posted by PuckStopsHere on 06/28/11 at 07:10 PM ET
I’m glad the Hall took the opportunity to enshrine some overdue guys.
But considering three of the four guys were previously eligible—and only Ciccarelli (a really iffy pick in my opinion) got in last year—it really is a little baffling (and a pity) that the committee wasted their opportunity to start clearing the backlog last year.
I’m also starting to get the nagging feeling that Oates is never going to get in, which would be a shame.
Posted by Sven22 from Grand Rapids on 06/28/11 at 07:39 PM ET
Every other player in history had one if their career lasted long enough
.
Yeah,I was sort of half-joking with you on that.
But my point is you shouldn’t consider what might have happened had he not got injured and played longer. Just like when Orr fans argue he might’ve won 10-13 Norris Trophies had he not got injured. Yeah, but he did. You just look at the career as a whole, not matter how long or short it is. No projections, and deside.
Also, based on who is already in I believe he belongs in the HOF, just my opinion.
Posted by Lindas1st from New England on 06/28/11 at 08:28 PM ET
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About The Puck Stops Here
The Puck Stops Here was founded during the 2004/05 lockout as a place to rant about hockey. The original site contains over 1000 posts, some of which were also published on FoxSports.com.
Who am I? A diehard hockey fan.
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Email: y2kfhl@hotmail.com
Congrats to Ed Belfour, Doug Gilmour, Mark Howe and Joe Nieuwendyk.
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Pavel Bure belongs in the Hall Of Fame.
The dynamic foward had back to back 58 & 59 goal seasons for Florida in the middle of the clutch and grab era which almost matched his back to back 60 goal seasons in Vancouver. He led the NHL in goal-scoring 3 times, that ties for 7th all-time. Also, he’s one of only 4 NHL players with over 400 goals and a GPG average over .600. In fact he’s sixth on the All-Time GPG list with an .623 GPG average. Definitely Hall worthy considering who’s already in.
Posted by Lindas1st from New England on 06/28/11 at 06:36 PM ET