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Hockey Hall of Fame: 2009's Great
Class NOVEMBER 11, 2009 -- The hall of fame is one of the great sources of debates and arguments among fans of any sport. Who gets in? Who is left out? How do they compare? The 2009 class of the Hockey Hall of Fame, however, renders all of those questions moot. Brett Hull, Brian Leetch, Steve Yzerman, Lou Lamoriello and Luc Robitaille have been considered surefire hall of famers for most of their respective careers and Monday night it became official. Brett Hull His father, his name on the Stanley Cup and even the skates he wore in the 1999 finals preceded him into the hall, but his 741 goals, (third all time) his 1991 Hart and Lester B. Pearson Trophies, his three consecutive 70 plus goal seasons, his Olympic silver medal and his two Stanley Cups made him a lock as a first ballot inductee this year. The most indelible image of Hull’s career throughout the hockey world, but particularly in Dallas and Buffalo, came when he scored a highly controversial goal in triple overtime of game six of the 1999 Stanley Cup Final. Video review showed his left skate in the crease, against the rules at the time, but was never consulted. The goal stood, clinching the championship for the Stars and the rule was changed for the next season. Always one to speak his mind, a character trait he credited to his father in his induction speech, Hull prefers to let his name on the Cup and the ring on his finger do the talking in the everlasting debate over the legitimacy of that goal. Hull was thankful, in his speech, to everyone who had a hand in his illustrious career and life, using the confident demeanor, sense of humor and brash attitude that makes him Brett Hull. “Nothing in life is worth a damn without friends,” said Hull, closing his remarks for the night, “and I cherish all of you that are here with me, and those who couldn’t come tonight. I am grateful for every one who touched me in this great game, and I thank you from the bottom of my heart.” Brian Leetch Leetch highlighted the small every day aspects of the game in his speech, but his career was marked by enormous milestones at every turn. He started out being drafted 9th overall in 1986. He won the Calder Trophy in 1989 and still holds the record for goals by a rookie defenseman (23). Leetch was the captain of the Rangers for four years. He tallied 1,028 points in his career (6th among defensemen) with three of the most storied franchises in the history of the game. He won two Norris Trophies (1992, 1997) as the NHL’s best defenseman and an Olympic silver medal in 2002 with fellow 2009 inductee Brett Hull, but his most grandiose achievement came in 1994. After missing the playoffs in ‘92-‘93 the Rangers went into the 1994 Stanley Cup playoffs with the best record in the NHL and a 54 year cup draught. Leetch lead all players in scoring during those playoffs with 34 points in 23 games on the way to winning the Stanley Cup and becoming the first non-Canadian and only American ever to win the Conn Smythe Trophy. Monday night, Steve Yzerman even called Leetch’s play in the ’94 playoffs “reminiscent of the great Bobby Orr,” a compliment above all others for any defenseman. Even through all of his legendary achievements, while being enshrined among the greatest players ever to lace up a pair of hockey skates, Leetch remained humble, saying that, “The National Hockey League has gone through a lot of changes in its long history, but the one thing that never changes is the privilege it is to compete in the NHL.” Steve Yzerman The captain of the Detroit Red Wings for 20 years, Steve Yzerman started his career as an offensive powerhouse, and finished as one of the greatest two way players to grace the ice. After being drafted fourth overall in the 1983 entry draft, Yzerman was not expected to make the Red Wings out of camp, but that season he played all 80 games for Detroit, racking up 87 points. Yzerman scored at least 30 goals and 87 points in 9 of his first 10 seasons. In 1993 Scotty Bowman was hired as the Red Wings’ head coach and demanded that all of his forwards back check. After that, Yzerman’s numbers declined, but his game became more complete. The iconic Stevie Y moment came in game seven of Detroit’s second round series with St. Louis in 1996. Yzerman blasted a point shot past John Casey in double overtime to send the Wings to the Conference finals. They would lose their next series to the eventual champion Colorado Avalanche, but won back to back championships in the next two years. In 2002, Yzerman won Olympic gold and his third Stanley Cup. Earlier that year Bowman had announced that the ’01-‘02 season would be his last behind the bench. In the ultimate show of gratitude and respect the captain allowed his coach, the man who pushed him to round out his game, to raise the cup first. Monday night, Yzerman said that he considers himself “at the finish line” of a great hockey career, but another lies ahead of him in the front office. He was named a Vice President of the Detroit Red Wings upon his 2006 retirement and will choose Canada’s Olympic team for the 2010 games in Vancouver in his role as Executive Director of Team Canada. Lou Lamoriello Hockey is the ultimate team sport, and very few people personify that as well as Lou Lamoriello, who entered the Hall in the builder category Monday night. His team first philosophy has permeated the New Jersey Devils’ organization at every level. So much so, in fact, that the catchphrase “In Lou We Trust” has become popular among Devils fans. And why wouldn’t they? In his 21 seasons as the Devils’ general manager the team has only missed the playoffs twice and have had only one losing season, while they have appeared in four Stanley Cup finals and won three. Prior to his tenure, the franchise had never had a winning season and had only made the playoffs once, as the Colorado Rockies. The most startling instance of that trust came after the firing of head coach Robbie Ftorek in 2000. With the team on their way to the playoffs for the second time under Ftorek, Lamoriello fired him with nine games remaining in the regular season. The decision paid off though, as the team won the Stanley Cup under Larry Robinson that year and reached game seven of the finals the following year. Lamoriello also served as the men’s ice hockey coach and athletic director at Providence College for two decades before joining up with the Devils. In honor of his service to college hockey, the Hockey East championship trophy was named the Lamoriello Trophy. The third stage on which Lamoriello made his mark was in international play with the 1996 World Cup of Hockey. The American team that he built, with fellow class of ’09 hall of famers Brett Hull and Brian Leetch won the gold medal, in what is considered the biggest victory for USA Hockey since the Miracle on Ice. While discussing the World Cup victory with NHL.com, Lamoriello summed up the philosophy that has brought him so far: “If we are not committed to winning and making the sacrifice, then we shouldn't be here." Luc Robitaille Luc Robitaille started as the ninth round draft pick (171st overall) of the lowly Los Angeles Kings in 1984. He garnered the nickname “Lucky Luc” for his tendency to be in the right place at the right time and score goals in dumbfounding ways. While his skating was always seen as a liability, he had to get to those spots somehow. By the end of his illustrious career he had scored 668 goals and 1,394 points. More than just luck, it was his hard work, determination and considerable skill that made him the highest scoring left wing of all time. Throughout his career he had stops in Pittsburgh, New York and Detroit but he has always been intertwined with the Kings and he always will be. He scored his first NHL goal on his first shift of his first game, assisted by Kings’ great Marcel Dion. He was a key component to the Gretzky lead Kings team that went to the Stanley Cup final in 1993. He was back in LA for their most recent playoff victory in which they rallied from a 2-0 series deficit to eliminate the Red Wings including the astonishing three goal, third period comeback known as the “Frenzy on Figueroa.” After that season he signed with Detroit where he won the 2002 Stanley Cup with Hull and Yzerman, among others, on one of the greatest teams ever assembled. He returned to LA for a third stint in 2004 and retired as a King in 2006. His future is also tied to the Kings organization as he moved on to become the team’s President of Business Operations in 2007. In his acceptance speech Monday night the consummate
King confidently stated that, “With the help of [Kings’ GM] Dean [Lombardi]
we will … have a Stanley Cup in Los Angeles soon.”
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2012 Western Hockey Network |
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