The Hockey Hall of Fame will unveil its class of 2022 on Monday. The 2020 edition was finally inducted last November after a year’s delay because of the COVID-19 pandemic. The hall decided against naming a class of 2021, but the next batch of hockey royalty could have a decidedly West Coast feel.
The Canadian Press takes a look at some of the players poised to potentially get the call.
HENRIK SEDIN
The former captain of the Vancouver Canucks should be a slam dunk in his first year of eligibility.
Selected third overall at the 1999 NHL draft — one spot behind twin brother Daniel — he ranks as the Canucks’ all-time leader in assists (830), points (1,070), games played (1,330) and power-play points (369).
Henrik Sedin won the Hart Trophy as NHL MVP and the Art Ross Trophy as the league’s leading scorer in 2009-10, and added 78 points in 105 playoff appearances over his 17 seasons, which included Vancouver’s run to the 2011 Stanley Cup final.
DANIEL SEDIN
Much like his brother, the Swede getting the nod seems like an obvious choice for the selection committee.
The trigger man on one of hockey’s most feared lines during the Sedins’ heyday, Daniel ranks first in Canucks’ history with 393 goals, and sits second behind Henrik in assists (648), points (1,041), games played (1,306) and power-play points (367).
Daniel, who like Henrik retired in 2018, won the Ted Lindsay Award as league MVP voted on by NHL Players’ Association members in 2010-11 to go along with the Art Ross. He registered 71 points in 102 playoff games.
If the Sedins, who helped their country win gold at the 2006 Olympics, get the call Monday, it would be the first inductions for players who spent their entire careers with the Canucks.
ROBERTO LUONGO
There’s a good chance another former Vancouver player’s phone rings in his first year of eligibility.
Luongo ranked third in NHL history with 489 wins when the goaltender retired in 2019, a number that’s since been surpassed by Marc-Andre Fleury. He sits second behind Martin Brodeur in three categories — games played (1,044), shots against (30,924) and saves (28,409).
The Montreal native twice registered 40 victories with the Canucks and made at least 70 appearances in four straight seasons.
A finalist for the Vezina Trophy as the league’s top netminder three times, Luongo finished behind only Sidney Crosby in 2006-07 Hart Trophy voting.
He also helped Canada win Olympic gold in both 2010 and 2014.
HENRIK ZETTERBERG
Like the Sedins, Zetterberg is another Swede who spent his entire career with the same organization. He finished with 337 goals, 623 assists and 960 points as a member of the Detroit Red Wings — each good for fifth in franchise history — in 1,082 games over his 15 seasons.
Zetterberg, who’s also in his first year of eligibility, helped the Original Six franchise win its last Cup in 2008, earning the Conn Smythe Trophy as playoff MVP.
Drafted in the seventh round in 1999, Zetterberg also won gold at the 2006 Olympics and finished third in voting for the Selke Trophy as the NHL’s top defensive forward in 2007-08.
CAROLINE OUELLETTE
Along with fellow Canadian teammates and Hall of Famers Hayley Wickenheiser and Jayna Hefford, Ouellette is one of just three women’s hockey players to win four or more Olympic gold medals.
In her first year of hall eligibility, Ouellette topped the podium at the 2002, 2006, 2010 and 2014 Games, scoring nine goals and 26 points in 20 combined contests.
The Montreal product also won six world championships with the national team.
ALEXANDER MOGILNY
Eligible since 2009, the Russian forward registered 473 goals and 559 assists for 1,032 points in 990 games over his 16-season career.
Mogilny added 86 points in 124 playoff outings, hoisting the Cup with the New Jersey Devils in 2000. He also won Olympic gold with the Soviet Union in 1988.
DANIEL ALFREDSSON
The Swede, who’s been eligible for the hall since 2017, put up 444 goals, 713 assists and 1,157 points during his 18 NHL seasons.
The former Senators captain, who won the Calder Trophy as the NHL’s rookie of the year in 1996, added 100 points in 124 playoff contests.
Alfredsson won Olympic gold in 2006 and led Ottawa to the 2007 Cup final.
—Joshua Clipperton, The Canadian Press
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