NHL Hall of Fame: Who is Next?

With the draft, free agency and Hall of Fame inductions all wrapped up there really isn't much to do in the NHL world right now. While the draft is can be analyzed day and night, the truth of the matter is, no one knows who the "winners" and "losers" are until about five years down the road, when we have some sort of idea of what type of players these teenagers actually become.

In the end the greatest individual honor these draft picks can hope to attain is the honor that was bestowed upon Mark Messier, Ron Francis, Al MacInnis, and Scott Stevens as all were inducted into the Hall of Fame over the summer. All four quite deserved the honor and were "slam-dunk" type picks as the NHL strike and the resulting rule changes lead to a glut of players retiring during the time period.

With the induction ceremony over it got me thinking, who among active players would one day be enshrined in Toronto? So I've decided to take a look at the candidates; since I think it's a pointless endeavor to say Crosby and Ovechkin as long as they stay healthy, I've decided to narrow my candidates down to those born before 1980. Why 1980? No reason except it seemed like a good number to arbitrarily grab out of the air; player will be at least 27 going into this season and as such we should have a good idea of their abilities.

Already In

If these guys decided to quit today, tomorrow or the following day, they have already earned their pass to the Hall.

Ed Belfour: He has played long enough to climb up the all-time lists in counting stats and has backstopped enough elite teams to make it to Toronto. That is if he ever does retire of course.

Rob Blake: I don't know if I am 100% on board that he should be in, but after nearly 20 years of being one of the better defenseman and some high profile playoff runs in Colorado, he will get through.

Martin Brodeur: A no-brainer. He will retire with the all-time lead in wins and at least three Cups. He has been one of the games best for nearly two decades.

Chris Chelios: The only question is will he ever retire in order to get inducted? Never a great offensive defenseman, he still won three Norris Trophies and would have been a Hall of Famer even if he retired a decade ago.

Peter Forsberg: It doesn't matter if his NHL career is over or not; Forsberg is going to the Hall. He has widely been recognized as the games most complete player for years now and even with his endless injuries has still put together quite an impressive career. The only real question is how many Hart Trophies would he have won if healthy.

Dominick Hasek: The most decorated goalie in the history of the sport has the kind of career that the Hall was invented for, Vezinas, Harts, Jennings, Pearson, Cups and Gold Medals dot his resume. Not too mention some otherworldly save percentage numbers.

Jaromir Jagr: Love him or hate him, he goes right next to Hasek, Brodeur and Sakic as an automatic no thought required in. After a couple of disappointing seasons in Washington, Jagr has been rejuvenated in the new NHL and Manhattan. His credentials? Does 5 Art Ross, 3 Pearson, 2 Cups, 600 goals and 1500 points sound good to you? At 35 years old it is possible he can make a run at 750 goals and 2000 points if he wants to play long enough.

Nicklas Lidstrom: The current playing legend amongst defense, Lidstrom doesn't seem to be slowing down at all at 37. With 5 Norris Trophies, Lidstrom has cracked the list of Top Ten All-Time at his position.

Mike Modano: The new all-time leading scoring American, Modano has crossed 500 goals, 1200 points, played his whole career with one franchise and won a Cup. He scored fifty goals once and never reached 100 points, yet Modano is going in.

Scott Niederamyer: He hasn't retired yet, but as far as his Hall of Fame case it won't matter. Nieds has four Cups, a Norris and a Conn Smyth. His years in Jersey may have stifled his scoring, but added to his ring collection. He isn't about to make the Top-10 all-time defenseman, but he will make the Hall first time around.

Joe Sakic: Depending on how long he wants to play Sakic is going to end up pretty high on the all-time scoring lists. He has a Hart, a Conn Smyth, two Cups and three First Team All-Star selections to go along with 610 goals and 1589 points. At 38 he scored 100 points last year. There isn't anything to think about.

Brendan Shanahan: At 38, Shanny is still putting the puck in the net. He was already potted over 600 goals and will soon cross 1300 points. Combine that with two 50+ goal seasons and another five season in the forties, Shanahan is the elite power forward of his generation.

Mats Sundin: Though the individual season scoring numbers have never been mind blowing, they add up to over 500 goals and 1200 points and at 36 Sundin is still going strong. As of now I doubt he delivers the promised Cup to Toronto, but being the face of one of the leagues most visible franchises for over a decade won't hurt his chances.

Needs Some Work

These guys are close put just need to put some finishing touches on their resume to earn entrance. Some of them have lots of time to do it and they just need to keep healthy and maintain their current pace, while some are quickly running out of time.

Daniel Alfredsson: The longtime Senator made a lot of strides in eliminating his and his teams' reputation for choking in the post season last year by making the Finals. Still Alfie has put up only one 40 goals and 100 point season and at 34 has yet to reach 300 goals or 1000 points; it's going to take at least 3-4 big seasons and leading a Cup run for him to get in.

Rod Brind'Amour: Three years ago or so, no one is putting him on this list, but the post-lockout NHL has been very kind to Brindy. He had the spotlight shine on him during the Canes Cup run and followed up with a strong 06-07 crossing the 1000 point marker. The points totals aren't enough alone but his two-way play and reputation as a leader will probably get him there.

Sergei Fedorov: The rapid decline phase of his career will likely cost Fedorov his shot at the Hall. Despite a Hart and multiple Selke trophies, Fedorov has had only has one very productive season in the last ten. At 37, it is doubtful he will manage to reach 500 goals or regain first line status.

Jarome Iginla: Many consider Iginla the most complete player and best leader in hockey right now. It is not an irrational opinion. At 30, he needs to put a few more big seasons together and has plenty of time to do so. If there is any worry it is that his overall numbers have dipped a bit in the more open game.

Vincent Lecavalier: Vinny is another player who put up solid numbers throughout his early 20's but really came into his own in the last couple of seasons. Last season was the former #1 overall picks big breakout as he shattered career high with 108 points and a league leading 52 goals. Only27, Lecavalier will likely be putting up 40 plus goal season for the next 5-7 seasons. If he manages that, he will find himself in Toronto one day.

Chris Pronger: With a Hart Trophy to his name, Pronger is in a rare and elite class of defenseman. Yet Pronger has only once been a First Team All-Star. Injuries and suspensions go as a mark against him, but at 32 he should have time to put up the 3 or 4 more good seasons he needs to make the cut.

Mark Reechi: I am on the fence if he is going in, I would say no. He had a few really big seasons early in his career playing on the Lemieux-Jagr Penguins, since then he has been mostly a very solid wing, who has had a few big seasons and managed to stay very healthy. It is his durability that will get him the Hall pass as Reechi is already over 500 goals and likely to surpass 1400 points.

Teemu Selanne: If Selanne retires now it is possible that the two year reinvigoration his career received capped by a Cup in '07 may be enough for voters to let him in. Teemu does have 540 career goals and 1135 point in 1041 games. His 76 goals as a rookie still stand as an NHL record that has gone unchallenged. Still Selanne was also very inconsistent throughout his career most notably in his very disappointing stretch between 01-02 and 03-04 with San Jose and Colorado. Still it is worth to note that he is mainly an offensive threat and his worse years coincided with the lowest scoring years in the NHL. When it goes to the voters, 500 goals and 1000 points are no longer automatics.

Joe Thornton: At 28, Jumbo Joe wouldn't quite be in if he retired tomorrow, yet at the torrid pace he has been on since being dealt to the Sharks, it won't be all that long. With back-to-back 90+ assists seasons, Thornton looks like a lock to put up 100+ point seasons for the next 6-8 years. For him, it's just about staying healthy and interested.

Keith Tkachuk: Most would rank Tkachuk behind only Brendan Shanahan as far as "power forwards" go over his generation. He certainly has had some impressive seasons, twice notching 50 goals and another seven seasons over the 30 mark in addition to that. After a strong 06-07 season, it looks like Tkachuk will have enough gas in the tank to reach the 500-1000 milestones, good accomplishments for players of his ilk. Despite not having won anything in the NHL, I think a couple more good seasons' gets him in.

Long Way to Go:

Players who have a chance, but due to being young, blossoming late or starting their career later, they have to put up big numbers for a long time in order to reach the Hall.

JS Giguere: He was a Cup and a Conn, but has been a full time starter for only five seasons. Still his numbers are impressive and he now looks to have a hold on the job. If Giguere can string together big seasons well into his thirties coupled with some big playoff runs, it's not out of the realm of possibility.

Scott Gomez: Making the age cut off by eight days, Gomez is as young as you will get on this list; and probably the hardest to project. Having moved to the Rangers he escapes the defensive minded New Jersey system and gains Jagr as a teammate; these factors make him a good bet to reach 100 points this year. Even so, Jagr won't be around forever and Gomez will have to play better than he has yet for a long time to be Hall of Fame material.

Sergei Gonchar: I think Gonchar gets a bad rap around a lot of NHL circles; not the greatest in the defensive end, there are plenty of NHL defenseman who are just as bad and none this side of Nick Lidstrom can bring the offense from the blue line that Gonchar can. As of today, he doesn't get in, yet on the Pens high octane offense he could put up some incredible numbers over the next few seasons that could get him over the hump.

Milan Hejduk: Hejduk rebounded to 35 goals after a disappointing 05-06. Is still only 31, but it seems as the old game was much better suited to his skills. Facing life without Sakic soon, it's a real long shot.

Marian Hossa: Hossa broke the 100 point barrier for the first time last season. With 270 career goals he is a good bet to reach 500. Even so, it is going to take a string of 100 point seasons and a few deep playoff runs to get Hossa to Toronto.

Olli Jokinen: I'm convinced he has the talent, but he needs to get out of Florida now, get to a contender and string together a decade of big time hockey.

Paul Kariya: Now 32, Kariya hopes to continue his career renaissance with the Blues over the next few years. Long an all-star caliber player, there just isn't enough truly great seasons on his resume for me to see him as a Hall of Famer.

Miikka Kiprusoff: Kipper has steadily been building on his NHL Finals run the last two seasons and looks to have risen to amongst the elite goalies in the league. His big problem is he is 30 and has only been starting two seasons. He will need to maintain his current level or play over 6-8 more seasons and that is going to be extremely difficult.

Roberto Loungo: Finally rescued from Florida, the big question surrounding Loungo coming into last season was how would he fare on a contending team in a city that was not only aware that there was an NHL team playing there, but a city that actually loved hockey? Loungo silenced any doubters by putting up a season worthy of Hart consideration. At only 28, it seems as if he remains healthy, Loungo will be the elite goalie in the league for years to come and end up in the Hall.

Patrick Marleau: At 27, Marleau is just starting to come into his own, having developed into a point-per-game player two seasons ago. Currently playing second fiddle to the only man drafted before him, Joe Thornton, trade winds have recently been blowing around Marleau. His best chance for a run at the Hall is change team and lead a team while continuing on the point-per-game pace for a decade.

Brad Richards: At 27, he is coming off the most disappointing season of his career. Locked up to a big money deal for the next few years, the Lightning badly need Richards to return to form if they are going to contend. The good news is Richards is blessed with talent to be one of the best in the game and there is no reason to think he cannot regain elite status next year.

Marty Turco: Turco finally had his first good playoff showing last season, yet the Stars failed to advance. Despite putting up spectacular numbers over the last few season it will take another 5 or 6 years and some playoff success for Turco to reach the Hall.

No Way:

For a variety of reasons (injuries, blossomed too late, just not good enough) these are good players who won't make it.

Todd Bertuzzi: At 32, Big Bert was really only a top tier player for two seasons. Injuries have taken their toll and it is unlikely he regains a spot amongst the games elite. The Stephen Moore incident certainly doesn't help either.

Pavel Datsyuk: At 29, and primarily an offensive player, he has never scored over 30 goals or cracked the 90 point barrier. Coupled with playoff struggles, Datsyuk isn't close.

Chris Drury: Despite all the post season heroics and leadership accolades, Drury won't be able to compile the needed numbers for a Hall call. Still he will be remembered as the kid who pitched Connecticut to a Little League World Series and then became an NHL star.

Patrick Elias: Injuries and the defensive system employed by the Devils will prevent Elias from accumulating the type of numbers he needs to get in the Hall. Having recently signed a deal to stay in Jersey, there is little hope of a string of 100 point seasons.

Bill Guerin: A fine All-Star caliber player for a long time, Guerin is very unlikely to reach 500 goals or 1000 points. Bouncing around to a lot of teams doesn't help nor does the fact that despite being noted as a goal scorer he only cracked 40 twice and never had more than 41.

Ed Jovanovski: Hard to believe he has been around 11 seasons already. Not really a chance as he has never really been a threat to win the Norris, doesn't score much and gets hurt too often. Playing on the woeful Coyotes isn't going to get him noticed either.

Nikolai Khabibulin: He has four all-star games and a Cup victory, but too much time spent on terrible teams costs him any shot he may have had.

Saku Koivu: He has long been a great leader and inspiration on the sports most storied franchise, but Koivu has never been dominant enough to be considered a Hall of Fame type player.

Olaf Kolzig: "Ollie the Goalie" has had a long and noteworthy run with the Capitals that has included a trip to the NHL Finals and a Vezina. The Capitals toiling at the bottom of the league for the better part of the last decade and being a contemporary of Hasek and Brodeur eliminate any shot of the Hall for Kolzig.

John Leclair: Vermont's hockey ambassador, Leclair had an amazing peak of three straight 50 goals seasons and five straight of 40 plus goals in the late nineties. Since then injuries have sapped him of all productivity. He is done.

Eric Lindros: It's far more likely that Lindros will be remembered as for the controversy and injuries that surrounded his career rather than the fact that for a few years he was a dominant force in the league. He had the Hall of Fame talent but couldn't put it together long enough.

Markus Naslund: For a three year period, Naslund was one of, if not the most dangerous offensive weapon in the league. Unfortunatly for Naslund, this also happened to be a one of the lowest scoring eras in the NHL. Now 34 and in decline, Naslund has a peak that was far too brief to be considered for induction

Gary Roberts: The amazing thing about Roberts is that he retired over 10 years ago due to injury. He has basically had a whole second career since then. Though Roberts is an amazing story and has had a great career, it is not Hall of Fame caliber.

Marc Savard: Savard may be one of the best 5 playmakers in the game. His problems are twofold; (a) he didn't develop until he was 28 and (b) he is playing for the lowly Bruins. At 30 it is going to take an Adam Oates like effort of about 80 assists per year for the next 8 years for him to have a shot.

Ryan Smyth: Smyth is a really good player who plays all out all the time. In the end he gets hurt too much and the overall numbers just aren't there for him to qualify.

Martin St. Louis: It's really amazing the career St. Louis has put together for himself. If five years ago anyone had this guy pegged as a Hart winner and 100-point guy, they probably should be running a team. Still his peak started too late to make a serious Hall bid.

Thomas Vokoun: He put together a few big seasons in Nashville, put never won anything. Not likely he is going to start in Florida.

Doug Weight: He is going over 1000 points this year barring injury, but the fact of the matter is he has pretty much always been a second line center and 1000 points for a center in his era is not Hall of Fame.

Sergei Zubov: Zubov, now 37, started to show some age for the first time last season. He's been very, very good for a long time; just not Hall of Fame good.

Get in a line and buy a ticket:

Jason Arnott

Daniel Briere

Roman Hamrlik

Derian Hatcher

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Robert Lang

Trevor Linden

Alex Mogilny

Owen Nolan

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Glen Wesley