2011 Inductees into the Hockey Hall of Fame, Joe Nieuwendyk makes the Cut
The 18-member selection committee has announced the list of former players who will be the 2011 Hockey Hall of Fame inductees and it has some pretty familiar and legendary names on it. The induction ceremony will begin on November 14, at the Hockey Hall
of Fame in Toronto for the class of 2011.
Four players were named to be included in this year’s Hall of Fame induction, including Ed Belfour, also known as “The Eagle”, Doug Gilmour, Mark Howe and Joe Nieuwendyk.
Belfour was probably the only player who was expected to make it this time around, while the other three had doubts over their chances and were hoping to make it sooner rather than later to be part of hockey’s history forever.
"Obviously it's a real honour and it's even more of an honour to be picked right away", said Belfour. “I was just flabbergasted when I heard about it".
Now 46, Belfour is known to be one of the best goalies in NHL history. Starting his professional ice hockey career in 1988 with Chicago Blackhawks, and playing with San Jose Sharks, Dallas Stars, and Toronto Maple Leafs, he ended with Florida Panthers in
2007.
Throughout his 17-year career, Belfour won the Vezina Trophy twice for best goalie and is ranked third on the NHL list for most wins, 484, and shutouts, 76.
Three years into his career, Eddie the Eagle won the Calder Memorial Trophy as the league’s rookie and a Stanley Cup in 1999 with Dallas.
Gilmour was one of the most celebrated centre(s) in the whole league for his amazing performance in pressure situations such as the playoffs, in which he would score more points game-wise in comparison to the regular season.
He had 1,414 points throughout his 20-season career, with teams like, Chicago Blackhawks, Toronto Maple Leafs, both of which he captained, St. Louis Blues, Calgary Flames, New Jersey Devils, Buffalo Sabres, and Montreal Canadiens.
"This is an overwhelming honour and one that makes me reflect back on the teammates and coaches I have had over years", said Gilmour.
Probably no one was more excited than current Dallas Stars’ general manager, Joe Nieuwendyk, who had always dreamt of this to happen, but hoped for it to be earlier than later.
Nieuwendyk had a colourful 21-season career with multiple teams and graced clubs like Calgary Flames, Dallas Stars, New Jersey Devils, Maple Leafs and Florida Panthers.
He participated in 1,257 regular season games with them and recorded 1,126 points in that time frame. This was his second year of eligibility for the Hall of Fame.
"This is a thrill. I'm really happy with the class I'm going in with. I have a lot of history with Dougie Gilmour and Eddie Belfour, so I couldn't be more happy", said Nieuwendyk.
Ed Belfour and Nieuwendyk played on the same Stanley Cup winning Dallas team in 1999 and not only that, Stars’ GM also played with Dough Gilmour in Calgary, which makes this occasion even more special.
Howe became the first Philadelphia Flyers’ defenseman in history to be inducted into the Hall of Fame on Tuesday, and he certainly deserved it.
Being the defensive player he was, Howe was still able to put up 742 points in 929 games, removing all doubts about his addition.
The four legendary players will be inducted on November 14, 2011, in Toronto.
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