The NHL announced its latest class of inductees into the Hockey Hall of Fame on Monday.
Detroit Red Wings greats Nicklas Lidstrom and Sergei Fedorov headlined the class of players, which also included former Anaheim Ducks and Philadelphia Flyers and current Arizona Coyotes defenseman Chris Pronger and former Buffalo Sabres blueliner Phil Housley. In the women's player category, former U.S. Olympic darling Angela Ruggiero made the cut as well.
Lidstrom, Fedorov and Pronger were all chosen in their first year of eligibility.
It's a great honor for any player to be inducted into the Hall - they have to have played a minimum of 800 NHL regular season games or recorded a minimum of 300 goals, 400 assists or 700 points just to be considered for induction.
In the Builder category, former Hockey Hall of Fame chairman Don Hay and Carolina Hurricanes owner Peter Karmanos, Jr. were inducted.
The actual induction ceremony will be held Nov. 9 at the Hockey Hall of Fame in Toronto.
Lidstrom is likely one of the greatest defenders to ever don an NHL uniform. During a 20-year-career, all of which he spent with the Red Wings, Lidstrom amassed 1,142 points in 1,564 games. He won the Norris Trophy seven times, tied for the second-most all-time. He also won four Stanley Cup championships, three of which he shares with Fedorov.
According to Stephen Whyno of The Canadian Press, Fedorov told Lidstrom, "I love you," on their call with reports after the announcement was made.
Fedorov played for 18 seasons in the NHL with the Red Wings, Ducks, Columbus Blue Jackets and Washington Capitals. He won the Selke Trophy twice and the Hart Trophy and Ted Lindsay Award once. He totaled 1,179 points in 1,248-career games.
Pronger became the only defenseman other than Bobby Orr to win the Hart Trophy and the Norris Trophy in the same season. He played for 18 years with the Hartford Whalers, St. Louis Blues, Edmonton Oilers, the Ducks and the Flyers.
He averaged over 30 minutes of ice time per game in two seasons for St. Louis and over 25 minutes per game in every full season he appeared in between 1998-99 and 2009-10.
Pronger's a bit of an odd case as old NHL bylaws stipulated that he wouldn't be eligible for the Hall while still under contract with an NHL team. Injuries robbed him of his final few seasons, but Pronger, whose contract was recently trade to Arizona by the Flyers, remains on the Coyotes books.
"I'd been out for 3 and a half years," Pronger said after the announcement, via Greg Wyshynski of Yahoo Sports. "I was excited to hear the news and for a chance to get in."
Housley played 1,495 games during a 21-season career. He has the fourth-most points in NHL history amongst defenseman. He scored 60-plus points in a season 12 times.
Ruggiero, the 2004 Patty Kazmaier Award winner at Harvard as the best player in women's college hockey, is a four-time medalist and a four-time winner at the world championships. She won gold at the 1998 Nagano Games and silver in 2002 and 2006.
