Always a Debate

Four terrific hockey players, each a star in his own right.

We can argue back and forth about whether others should have gone in before Doug Gilmour, Joe Niewendyk, Ed Belfour and Mark Howe, or whether the Hockey Hall of Fame adheres to the same tough criteria as Cooperstown (it doesn't).

So I don't really do the deserving or undeserving thing a whole lot other than to push hard for those unfairly overlooked (in my mind) or categories of the hockey population that should be recognized.

So I lobbied hard for the induction of women for years, and that finally got through. That's makes it a big disappointment none were inducted this year. Once again, the absence of a female voice on the induction committee stands out as a glaring ommission. Hard to be recognized by the old boys club when you're not even a boy.

Guess that fight's not over. It's okay. As the father of three daughters who play, not to mention having a wife who plays, I'm happy to keep this battle going for however long it takes.

I thought Glenn Anderson deserved to get in, and he did, and for years, Howe has deserved induction. Easily. A home run. Not sure how they missed the Son of Gordie for so long, but this was an outstanding player, both as a WHA forward and NHL defenceman, who was one of the smartest blueliners ever to play the game.

Putting Mark Howe in now rights a wrong.

Which brings us to Gilmour, Belfour and Nieuwendyk (with that many ex-Leafs inducted, you'd think maybe the club would have won something in the past decade or so.)

All outstanding players. Gilmour and Nieuwendyk played both ends of the ice, and how appropriate to see two members of the '89 Calgary champs recognized in the year we lost Harley Hotchkiss. Gilmour, to me, was the best player in the sport for almost two years in the early 1990s and was unfairly denied the Hart Trophy in '93. At his best, he was right there with the best, and his induction works for me.

Belfour was right there with Patrick Roy and Dominik Hasek as the best of his era. Yeah, he was a bit of weirdo, but the man could play and he competed every night and prepared like nobody else in the business. Other than being a bad interview to the end, Eddie the Eagle is okay with me.

What about Pavel Bure, Alexander Mogilny, etc.? This is where I get out of the debate. The HHOF long ago decided to be a closed club and refuses to let its decisions see the light of day. So I honestly cannot tell you what the criteria is for admission, or how those decisions are reached, or why those who vote are so terrified of openness, which makes it impossible, really, to see one player or individual as more or less deserving than any others.

There will be those disappointed that Pat Burns, a personal friend who I miss greatly, was not inducted. Or Fred Shero. My preference has always been for the hall to be for players only (another battle lost) and so I generally don't wade into the builders category, particularly given that it includes all kinds of cronies and friends of friends and people who simply used their influence in the sport to gain admission.

Frankly, can't say that's a club I'd want to belong to.

So this year, my opinion, if you care, comes down to this.

The four inductees are deserving. There should have been a woman inducted, and there should be one every year for the next decade or however long it takes them to catch up. Anything short of that is a disgrace.

And thank goodness they've finally recognized Mark Howe in time for his immortal father to see it.

 

 

Comments

[The Fonze]

Heres what I think about woman in the Hall of Fame: even the best ever woman hockey players couldnt make the 91 Nordiques, so really, what is the point of recognizing them in the professional hall of fame? If people want to recognize womans hockey, then go for it, but it should be in a seperate hall of fame. TO immortalize say, Cammie Granato alongside Wayne Gretzky is a joke. Furthermore, the best all time Canadians Woman team wouild lose to any random OHL team - even if they played no contact - so I fail to see how womans hockey is in any way interesting to anyone who doesnt play it. Sheesh, even my wife prefers watching men's hockey.

[blackcatbone]

You have to be kidding, add a woman every year? Why? There are really only 2 " professional women's teams", USA and Canada. Until the sport grows and we have more than 2 teams competing, no more women in the HHOF. It is a farce we have any women in the HHOF as it is. Paul Henderson deserves to be inducted well before any more women.

[KD]

Paul Henderson? Take away one goal that he gained his fame for, and he was nothing special. Not a bad player, but certainly not HOF-worthy, no matter what the secretive criteria might be.
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As for Mark Howe, I remember whatching him (and Marty) and I the only thing he's famous for is being Gordie's son. A good player? Sure. One of the best, even of his era? Sorry, but far from it.
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While both Belfour and Nieuwendyk were ex-Leafs, it's certainly not their time in T.O. that got them into the hall. Eddie only played 3 seasons here, and his third was hardly memorable, and Joe only played 1 season. Dougie, of course, won the cup in Calgary, but it will be his time as a Leaf that he is most remembered for.
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Congrats to all the inductees, and shame on the board for their glaring omission of Burns.

[Braco]

This is HHOF not NHL exclusive club.Sergei Makarov is better then all the players mentioned this year.All what he did is:28 points in 22 Olimpic games,16 goals in 22 Canada Cup games and 56 goals in 101 World champinship games.In his career he won:2 World junior titles,2 Olimpic Gold medals,1 Canada Cup, 8 World champinships.He won 9 times Soviet scoring titles and 8 player of the year titles.Way better than all of this year clas.WAY,WAY BETTER!!

[Rich]

Yep, Damien tries so hard to seem progressive with his ridiculous crusade to get women inducted in to the hall. Women will absolutely deserve to get in the hall... some day, but not now. There are only 2 women right now that you could argue for, Wickenheiser (still playing) and Granato (already in). To say there are enough elite women hockey players right now that the hall could elect a female every year is just silly.

[Peter]

Fair point about builders though; Harold Ballard's presence offended even the charming HHOF attendant I spoke to on my last visit

[Wade]

Hear, hear Braco. Couldn't agree more. It completely undermines the legitimacy of the HHOF to not have Makarov or Krutov inducted. The only wingers who came even close to them in the '80s were maybe Bossy and Kurri, HHOF slam dunks. I have no problem with this year's inductees but, really, it should be called the North American Hockey Hall of Fame.

[The Fonze]

So let me get this straight: Makarov was better than Hull or Robitaille? And he is more deserving of a spot that ED BELFOUR? And Mark Howe only gets in because hes Gordies son? All of those are insane. Yes Makarov should be in the hall, but he isnt one of the best wingers of the eighties, well at least not top five. He certainly is not better than the Eagle or Dougie. As for Howe, he is recognized as one of he all time greats, even if his name was different.

[Andrew Potter]

When do we get to throw Sakic's name into the mix? I feel like he's been retired for close to 3 years now... I'd assume he gets in - first ballot - next year?

600 goals, 1000 assists, championships at every level, and one of the last big name players to slug out an entire career in one organization.

[Wade]

Fonze, who said anything about Robitaille and Hull? I was comparing Makarov to his contempories who played through the 80's, not the late 80s. Anyway, all of them deserve to be in the Hall as do all of the current inductees, Howe included. The debate is about who is not in who deserves to be in, and I'm saying the HHOF has for years overlooked at least one Russian superstar -- who is definitely one the best wingers ever, in any era.

[Chris]

"There should have been a woman inducted, and there should be one every year for the next decade or however long it takes them to catch up. Anything short of that is a disgrace."

A disgrace? Really? I consider myself a knowledgeable hockey fan, and I could not even name 10 female hockey players, let alone 10 that deserve HHOF induction. I could name 10 Russian players that played outside of the NHL that should be inducted. I could name 10 other Euro players. If there is anything disgraceful in the HHOF, it is the NHL-centric bias.

That being said, I believe people take this way to seriously. The HHOF is a great place to visit. It is very educational. I don't think any visiter has ever said that they refuse to go in the building if Clark Gillies has been elected. Only the media get bent out of shape. Perhaps it is just an easy column to write.

[Helmar Prent]

Cox's statement “Gilmour, to me, was the best player in the sport for almost two years in the early 1990s” is ridiculous. During the five years 1990 thru 1994 the first team all-star center ice men (Gilmour’s position) were Messier twice and Gretzky, Lemieux and Federov once each and the second team all-stars were Gretzky and Lemieux twice each and Lafontaine once. Bourque made the first team all-star all five years. Robitaille made 3 first and 1 second team all-star teams. There are others but what I have listed clearly indicates Gilmour (having never been a first or second team all-star) cannot be even remotely considered the best player in the sport in the early 90’s. In fact, it is even ludicrous to suggest he was the best player at his position in the early 90’s because that would mean he was better than Gretzky, Lemieux and Messier.