The six 2020 Hockey Hall of Fame inductees have finally had their moment of glory. Although it was longer than expected and wanted, the wait was worth it.
Jarome Iginla headlined a group of five players and an executive who were raised as immortals of the sport on Monday night, a year after the COVID-19 pandemic delayed their induction.
The former Calgary Flames captain was joined by Marian Hossa, Kevin Lowe, Doug Wilson and goalie Kim St-Pierre while Ken Holland was inducted as a builder by an 18-member selection committee .
“A career in hockey is a series of exciting chapters in which you learn and grow from a wide-eyed rookie to a seasoned veteran,” Iginla said. Then, in the blink of an eye, it’s over. When I think back to these chapters, each one reminds me of so many things for which I must say thank you. “
A mainstay of the Flames from 1996 to 2013, Iginla was her team’s leading scorer 11 times, twice winning the Maurice-Richard Trophy, awarded to the NHL’s top scorer.
A native of Edmonton, Iginla also captured the Art-Ross Trophy, awarded to the NHL’s top scorer, in 2001-02. The winger concluded his career with 625 goals and 1300 points in 1554 games.
Iginla made it to the Stanley Cup final in 2004, but the Flames lost to the Tampa Bay Lightning. He was successful on the international stage, however, becoming the first black athlete to win a gold medal at the Winter Games when he helped Canada end a 50-year lack of an Olympic title in 2002. .
Iginla also set the stage for one of the country’s most significant goals: Sidney Crosby’s gold at the 2010 Vancouver Olympics.
“It was really amazing,” he said of that moment.
Iginla joined Grant Fuhr, Canadian player Angela James and trailblazer Willie O’Ree as the fourth Black to be inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame.
“Being a young black hockey player, it was important for me to see other black players in the NHL,” said Iginla. In my first year of hockey, at the age of seven, a child came up to me and asked me why I was playing hockey. Over the years, I often heard people questioning my chances of reaching the NHL. There weren’t a lot of black players. I heard other things. Luckily, this only happened a few times. “
Hossa is the only player in NHL history to have made three Stanley Cup Finals with three different teams. He got his hands on the precious trophy in 2010 with the Chicago Blackhawks, after failures in 2008 with the Pittsburgh Penguins, and in 2009 with the Detroit Red Wings.
“I am grateful for the sport I love for everything it has given me,” said Hossa. The defeats have taught me more than the victories, the players and the coaches who have contributed so much to my success. “
The Slovakian winger has worn the colors of five teams, registering 525 goals and 1,134 points in 1,309 games.
“Growing up in communist Czechoslovakia, I didn’t know much about the NHL,” Hossa admitted. My first dreams were all about representing my country. Everything changed when I got my hands on a Wayne Gretzky VHS tape. I was hypnotized. “
A long wait for Wilson and Lowe
Unlike Iginla and Hossa, inducted in their first year of eligibility, Lowe and Wilson had to wait before they received the Temple call.
Wilson waited 24 years as Lowe stretched his patience for 19 springs.
The 62-year-old Lowe has won the Stanley Cup five times in 13 seasons with the Edmonton Oilers, but has been eclipsed by the offensive exploits of his teammates like Gretzky, Mark Messier, Paul Coffey and Jari Kurri.
“My selection to the Hall of Fame is not made because of my statistics,” he said. I would like to thank the selection committee for recognizing the contribution of a player like me. “
The seventh player in the Oilers dynasty to be inducted into the Hall of Fame, the Lachute native added a sixth Stanley Cup title by lifting it with the New York Rangers in 1994.
“People would ask me how I felt about not being in the Hall of Fame and I would tell them that six Stanley Cup rings was good and that I had enough personal satisfaction. Well, I was lying. “
Wilson played 14 seasons with the Blackhawks, winning the Norris Trophy in 1982. He ended his career playing two seasons with the San Jose Sharks. He has been the general manager of the team since 2003.
At 64, Wilson praised several mentors in his induction speech, including Brian Kilrea, who led him through the junior ranks with the Ottawa 67’s.
“He was more than a coach, he was a teacher of life,” Wilson explained of the one who was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2003.
A Quebecer in the pantheon
The eighth woman – and first goaltender – to be inducted, St-Pierre played hockey with the boys until the age of 18.
“There are decisions that can change your life,” she insisted. When I was eight, I asked my parents if I could play hockey. They were probably very, very surprised, but I’m so happy they decided to let me play. The first time I put on my goalie pads, women’s hockey was far from an Olympic sport. “
St-Pierre became the goalie for the McGill University women’s team before helping Canada win three gold medals at the Olympics and five at the World Women’s Hockey Championship.
“It is our responsibility to ensure that women’s hockey continues to grow. We dreamed of a professional women’s hockey league and it’s time to make it a reality, ”said St-Pierre.
After completing his playing career, Holland served as a recruiter for the Red Wings before becoming an assistant general manager. Appointed general manager of the Red Wings in 1997, he spent 22 seasons with the team, winning three Stanley Cups.
Now general manager of the Oilers, Holland pointed out that on Tuesday it will be exactly 41 years since he made his NHL debut as a Hartford Whalers goaltender at Madison Square Garden.
“I was 25, the opportunity of a lifetime,” said Holland, now 66. After the first period I felt I was here to stay. In the second period I allowed five goals and we were trailing 6-1 going into the third period. During intermission, I told myself that I would never be in the NHL again. Hockey was really good for me when I stopped trying to play it. “