The Hockey Hall of Fame will be announcing their Class of 2016 on Monday with a number of players hoping to get the call.
First-year eligible players include Miikka Kiprusoff, Milan Hejduk, Mike Knuble, Vaclav Prospal and Petr Sykora. Along with the first-year players, there are some big names that are still waiting their turn.
Here’s a look at the criteria for eligibility:
- Players must not have played in a professional or international hockey game during any of the tree playing seasons prior to his or her election.
- Builders may be active or inactive at the time of his or her election.
- A referee or linesman must not have participated in a professional or international hockey game during any of the three playing seasons prior to his or her election.
The maximum annual elections can include four male and two female players, one build and one referee or linesman. If there is no inductee in the final grouping, the committee can choose to elect two builders to the Hall instead.
After the final list of inductees are chosen by the committee, there is a final ballot where they vote privately on these final options. Any candidate receiving 75 percent or greater votes will be elected (up to the maximum).
Along with a number of other names, here’s a look at some of the players who’ve been waiting that could finally get their call to the Hall.
Eric Lindros: He amassed 865 regular season points in 760 games and added 57 points in just 53 playoff games over his NHL career. He represented Canada nine times internationally and was considered one of the best power forwards in the game.
Dave Andreychuk: Collecting 1,338 points in 1,639 regular season games in the NHL, Andreychuk finally won a Stanley Cup in 2004 with the Tampa Bay Lightning. He finished his career with the sixth most games played in NHL history and 14th on the all-time list for goals.
Paul Kariya: Kariya finished his regular season career with exactly a point-per-game. He scored 989 points in 989 games played and added another 39 points in 46 playoff games. He represented Canada at the under-18s, the under-20 tournament as well as the World Championships and twice at the Olympics (1994 and 2002).
Theo Fleury: Known for some of his off-ice incidents during his playing day, Fleury amassed 1,088 points in 1,084 career regular season games in the NHL. He represented Canada eight times over his career winning gold three times. A seven-time NHL all-star, he won the Stanley Cup with the Calgary Flames in 1989.
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Along with these four, the list includes Mark Recchi, Sergei Makarov, Alexander Mogilny, Jeremy Roenick, Curtis Joseph, Rod Brind’Amour and Chris Osgood.
Also on the ballot under the builder’s section is the late Pat Quinn – a man who not only played the game but coached a both the NHL and international levels and became a part of the Hockey Hall of Fame’s committee before he passed in 2014.