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2016 Hall of Fame Inductions

I genuinely forgot Quinn wasn't even in yet. That one was a slam-dunk I'm sure.

I guess they don't have to induct 4 players every year? I don't know much about Vachon, but I've heard good cases made for Makarov. I'm not very surprised they went far back and avoided the more modern players who were talked about like Kariya and Andreychuk.
 
I respect that a lot of the best Russian players pre-1989 didn't have a choice about where to play and the HHOF should acknowledge their greats but, and I'll keep beating a dead horse, the USSR's olympic "victories" were shams used as propaganda. Not to honour Mogilny, who achieved every measure of NHL success and international success, seems like the HHOF at it's most tone-deaf.

Ah well. Good on Quinn and Lindros. 
 
Lindros' legacy should be three things. All of them good.

1. He was a terrific player.

2. He stood up to a crappy draft system that exploits young players.

3. He was cautious about playing through his concussions, which the "hockey establishment" called him all sorts of names for.

In terms of guys at their best I saw in their prime, Lindros is easily in the top 5 and the only guy I'd definitely put him behind is Lemieux.
 
bustaheims said:
CarltonTheBear said:
And as I edited my last post to say, there's really no concrete evidence that suggests bigotry had anything to do with Lindros not wanting to play in Quebec.

Yeah. He was reportedly willing to play for Montreal. He just didn't want to play for an awful Nordiques team that was already known to be in a poor financial state.

Let's get to the real travesty, when he refused to report to the Soo Greyhounds.  Now that was unconscionable.
 
Rogie Vachon should have been in years ago. Aside from his play with Montreal and L.a. , he has a small role in Leaf lore.
 
riff raff said:
Rogie Vachon should have been in years ago. Aside from his play with Montreal and L.a. , he has a small role in Leaf lore.

He should have got in on his name alone.  8)
 
Lindros is very deserving of getting in...should have been put in years ago.One of the all time best before injuries came.
 
Makarov and Quinn I can't argue with, especially when you factor in Makarov's international resume. Vachon was a quality goalie in an era when the Kings were just plain bad. Lindros is the one I can't agree with. I don't think his career was long enough or stellar enough to warrant a selection.
 
Something to keep in mind re: Lindros is that he had a pretty solid international resume himself. 2 WJC's, a Canada Cup, an Olympic Gold and Silver...guy showed up for his country.
 
Congratulations to all who were selected.  Good choices all.

Vachon, the little goalie that could.  He was probably one of L.A.'s best at the time; kudos to. Pat Quinn; three cheers for Makarov (yes, a member of the USSR 'propaganda' machine, but just goes to show the skills level of those marvelous Russians); and of course, Lindros, long time a-coming.

Reminds me of that time back in the early '90s, when I met young Eric and his brother Brett, at the then Dominion supermarket at Yorkdale Mall.  No one recognized him nor approached him except my brother and I, in which I politely asked for his autograph. He (Eric) was gracious and I wished him all the best in the NHL. 
 
Lindros today (article (dated Feb.2016):

Somewhere along the way, Lindros has become an everyman. All right, everyman is a relative term here. Lindros made almost $50 million over the course of his playing career and has invested his earnings wisely. He doesn?t need a regular gig and can still live in the most well-to-do area of the biggest, richest city in Canada. He can have two nannies and three cars ? a Lexus, Range Rover and Porsche Cayenne ? in the driveway. He can own a hunting camp in Quebec and can afford to make a $5 million donation to the London Health Sciences Centre. Not exactly Fred Flintstone coming back from a hard day in the quarry. But there is a basic quality about Lindros these days. He?s as happy and content as he has been in years and more at peace with himself than he ever was during his brilliant but turbulent hockey career.

Perhaps that has something to do with the fact Lindros lives in the knowledge that he was right all along and those in hockey who viewed him as a petulant, selfish and spoiled superstar owe him a big apology. The trail he blazed on players? rights and concussion awareness that earned him so much derision during his career have become standard procedure for today?s player. There is no difference between what Nathan McKinnon and Max Domi did orchestrating their destinations as junior players than what Lindros did almost 27 years ago when he refused to report to Sault Ste. Marie and ended up in Oshawa. NHL players can thank the likes of Lindros for the no-trade clauses that are standard today. And those who look out for their own health interests rather than keeping quiet and playing can take inspiration from the man who shut himself down and refused to play until he was healthy enough to do so, in spite of the avalanche of opinion against him at the time. ?Listen, I wasn?t perfect, no one is perfect,? Lindros says. ?But I do sit here and feel quite comfortable about my health going forward. I feel good. We?re going to be fine. Our (kids) are healthy, and we?re lucky. We?re just tired."

in terms of the combination of pure power and skill, Lindros is without peer in the history of the game.


More:
http://www.thehockeynews.com/blog/the-big-easy-eric-lindros-is-healthy-and-happy-after-blazing-a-trail-for-player-safety/
 
Honestly, Lindros deserves to be in the Hall of Fame for the work he has done with concussion research alone.
 
L K said:
Honestly, Lindros deserves to be in the Hall of Fame for the work he has done with concussion research alone.

I don't know, man, he was cautious about playing through brain injuries! What a WIMP!
 

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