Hockey Hall of Fame-Class of 2008

IT IS IMPOSSIBLE TO ARGUE WITH GLENN ANDERSON OR IGOR LARINONOV GETTING INTO THE HOCKEY HALL OF FAME…
JUST AS IT WAS IMPOSSIBLE LAST YEAR TO ARGUE WITH MARK MESSIER…RON FRANCIS…SCOTT STEVENS AND AL MACINNIS…
HOPEFULLY THIS IS A SIGN THE HOCKEY HALL OF FAME WILL ADOPT THE SAME KIND OF STANDARDS FOUND IN BASEBALL AND FOOTBALL…
IN THE PAST THAT HAS SIMPLY NOT BEEN THE CASE…
TWO YEARS AGO THE SELECTION COMMITTEE INDUCTED DICK DUFF…
283 CAREER GOALS SHOULD NOT GET ANYBODY IN ANY HALL OF FAME…
BUT DUFF PLAYED MOST OF HIS CAREER IN MONTREAL AND TORONTO AND WON STANLEY CUPS IN BOTH OF THOSE CITIES…
IN THE LAST 20 YEARS THE HALL HAS WELCOMED…
BUN COOK…HARRY WATSON…WOODY DUMART…FERNIE FLAMAN…AND HERBIE LEWIS…
ANY OF THOSE NAMES RING A BELL…
ON THE OUTSIDE LOOKING IN ARE…
PAVEL BURE…DINO CICCARELI…DOUG GILMOUR…AND ADAM OATES…
IN 1989 THE HALL GAVE THE GREEN LIGHT TO VLADISLAV TRETIAK…
IT WAS CLEARLY A POLITICAL MOVE IN AN EFFORT TO BRING SOVIET PLAYERS INTO THE NHL…
ON THE OTHER HAND THE HALL HAS ALSO REFUSED TO RECOGNIZE THE ACCOMPLISHMENTS OF THE WHA…
BIG NAMES SUCH AS BOBBY HULL AND GORDIE HOWE HAVE BEEN INDUCTED…
BUT BORDERLINE PLAYERS SUCH AS…MARC TARDIF…J.C. TREMBLY AND PAUL HENDERSON REMAIN OUT…
TO GIVE YOU AN IDEA OF JUST HOW POLITCAL IT CAN GET…
IN 1993 NHL PRESIDENT GIL STEIN GOT L.A. OWNER BRUCE MCNALL TO NOMINATE HIM…
IT CREATED SUCH A STINK THERE WAS AN INVESTIGATION AND FINALLY STEIN WITHDREW HIMSELF FROM THE NOMINATION…
SO YOU CAN UNDERSTAND WHY HOCKEY FANS GET A LITTLE NERVOUS WHEN THE HOCKEY HALL OF FAME ANNOUNCES ITS YEARLY INDUCTEES…
FORTUNATELY THIS YEAR…THEY GOT IT RIGHT…