My take on one of the more memorable Hall of Fame classes in recent years (the induction is Monday in Toronto):

Chris Chelios

Chicago-bred Chelios was a coach's dream and an opponent's nightmare. He was a devil on the ice and a saint in the dressing room.

He was the ultimate NHL competitor, willing to do almost anything in the name of winning. He was an elite athlete and one of the most well-conditioned players in NHL history. He was as ruthless and dangerous as a junkyard dog.

Former teammate, Jeremy Roenick said anyone who took a run at Chelios usually found themselves chewing on the blade of his stick. Chelios wasn't big, but he was intimidating because of the way he played.

But those who played alongside Chelios say he was a world-class teammate, the guy who took it upon himself to take care of veterans and younger players alike. Roenick said it was like Chelios was running a concierge desk. If you needed anything, he would make sure you got it. If you needed someone to stand up for you in a game, Chelios was first in line.

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Older American players call Chelios the godfather of U.S. hockey. Players from the greatest generation of American players, which included Keith Tkachuk, Roenick, Mike Modano, Brian Leetch, Bill Guerin and others, consider Chelios to be the leader of that group.Chelios He had a special aura about him and the statistics to support it. He won three Stanley Cup championships, three Norris Trophies, an Olympic silver medal and played his last NHL game when he was 48.

Geraldine Heaney

One of the pioneers of the women's game, Heaney was a member of seven world championship teams for Canada. The Hockey Hall of Fame website refers to her as a "female Bobby Orr."

That is an apt description because she was in a class by herself as a rushing defenseman when the women's game was in its infancy in the 1990s. She could weave through opponents like they were gates on a giant slalom course. She was a coast-to-coast player.


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A member of the 2002 Olympic gold-medal team, Heaney is the third women's player to be inducted, joining American Cammi Granato and Canadian Angela James.

She is already a member of the International Ice Hockey Federation Hall of Fame.

Scott Niedermayer

He was Clark Kent off the ice and Superman at the rink. Niedermayer is a gentlemanly, soft-spoken, classy British Columbian who just happened to be one of the most effective rushing defensemen in NHL history.

Niedermayer was a marvelous, effortless skater, who never looked quick as he was until he was flying past defenders. Then he looked faster than a speeding bullet.

Niedermayer was consistently among the league's higher-producing defensemen. He won the Norris Trophy in 2003-04 and was playoff MVP when the Anaheim Ducks win the Stanley Cup in 2007. Before landing in Anaheim, he helped the New Jersey Devils win three Stanley Cup titles.

His skating was such a trademark that he probably never received enough credit for his defensive play. Even late in his career, he was playing more than 25 minutes a game. He retired with a career plus-minus of plus 167.

Fred Shero

The induction of Shero corrects what had been long considered an injustice throughout the hockey world.

Shero, who died in 1990, should have been inducted years ago. He was one of the most colorful, insightful and innovative coaches of the last 50 years.

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Although known primarily as coach of the Philadelphia Flyers' Broad Street Bullies teams, physical intimidation wasn't truly what Shero was about. He went to Russia far before it was fashionable to study how European tactics could be integrated into the NHL style of play. He introduced the idea that teams needed assistant coaches and was a superior motivator.

He didn't just think outside the box. He could draw you a triangle and convince you it was the new box.

Brendan Shanahan

It's ironic that Shanahan is now the NHL's dean of discipline because many retired players remember when he could boil over in his early years.

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He was a highly intelligent, tough, passionate, skilled player who earned his reputation as one of the NHL's top power forwards. He could fight, hit, score, make plays and also lead.

Darren McCarty said the acquisition of Shanahan is one of the keys to the Detroit Red Wings' rise to power in the late 1990s.

In addition to scoring key goals and serving as muscle, Shanahan taught McCarty and Martin Lapointe how to use their muscle and skill to their advantage. McCarty said Shanahan worked with both players on one-timing the puck.

Shanahan was one of the league's best at taking a cross-ice feed and rifling the puck into the net. A pass to Shanahan didn't have to be perfect. It could be in the same area code and he would find a way to rip it on net.

He played on five teams and scored 656 regular-season goals. He scored 50 or more goals twice and hit the 40-goal mark in four other seasons. He was a full-service NHL player.