NHL Hall of Fame: Who is Next?

With the draft, free agency and Hall of Fame inductions all wrapped up there really isn't much to do in the NHL world right now. While the draft is can be analyzed day and night, the truth of the matter is, no one knows who the "winners" and "losers" are until about five years down the road, when we have some sort of idea of what type of players these teenagers actually become.

In the end the greatest individual honor these draft picks can hope to attain is the honor that was bestowed upon Mark Messier, Ron Francis, Al MacInnis, and Scott Stevens as all were inducted into the Hall of Fame over the summer. All four quite deserved the honor and were "slam-dunk" type picks as the NHL strike and the resulting rule changes lead to a glut of players retiring during the time period.

With the induction ceremony over it got me thinking, who among active players would one day be enshrined in Toronto? So I've decided to take a look at the candidates; since I think it's a pointless endeavor to say Crosby and Ovechkin as long as they stay healthy, I've decided to narrow my candidates down to those born before 1980. Why 1980? No reason except it seemed like a good number to arbitrarily grab out of the air; player will be at least 27 going into this season and as such we should have a good idea of their abilities.

Already In

If these guys decided to quit today, tomorrow or the following day, they have already earned their pass to the Hall.

Ed Belfour: He has played long enough to climb up the all-time lists in counting stats and has backstopped enough elite teams to make it to Toronto. That is if he ever does retire of course.

Rob Blake: I don't know if I am 100% on board that he should be in, but after nearly 20 years of being one of the better defenseman and some high profile playoff runs in Colorado, he will get through.

Martin Brodeur: A no-brainer. He will retire with the all-time lead in wins and at least three Cups. He has been one of the games best for nearly two decades.