By Tonia Venneri
The Hockey Hall of Fame’s class of 2015 has been announced and Monday night the red carpet will roll out to officially welcome some of the biggest names in hockey.
This will be the second year that players from four different countries have been elected as hockey legends, and a fourth female name will appear on the Hall of Fame’s wall after this evening’s ceremony.
Hall of Fame chairman Lanny McDonald told NHL.com that this year’s ceremony is reminiscent of the sport and the direction in which it is headed.
“You’ve got every country down here recognized, and you have four countries that are being honored and going into the Hall [on Monday],” McDonald said. “I think it’s fantastic. It’s where the global game of hockey is going, and has been for a while.”
Here’s a look at the seven members who will be joining some of the greatest names in hockey history.
Sergei Federov
Sergei Fedorov has won three Stanley Cups in his career. He was the first Russian player to play 1,000 games and score 1,000 points in the NHL, retiring as the highest scoring Russian in the league with 438 goals. He is currently the general manager of CSKA Moscow.
Playing career: 1986-2012
Position: Centre
NHL draft: 78th overall
Fun fact: Fedorov had a cereal named after him called Fedorov Crunch.
Phil Housley
Phil Housley is the second leading American-born goal scorer in the NHL. He ended his career with 1,232 points and played a total of 1,495 NHL games with eight different teams including the Toronto Maple Leafs. Housley was inducted into the United States Hockey Hall of Fame in 2004 and is currently an assistant coach for the Nashville Predators.
Playing career: 1982-2003
Position: Defence
NHL draft: 6th overall
Fun fact: Housley coached Team USA to the gold medal at the 2013 World Junior Ice Hockey Championships.
Nicklas Lidstrom
The Swedish native has won four Stanley Cups in his 20 seasons in the NHL. Lidstrom’s entire NHL career was carried out with the Detroit Red Wings. He was the first European-born and NHL-trained captain to win a Stanley Cup, Norris Trophy and Conn Smythe Trophy. He was recently named to Sweden’s advisory board for the 2016 World Cup of Hockey.
Playing career: 1987-2012
Position: Defence
NHL draft: 53rd overall
Fun fact: He scored the game-winning goal at the 2006 Winter Olympics in the final against Finland to win the gold medal for Sweden.
Chris Pronger
Canadian born Chris Pronger has played with six teams in the NHL. He appeared in the Stanley cup finals with three of those teams. He won the Hart Trophy for the 1999-2000 season and was the first defenseman to win the award since Bobby Orr in 1972. Pronger is still under contract with the Arizona Coyotes and the NHL, but has not played since November 2011 due to post-concussion syndrome.
Playing Career: 1993-2011
Position: Defence
NHL draft: 2nd overall
Fun fact: In 2010, Pronger became the all-time leader in games played for Team Canada in Olympic hockey.
Angela Ruggiero
The American hockey player has won four Olympic medals and was the youngest member on Team USA’s 1998 gold medal Olympic team at just 18 years old. She is a ten-time world champion medalist with five gold titles. Ruggiero currently attends Harvard as a business student.
Playing Career: 1998-2011
Position: Defence
Fun fact: Ruggiero was a contestant on The Apprentice in 2007.
Bill Hay
Bill Hay will be inducted to the Hall of Fame as a builder. Hay was born in Canada, and started his career in the NHL with the Chicago Black Hawks helping the team to their first Stanley Cup win. After retiring as a player Hay became the president and CEO of the Calgary Flames in 1991 until recently when he was named the Chairman for Toronto’s Hockey Hall of Fame where he currently works.
Playing career: 1960-1967
Position: Centre
Fun fact: His father Charles Hay was elected to the Hockey Hall of Fame as a Builder in 1974 just over 40 years before his son.
Peter Karmanos Jr.
The Detroit native is the second builder being inducted, and rightfully so. Karmanos is the former owner of the Hartford Whalers and the Carolina Hurricanes, winning a Stanley Cup in 2006. In the late 70s, he co-founded the Detroit Compuware Hockey organization bringing quality play to young prospects. He is currently the is the majority owner and chief executive officer of the Carolina Hurricanes and Florida Everblades.
Fun fact: For his day with the Stanley Cup, Karmanos Jr. brought it to Compuware HQ in Detroit, and allowed employees to get their photo taken individually with it.