This year’s U.S. Hockey Hall of Fame class is a doozy.
Headlining this year’s group to be honored are former NHL stars Bill Guerin and Doug Weight. Both are Stanley Cup winners (Guerin twice, Weight once) and each played in three Olympics for Team USA. Overall, Weight represented America at nine international events while Guerin did so at seven.
Both players were also college hockey stars as well with Guerin playing at Boston College and Weight for Lake Superior State.
This year’s other inductees are nothing to sneeze at either. Carolina Hurricanes owner Peter Karmanos Jr., legendary college hockey coach Ron Mason, and women’s hockey pioneer Cindy Curley round out the class.
Karmanos’ legacy as an owner isn’t one that’s well-remembered in Hartford after uprooting the Whalers, but after 50+ years of building hockey at all levels in the United States he’s more than earned the honor.
Mason finished his coaching career with 924 wins, a mark that was tops in college hockey until BC’s Jerry York surpassed that mark this past season. His legacy as a coach at Michigan State, Bowling Green, and Lake Superior State makes him a legend amongst coaches.
Curley’s work to establish women’s hockey in the United States cannot be stated enough. She was a member of the first IIHF Women’s World Championship team in 1990 and represented the U.S. in numerous tournaments to follow that. As a pioneer of the game for women in America, it’s about time she was recognized for her work.
