The 2017 IIHF Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony

Yesterday was the 2017 IIHF Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony, which saw six outstanding players inducted.

The IIHF Hall of Fame Class of 2017

First, was Saku Koivu, who began his international career for Finland at the 1992 European U18 Junior Championships. In 1993 he played in both the World Junior Championships as well as making his senior level World Championships debut. 1994 saw Koivu again play in the World Juniors before earning his first international medal with a bronze medal at the 1994 Olympics in Lillehammer, Norway at the age of 19. Later that spring, he won another medal, this time a silver at the World Championships.

Saku Koivu won an Olympic bronze medal in 2010

He was named as one of Finland's assistant captains for the 1995 World Championships, where he finished second in scoring with 5 goals and 10 points in 8 games as Finland won their first ever gold medal at the World Championship.

In 1996, Koivu played in the first World Cup of Hockey before he captained Finland to a bronze medal at the 1998 Olympics in Nagano, Japan where tied for the team lead in points with 10 in six games. He earned another silver medal at the 1999 World Championships, again as Finland's team captain.

His next international competition would come at the 2003 World Championships after missing the 2002 Olympics while overcoming cancer. This was followed by a second place finish at the 2004 World Cup of Hockey, both again as team captain.

Koivu played in his third Olympics in 2006 in Torino, Italy, where he again tied for the team scoring lead with 11 points in 8 games while once again captain of Finland.

His final World Championships in 2008 saw him add another bronze to his collection before his final international appearance for Finland, this coming at the 2010 Olympics in Vancouver, Canada, where he captained Finland to a bronze medal.

In all, Koivu played in 20 games at the junior level in international competition, scoring 7 goals and 26 points. At the senior level, he played in 89 games, scoring 30 goals and 94 points. He played in one European U18 Championship, two World Juniors, seven World Championships, earning a bronze, two silver and a gold medal, one World Cup, with a second place finish, and four Olympics, winning three bronze and a silver. He was named Best Forward at the World Championships in 1995 and 1999, and led the 1998 and 2006 Olympics in scoring.

Today's featured Koivu jersey is a 1995 Finland National Team Saku Koivu jersey. This is the same style jersey used in the 1994 Olympic games and, while branded as a Reebok jersey, they were produced by Tackla using their mesh fabric and dye sublimation process. Visually, the only difference  between the Olympic jerseys and the World Championship version is the addition of the Warsteiner sponsorship patches to each arm.

The next player to be inducted into the IIHF Hall of Fame was German Uwe Krupp, whose international career began during the days of separate teams for East and West Germany, with Krupp first suiting up for the West Germans at the 1983 U18 European Junior Championships and the U20 World Junior Championships. He played in a second U20 World Juniors in 1985.

Uwe Krupp

Krupp, a defenseman, made his World Championship debut in 1986 with his second World Championships coming in 1990, his last for the West Germans.

By the time of the 1998 Olympics in Nagano, Japan, Germany had reunified and Krupp was able to make his Olympic debut thanks to the pros of the NHL now being allowed to compete.

Krupp, a defensive defenseman, scored 2 goals and 4 assists in his 21 international games. He also had a 15 year NHL career which included becoming the first German to win the Stanley Cup in 1996 followed by winning a second in 2002.

Following his playing career, Krupp returned to Germany and eventually became head coach of the German National Team from 2005 to 2011 at many levels, including the World Juniors, World Championships and Olympics, which included guiding the Germans to a semifinal appearance at the 2010 World Championships, their best result since 1976.

Today's featured Krupp jersey is a 1998 Germany National Team Uwe Krupp jersey. This style jersey was only worn at the 1998 Olympics with the heraldic eagle crest. Later in 1998 at the World Championships, the crest was changed to that of the German Ice Hockey Federation and worn through the 2000 World Championships.

 The third member of the Class of 2017 is Canadian Joe Sakic, whose international resume begins with the 1988 World Junior Championships, where Canada went 6-0-1 to win the gold medal.

Sakic making his Olympic debut in 1998

Sakic appeared at his first World Championships in 1991, leading Canada with 6 goals and 11 points in 10 games on the way to a silver medal.

His next World Championships came in 1994 where Sakic was third in team scoring with 4 goals and 7 points in 8 games as Canada would go 8-0 to win their first gold medal in 33 years following a shootout in the final.

The next time Sakic would wear the maple leaf for Canada was at the 1996 World Cup of Hockey, where the Canadians would finish second.

Sakic's first Olympic Games came in 1998 followed by winning gold in his second Olympics in 2002 in Salt Lake City, Utah. After going 1-1-1 in group play, the Canadians would find their game with Final Round wins over Finland, Belarus and the host United States as Sakic was named the tournament's MVP.

Sakic's gold medal at the 2002 Olympics gained him entry into the exclusive Triple Gold Club for players who have won World Championship gold, Olympic gold and the Stanley Cup, which he accomplished with the Colorado Avalanche in 1996 and 2001.

He would add to his already impressive resume by winning the 2004 World Cup of Hockey, where he tied for second place in scoring with 4 goals and 6 points in 6 games.

After being an assistant captain for the 1998 and 2002 Canadian Olympic teams, Sakic was chosen to captain Canada for his final international tournament, the 2006 Olympics in Torino, Italy.

In all, Sakic played in 48 international games at the senior level, scoring 22 goals and 41 points.

While his World Championship opportunities were limited by the successful teams he was a part of during his 20 year NHL career, 17 of which were as captain of the Quebec Nordiques and Avalanche, he is record is a stellar one, with gold medals at the World Juniors, World Championships and Olympics along with a World Cup and two Stanley Cups.

Today's featured Sakic jersey is a 1994 Canada National Team Joe Sakic jersey as worn during the 1994 World Championships during which Canada ended their 33 year World Championship drought.

The jersey is a Finnish made by Tackla, but branded as a Reebok jersey The jersey was produced using the dye sublimation process, in which all the graphics are created by injecting ink into the fabric, which is then cured with heat. This jersey also sports a pair of Warsteiner Beer sponsorship logos, giving the jersey it's unique World Championships look, as jerseys worn during the Olympics are free from advertising.

This multi-striped style was a short-lived one and used only for the 1994 and 1995 World Championships, as Nike arrived on the scene with all new designs for the 1996 World Championships.

The fourth member of this year's IIHF Hall of Fame Class Koivu's fellow Finn, Teemu Selanne. The Finnish Flash made his international debut at the 1988 European U18 Junior Championships, where he led all players in scoring with a dominating 7 goals and 16 points in just six games as Finland won the silver medal.

Selanne went out in style, winning a medal and being

named the tournament MVP at the 2014 Olympics

Selanne played in one U20 World Junior Championship in 1989, tying for the team lead with 10 points in 7 games.

He made his debut at the senior level at the 1991 World Championships, finishing one assist back of Jari Kurri for the team lead in points. Later that fall, Selanne was a member of the Finnish team at the 1991 Canada Cup.

Selanne made his Olympic debut at the 1992 Games in Albertville, France, coming in fourth in tournament scoring while leading the Finns with 7 goals and 11 points in 8 games.

In 1996, he returned to the World Championships, where he led Finland in scoring with 5 goals and 8 points in 8 games. Later that year, he played in the inaugural 1996 World Cup of Hockey as Finland's assistant captain.

He earned the second medal of his career at the 1998 Olympics, bringing back a bronze after leading all scorers with 4 goals and 10 points while playing in just 5 games compared to as many as 7 for other players.

Selanne came in second in scoring to Koivu at the 1999 World Championships with 3 goals and 11 points back of Koivu's 16, but it was Selanne who took home the tournament MVP honors while winning a silver medal.

In 2002, he played in the Olympic Games in Salt Lake City, scoring 3 goals in 4 games. He led Finland in scoring at the 2003 World Championships with 8 goals and 11 points in seven games as team captain for the Finns.

Selanne then took part in the 2004 World Cup of Hockey before returning to the Olympics in 2006, leading all players in goals, with 6, and points, with 11, as Finland finished with the silver medal and Selanne was named as the Top Forward.

He came home with a bronze medal at the 2008 World Championships after coming in second in scoring with 7 points in 9 games.

After playing at the 2010 Olympics in Vancouver, British Columbia and winning a bronze medal, Selanne participated internationally one final time, this coming at 2014 Olympic Games in Sochi, Russia, where he won a bronze medal as Finland's team captain. His 4 goals and 6 points were one point back of the team leader as the Finns would win their third consecutive Olympic medal, this time a bronze, the fourth Olympic medal of Selanne's illustrious national career as he set a record as the oldest player to ever win a medal in Olympic hockey at the age of 43. Selanne was then named the tournament's Most Valuable Player.

Selanne concluded his international career with 96 games played, scoring 54 goals and 102 points and holds the record for the most points in Olympic hockey competition with 24 goals and 43 points in 37 games.

Today's featured Selanne jersey is a 2014 Finland National Team Teemu Selanne jersey as worn during his final international tournament, the 2014 Olympics, his sixth Olympic Games.

This highly unusual full bleed flag style was worn only at the 2014 Olympic Games in Sochi, Russia. It was paired with a more conventional road blue jersey. For the subsequent World Championships later that spring, the Finns wore a white version of their blue road jersey, ending the use of this style after just one outing.

The final player inducted into the IIHF Hall of Fame this year was American Angela Ruggiero, who played in ten IIHF Women's World Championships, winning four gold medals and six silver medals, including scoring the winning goal in a shootout in 2005 to give the United States its first gold medal.

Ruggiero also participated in four Olympic Games, winning gold in 1998 as the youngest member of the team at 17 years of age, and winning silver in 2002 and 2010 and a bronze in 2006.

In 2004, she won the Patty Kazmaier Award as the top player in US Women's College Hockey. She became the fourth woman to ever be inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 2015 and the only inductee ever from California. She is also the all-time leader in games played for the United States, regardless of gender, with 256.

Angela Ruggiero

Dieter Kalt, Sr. of Austria was inducted into the Builders category. A star player in the Austrian league in the 1960's, he won five championships in six seasons with Klagenfurt with a career that spanned from 1957 to 1980. He played for Austria in eight World Championships and two Olympics, in 1964 and 1968, the second time as the team captain.

From 1996 to 2016, Kalt was the President of the Austrian Ice Hockey Federation and has been a long time member of the Austrian Olympic Committee.

Dieter Kalt, Sr.

Finally, the winner of the Bibi Torriani Award for players who have had great international careers from nations outside of the top hockey nations was Tony Hand of Great Britain. Four times during his domestic career in the British Hockey League, Hand had seasons of over 200 points, with a high of 222 points from 72 goals and 150 assists in a 44 game season!

British scoring legend Tony Hand

In addition to his scoring exploits of 15 seasons of over 100 points, longevity was also a hallmark of Hand's career, as he played 32 seasons of British domestic hockey in a career that spanned from 1981-82 as a 14 year old to the 2014-15 season, when he retired at the age of 47. So impressive was Hand's abilities, that he was drafted by the Edmonton Oilers in 1986, the first British-trained player ever selected in the NHL Draft.

He played for Great Britain at the World Championships 10 times, the World Juniors 3 times and the European U18 Junior Championships 4 times. At the senior level, he played in 52 games, scoring 34 goals and 105 points.

In 2004, Hand became the first ice hockey player ever honored with the Member of the Order of the British Empire by Queen Elizabeth II.

The 2016 IIHF Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony

The 2016 class was inducted into the IIHF Hall of Fame yesterday and included four players, all with NHL experience to go with their international accomplishments.

First, was Slovakian Peter Bondra, who first competed for Slovakia at the 1996 World Cup of Hockey, scoring 3 goals in 3 games. He then appeared for the Slovaks at the 1998 Olympics, the first for the star players of the NHL. In 2002, he and the Slovakians had the tournament of their lives, as Bondra scored 7 goals to lead all players and 9 points in 9 games, including the game winning goal in the gold medal final with less than two minutes to play as Slovakia won their first, and to date only, World Championship.

He returned for his second World Championship in 2003 and won a bronze medal. Bondra made one final international appearance, that being during the 2006 Olympics where he scored 4 goals in 6 games.

Bondra celebrates with his 2002 World Championship gold medal

"I'd like to thank Slovakian hockey. I was always proud to play for my country, Olympics or World Championships. My dream was to always play for the national team and score the game winning goal for a gold medal. My dream came true," Bondra stated at the ceremony.

Today's featured Bondra jersey is a 2002 Slovakia National Team Peter Bondra jersey as worn when "Peter the Great" scored the game winning goal in the championship final of the 2002 World Championships, an unexpected title considering that just three months earlier Slovakia failed to advance out of the Preliminary Round of the 2002 Olympics. Slovakia's rise to the World Championship came less than ten years ofter becoming an independent nation following the breakup of Czechoslovakia  in 1993 and being forced to start at the lower depths of the IIHF ladder system in Pool C, while the Czech Republic was allowed to retain Czechoslovakia's place in the Top Division of the World Championship system.

The next player, alphabetically, to be inducted into the IIHF Hall of Fame was Russian Sergei Fedorov, whose international career began during the days of the Soviet Union. The young hockey protege was a three time member of the Soviet Union National Team at the World Junior Championships in 1987, 1988 (silver) and 1989, when he won a gold medal. Later that spring he made his debut at the World Championships at the senior level, where he added a second gold medal. He returned to the 1990 World Championship with the Soviets and took home a second consecutive gold.

His final international appearance for the Soviet Union came at the 1991 Canada Cup, and actually occurred after his defection in July of 1990.

Fedorov skating for the Soviet Union for the final time at the 

1991 Canada Cup three months before they country ceased to exist

He returned to the international stage in 1996 as a member of Russia at the World Cup of Hockey, as the Soviet Union by now had ceased to exist, breaking up on December 26, 1991. His second international appearance for Russia was at the 1998 Olympics, where he won a silver medal, his first for Russia. Four years later, he was again a medal winner at the Olympics, this time a bronze in 2002.

18 years after his last World Championships, Fedorov would return in 2008, scoring 5 goals and 12 points in 9 games as he won his third gold medal at the Worlds and his first for Russia, as the previous two were won with the Soviets.

In 2010 he played in both the Olympics in Salt Lake City and then later the World Championships three months later where he won a silver medal.

"I am so honored and so pleased that this life of hockey that has given me so much joy has borught me to this place and this special recognition,' said Fedorov.

Today's featured Fedorov jersey is a 1996 Russia National Team Sergei Fedorov jersey as worn when Fedorov played in his first international tournament for Russia following the dissolution of the Soviet Union, his first international appearance in seven years.

Although scheduled to wear a new style for the 1998 Olympics, Russia rejected their previously approved jersey so late that they were forced to revert to their "waving flag" style from the 1996 World Cup. Fedorov and the Russians then won the Olympic silver medal in this "retired" jersey style.

Joining Fedorov in the IIHF Hall of Fame was fellow Russian Valeri Kamensky, who won gold his first time out at the 1984 European Under-18 Junior Championships for the Soviet Union. He followed that with a bronze at the U20 World Juniors in 1985 and a gold a the World Juniors in 1986, where he led the tournament in goals with 7 on his way to 13 points in 7 games.

Later in the spring of 1986, Kamensky made his debut for the senior level team at the World Championships, winning another gold medal just months apart. Kamensky was busy in 1987, as he first played for the Soviets in the two game Rendez-vous '87 series against the NHL All-Stars in Quebec. He next played in the World Championships, scoring 5 goals and 8 points in 10 games, earning a sliver medal. Finally, later in the spring, he competed for the Soviets at the 1987 Canada Cup.

Valeri Kamensky began his international career with the Soviet Union

He made his Olympic debut at the 1988 Games in Calgary, where he contributed 6 points in 8 games on his way to a gold medal. Along with other Soviet National Team duties, such as the Izvestia Trophy, Kamensky played in the next three World Championships, winning gold in 1989 and 1990 and bronze in 1991 when he was named as the tournament's Best Forward following 6 goals and 11 points in 10 games before closing out his international Soviet career with the Goodwill Games in July of 1990.

His first World Championship for Russia came in 1994 with 5 goals and 10 points in 6 games. In 1996, Kamensky won the Stanley Cup with the Colordao Avalanche, which earned him a place in the Triple Gold Club, having previously won an Olympic Gold medal and a World Championship gold medal.

With the NHL now accommodating their players participation in the Olympics, Kamensky was able to return to the Olympics for the first time in a decade, where he earned a silver medal.

He wrapped up his international career with the 2000 World Championships, his seventh.

Today's featured Kamensky jersey is a 1988 Russia National Team Valeri Kamensky jersey as worn when Kamensky played in his first Olympic Games while as a member of the Soviet Union. This was one of the first times the Tackla company of Finland supplied jerseys to the IIHF and before they developed their signature look with colored shoulders adorned with their trademark diamond shaped logo.

photo courtesy of Classic Auctions

The final player inductee was Finn Ville Peltonen, who first played for Finland at the European U18 Junior Championship where he began his medal collection with a bronze. He then moved up to the U20 level at the 1993 World Juniors.

He made his Olympic debut at the 1994 Olympics, winning a bronze medal, which was followed by a silver medal at the World Championships later that spring in his first attempt.

He became a legend in Finland when he scored a hat trick and had an assist in Finland's 1985 World Championship gold medal winning final game, a 4-1 win over Sweden. Peltonen finished with 6 goals and 11 points.

Mika Stromberg and Saku Koivu celebrate as
Peltonen is elated after completing his hat trick

He played in both the World Championships and the World Cup of Hockey in 1996 followed by the 1997 World Championships. At the 1998 Olympics, Peltonen won a bronze medal. He next won three consecutive World Championship medals, silver in 1998 and 1999 and bronze in 2000.

After a break of a couple of years, Peltonen played in the next six World Championships from 2003 to 2008, winning a bronze in 2006, a silver in 2007 and another bronze in 2008. During this timer period, Peltonen also finished as runner up in the 2004 World Cup of Hockey and won a silver medal at the 2006 Olympics.

Aside from games as a part of the Euro Hockey Tour, Peltonen's final major international tournament was the 2010 Olympics games, his fourth, where he won a bronze medal.

In all, Peltonen represented Finland 19 times, winning 13 medals.

Today's featured Peltonen jersey is a 1995 Finland National Team Ville Peltonen jersey from the 1995 World Championships where Peltonen famously had a hat trick in the gold medal game to give the Finns their first ever world Championship, which came at the expense of arch rival Sweden.

This jersey was made by Tackla though branded as Reeebok. This style was worn during 1994 and 1995 until Nike became the supplier to the IIHF in 1996.

Pat Quinn was also inducted into the builders category. He led Canada to its first gold medal in 50 years at the 2002 Olympics and also led Canada to the championship of the 2004 World Cup of Hockey and gold medals at both the 2008 U18 World Championship and the 2009 World U20 World Championships.

Pat Quinn

Ben Smith, who was a four time US Olympic Women's hockey coach, who led the Americans to the gold medal at the first women's Olympic hockey tournament in 1998, was also inducted into the IIHF Hall of Fame

Ben Smith

Finally, the deserving winner of the second Richard "Bibi" Torriani Award was Gabor Ocskay of Hungary. The Torriani Award is given to players who have had a great international career regardless of where they have played in recognition of players who did not necessarily win Olympic or World Championship medals, but who still had remarkable careers.

Ocskay first gained recognition outside of his native Hungary at the age of 16 when he was the top scorer at the 1992 European Junior Championships C Pool with 10 points in just 3 games as he led the Hungarians to promotion to the B Pool.

He would go on to play for Hungary at the European U18 juniors twice, the U20 World Juniors twice, the World Championships 16 times in the B, C and D Pool and later at the Division I level and a round of Olympic qualifying, scoring 76 goals and 91 assists for 167 points in 122 games. He also played his hometown Alba Volán Székesfehérvár of the Hungarian Nationwide Championship League for 16 seasons, eventually scoring 307 goals and 446 assists for 753 points in 488 games.

Gabor Ocskay

He was a three time Hungarian Player of the Year, a two time Hungarian champion and won two bronze, two silver and a gold medal as he helped guide Hungary up the IIHF ladder, all the way to the Top Divsion by winning the Division I Group B championship in 2008, only without Ocskay, as he unexpectedly died on March 24th, 2008 of a heart attack at the age of only 33, just two days after winning the 2008 Hungarian championship. His passing hit the hockey fans in Hungary hard, and they remembered him by lighting candles at every ice rink in the country.

Gabor's sister Zsuanna remarked, “The family and the whole Hungarian community, which is like family, have never forgotten him,” she said. “The rink in his hometown of Szekesfehervar bears his name since 2009 and the ice hockey academy is named after him. Some of the players who trained there were members of this national team that competed in St. Petersburg.”

Today's featured Ocskay jersey is a 2009 Hungarian National Team Gábor Ocskay jersey that he would have worn in Switzerland at the 2009 Top Division World Championships had he been alive to do so.

The 2013 IIHF Hall of Fame Induction Class

Today is the induction ceremony for the 2013 IIHF Hall of Fame class, and it's a remarkable collection of talent with a long list of accomplishments.

Peter Forsberg's international career began in fine style at the 1991 European Junior Championships where he averaged just under 3 points per game with 5 goals and 12 assists for 17 points in 6 games to lead the tournament in scoring.

1992 saw him earn his first medal with a silver at the 1992 World Juniors (11 points in 7 games) before making his senior level debut later that spring at the World Championships where he contributed 4 goals and 6 points in 8 games to earn his first gold medal.

He repeated the double of playing in both the World Juniors and the World Championships in 1993, earning a silver medal on both occasions. In just 7 games of the World Juniors, Forsberg scored a remarkable 7 goals and 31 points to lead the tournament in scoring by a full 7 points, which included setting a single game record with 10 points in a dominating win over Japan.

Forsberg made his Olympic debut in 1994 in Lillehammer, Norway, where his gold medal winning goal in the shootout over Canada earned him immortality when it was commemorated on a Swedish postage stamp. He totaled 8 points in 8 games for the tournament.

The Swedish postage stamp commemorating
Forsberg's goal at the 1994 Olympics

When Forsberg won the Stanley Cup with the Colorado Avalanche in 1996, he became only the sixth member of the Triple Gold Club in recognition of his gold medals at both the World Championships and the Olympics as well as winning a Stanley Cup.

The first bronze medal of his career arrived at the 1996 World Cup of Hockey and his second Olympic opportunity came in 1998 when the stars of the NHL were able to participate for the first time in Nagano, Japan.

1998 saw Forsberg return to the World Championships for the first time in five years where he was again a key part of Sweden claiming the gold medal thanks to his 11 points in 7 games.

Two more silver medals followed in 2003 and 2004 at the World Championships as well as a second appearance at the World Cup of Hockey in the fall of 2004.

Forsberg would win his second Olympic gold medal at the 2006 Games in Torino, Italy where he averaged a point per game with 6 assists in 6 games.

Forsberg's second Olympic gold arrived in 2006

His international career would conclude in 2010 with his fourth Olympic participation of his career.

In total, Forsberg would score 35 goals and 81 assists for 116 points in 83 games while winning one bronze, five silver and four gold medals, two at the World Championships and two at the Olympics.

Today's first featured jersey is a 1996 Sweden National Team Peter Forsberg jersey from the 1996 World Cup of Hockey. Sweden would win the European pool with a 3-0 record, defeating Finland, Germany and the Czech Republic, before losing 3-2 to Canada in two overtimes in the semi-finals.

This jersey features the large 4" diameter 1996 World Cup of Hockey patch worn by all the Bauer supplied teams in the tournament, which also included Canada and the Czech Republic. The remaining teams, the United States, Russia, Slovakia, Finland and Germany all wore Nike jerseys which sported the same patch, only in a 3" size.

Fellow Swede Mats Sundin participated at the 1989 and 1990 European Junior Championships, the 1990 World Juniors before moving up to the senior level in 1991 with a gold medal at the World Championships before then being a member of the 1991 Canada Cup team.

His second gold medal came in the 1992 World Championships and was followed by a bronze at the 1994 Worlds where he set a personal best with 14 points in 8 games. He participated at the 1996 World Cup of Hockey before making his Olympic debut at the 1998 Games in Japan.

His third gold medal came at the 1998 World Championships following another strong performance with 11 points in 10 games.

2001 would see a second bronze medal added to his collection at the 2001 World Championships before a second Olympics in 2002 at Salt Lake City. The first silver of Sundin's career came in 2003 at the World Championships which was followed by his second World Cup of Hockey in 2004.

Sundin's international career came to a conclusion in the finest manner possible when he captained Sweden to a gold medal at the 2006 Olympics in Italy while contributing 3 goals and 8 points in 8 games.

Sundin and Forsberg celebrating their gold medals in 2006

Sundin would score 47 goals and 100 points in 81 games during his international career, winning two bronze, one silver and four gold medals.

Today's second featured jersey is a 2006 Sweden National Team Mat Sundin jersey. 2006 was the year that Nike introduced the brand new Nike Swift jerseys, first seen at the World Junior Tournament on the USA and Canada. Each of the 12 participating countries in the 2006 Olympics wore the new Swift designs, except for Switzerland and the eventual gold medal winners Sweden, who were somehow able to overcome the truck-like weight and aerodynamics of the old style jerseys when compared to the new technologically advanced jerseys the rest of the field was outfitted with.

Two unique additions to the 2006 Swedish Olympic jerseys were an attempt to create a "lace up" collar style, which was simply a few slits cut into the existing yoke collar and threading a white elastic threat through it, which did not actually have to be tied, as it was a single continuous piece.

The second unique feature of the jerseys at the 2006 Olympics was the Swedish Olympic logo added to the right shoulders.

The Swedish Olympic logo added to their jerseys at the 2006 games

Given the opportunity, Sweden always opts for their traditional bright yellow jerseys with blue crowns, stripes, names and numbers, but for this contest they captured gold in their road blue sweaters.

Defenseman Teppo Numminen of Finland's lengthy career began at the 1986 European Junior Championships before he joined the senior team at the 1987 World Championships and later the 1987 Canada Cup. Still eligible, Numminen then played in the 1988 World Junior Championships (scoring 5 goals and 7 points in 7 games on his way to a bronze medal) which was quickly followed by his Olympic debut at the 1988 Games in Calgary where he won a silver medal.

He would return to the international stage in 1991 at the World Championships followed later that year with his second Canada Cup tournament.

The 1996 World Championships began a series of appearances which included the 1996 World Cup of Hockey, the 1997 World Championships and the 1998 Olympics, earning a bronze medal.

Numminen would return to the Olympics in 2002 in Salt Lake City, skate for Finland at the 2004 World Cup of Hockey and close out his lengthy international career in 2006 at the Olympic Games in Italy where he was rewarded with a silver medal.

Today's third featured jersey is a 1996 Finland National Team Teppo Numminen jersey. This attractive "waving flag" style jersey was worn by Numminen at the 1996 World Cup of Hockey, and being a Nike jersey, had the smaller 3" size tournament logo patch on the upper left arm.

photo courtesy of Classic Auctions

While Paul Henderson's international career is not as lengthy as those of his fellow inductees, his performance during the final games of the 1972 Summit Series were quite memorable and concluded with one of hockey's most memorable goals, his late game winner against the Soviet Union in Game 8, an iconic moment in the history of international hockey. He had scored goals in Game 1 and Game 5, but was also knocked unconscious later in that same game. He returned later in Game 5 and scored the game winning goal in Game 6, a 3-2 win for Canada.

Canada won Game 7 4-3, with Henderson again scoring the game winning goal while being tripped at the time. Late in the final Game 8, Henderson came off the bench, but missed a pass and was tripped and fell behind the goal. He returned to his feet in time to receive a pass from Phil Esposito and fire a shot, which was blocked. The rebound came back to him, which he fired into the goal past Vladislav Tretiak with just 34 seconds to play to give him his third consecutive game winning goal and the series win, making him an instant hero in Canada.

"Henderson scores for Canada!"

Henderson left the NHL for the World Hockey Association in 1974, which made him eligible for the follow up 1974 Summit Series, his only other appearance for Team Canada.

Today's fourth featured jersey is a 1972 Team Canada Paul Henderson jersey as worn during the four 1972 Summit Series games in Moscow.

This jersey came up for public sale for the first time ever at auction in June of 2010 on ClassicAuctions.net.

The concern and publicity over the possible threat to "the most significant artifact in the history of the game of hockey" due to it falling into the the wrong hands and being cut to pieces for inclusion on trading cards eventually saw the jersey sell for a record shattering $1,275,707, far outstripping the reported $250,000 paid for a Wayne Gretzky game worn jersey and the $191,000 for a Bobby Orr rookie jersey and easily withstanding a later challenge from Mike Eruzione's 1980 United States "Miracle on Ice" jersey, which reached $657,250.

The winning bidder, Canadian real estate developer Mitchell Goldhar, not only preserved the jersey from possible destruction, but returned it to Canada from where it had been located in the United States, but took the iconic Canadian sweater on a tour of the country in an effort to share it with the citizens of the nation where everyone remembers where they were when Henderson score his dramatic goal. One of the highlights of the jerseys return to Canada was having Henderson don the jersey once again.

photo courtesy of Classic Auctions

Danielle Goyette of Canada played in three Olympics, winning silver in 1998 and gold medals in 2002 and 2006, and nine World Championships, winning gold eight times (1992, 1994, 1997, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2004 and 2007) and silver in 2005.

Goyette with her second Olympic gold in 2006

She averaged a point and a half per game and led all players in goals at the 1998 Olympics and was the scoring leader at the 1992 World Championships and the 2002 Olympics. Additionally, she was honored by being Canada's flag bearer at the 2006 Olympics in Italy.

Goyette was Canada's flag bearer in 2006

Today's fifth featured jersey is a 2002 Canada National Team Danielle Goyette jersey. This jersey was worn in the games leading up to the 2002 Olympics during which Goyette won her first Olympic gold medal.

Note the back numbers crossing into the waist stripes, an indication of the shorter length of the women's jerseys.

photo courtesy of Classic Auctions

In addition to those players, builder Jan-Ake Edvinsson, broadcaster Gord Miller and the 1954 Soviet Union National Team will also be honored.

The 1954 Soviet Union National Team