Henrik Lundqvist is the headliner of the Hockey Hall of Fame’s goaltender-heavy class of 2023, which also includes Stanley Cup champions Tom Barrasso and Mike Vernon.
Selection committee chairman Mike Gartner announced the seven-person class. Former NHL forward Pierre Turgeon and Canadian women’s hockey star Caroline Oullette were the other players, while Cup-winning coach Ken Hitchcock and late executive Pierre Lacroix were picked to be inducted in the builder category.
Lundqvist, elected in his first year of eligibility, backstopped Sweden to an Olympic gold medal in 2006 and led the New York Rangers to the playoffs in 11 of 12 years. That included a trip to the Stanley Cup Final in 2014 and two Eastern Conference Final appearances.
A seventh-round pick in the 2000 draft, Lundqvist ranks fifth on the NHL career victories list with 459. He won 61 more in the playoffs before halting his hockey career in 2020 because of a heart condition.
Barrasso won the Cup with Pittsburgh back to back in 1991 and ’92. Vernon won it with Calgary in 1989 and with Detroit in 1997. Each got in after lengthy waits.
The wait continues for point-a-game Russian winger Alexander Mogilny and goaltender Curtis Joseph, who is just five victories behind Lundqvist on the NHL career list.
The induction ceremony is Nov. 13 in Toronto.
