It’s almost time for one of the most special annual occasions on the hockey calendar, with a new group of stars set for induction into the Hockey Hall of Fame.

On the men’s side, the class of 2025 includes former NHLers Zdeno Chara, Joe Thornton, Duncan Keith and Alexander Mogilny.

All these players took different paths to becoming Hall of Famers and built unique cases along their journeys in the NHL.

Which brings us to another tradition at this time of year: debating the merits of those who have yet to receive the call.

To join in on the Hall of Fame spirit, The Athletic asked its NHL staff to name one not-yet-inducted player from each team’s history with the best Hall of Fame case.

We waived the mandatory three-year waiting period for this exercise, so players can be active or inactive, but we did set a couple ground rules.

Players must have played a minimum of 200 regular-season games with the team in question.

Goalies must have played 100 regular-season games with the team.

Players were permitted to be chosen for multiple teams, provided the minimum-game thresholds were met for each franchise.

The Seattle Kraken, as the league’s newest expansion team, were given a lower bar of 50 NHL regular-season games.

Since the move to Utah was so recent, players who once represented the Arizona Coyotes were considered as honorary Mammoth for this exercise. Other relocated franchises were not taken into account.

When the picks were in, we recruited Hockey Hall of Fame expert Sean McIndoe to react to the choices.

Here’s who we picked — from current superstars who already look like future Hall of Fame locks to former franchise cornerstones who have been snubbed for years.

Anaheim DucksRyan Getzlaf

The franchise’s all-time leading scorer with 1,019 points also has the most assists (737) and played in the most games (1,157). Getzlaf has an interesting case in that he racked up his totals in just 17 seasons — compared to others who played for longer — and did it all with one team. He has a Stanley Cup and two Olympic gold medals, along with gold in the World Juniors and World Cup. No one has more goals, assists and points in Anaheim’s playoff history. It’s an easy choice. — Eric Stephens

McIndoe: I think he’s going to fall just short, but he’s an interesting case who’s closer than some fans might think. (And I’ll applaud Eric for not going with Corey Perry, whose case isn’t as strong as some seem to think.)

Boston BruinsPatrice Bergeron

Bergeron is the NHL’s best defensive center ever by the measurement of his record-setting six Selke Trophy wins. He evolved into a power-play specialist toward the conclusion of his career. He did all this by playing 1,294 career games, all with the team that drafted him in the second round in 2003. Bergeron is a guaranteed first-ballot entry. — Fluto Shinzawa

McIndoe: Slam dunk.

Ryan Miller’s 391 wins are the second-most ever by an American-born goalie in NHL history. (Jen Fuller / Getty Images)

Buffalo SabresRyan Miller

Miller is already a member of the U.S. Hockey Hall of Fame and has a case for the Hockey Hall of Fame. His 391 wins are the second-most ever by an American-born goalie. He was twice an All-Star and won the Vezina once. He also won the Olympic MVP in 2010 with a 5-1-0 record, .946 save percentage and 1.35 goals-against average while leading Team USA to a silver medal. He’s not a lock, but he has a case. — Matthew Fairburn

McIndoe: I’ve given up on trying to figure out what the Hall will do with goalies. For years, they didn’t induct enough, then they put in Mike Vernon and Tom Barrasso, two borderline picks with similar credentials to Miller. I wonder if Jonathan Quick’s strong finish pushes Miller down the list.

Calgary FlamesMiikka Kiprusoff

Kiprusoff is a Flames franchise legend who can lay claim to being one of the NHL’s best goaltenders of the 2000s, thanks to the Vezina and William M. Jennings trophies in his name from 2005-06 (even a Hart Trophy nomination) and his performance during the 2004 Stanley Cup run. The Finnish netminder even has an Olympic bronze medal in his trophy case. While not on the same level as Henrik Lundqvist or his contemporaries, an argument could be made for Kiprusoff because of what he accomplished at his peak. — Julian McKenzie

McIndoe: He wouldn’t have my vote for the Hall due to his shorter career, but at his peak, he was absolutely a Hall-worthy player.

Carolina HurricanesBrent Burns

While coach Rod Brind’Amour’s candidacy is a hot-button topic — and let’s be honest, he should receive induction as well — Burns should be a lock for the Hockey Hall of Fame. With more than 1,500 games played, over 900 points and three top-three finishes in Norris Trophy voting — including his win following the 2016-17 season — Burns shouldn’t take long to get voted in once (if?) he retires. While he was past the peak of his game during his time in Raleigh, Burns has the resume to be enshrined even without a thus-far-elusive Stanley Cup championship. — Cory Lavalette

McIndoe: Nice try slipping the Brind’Amour induction in there, Cory, but we can have that debate another day. Burns isn’t quite a lock, but he’s trending to being a safe pick.

Chicago BlackhawksPatrick Kane

The Blackhawks already have a few players from their most recent Stanley Cup championship teams headed to the Hall of Fame. Duncan Keith is the latest. Following him will undoubtedly be Kane and Jonathan Toews. Which player goes first depends on who retires first. Toews, 37, reset his clock by re-entering the NHL this season. Kane, 36, has been playing on one-year deals since leaving the Blackhawks. — Scott Powers

McIndoe: No argument here.

Colorado AvalancheNathan MacKinnon

When accounting for only Colorado years, MacKinnon has already passed Avalanche Hall of Famers Joe Sakic, Peter Forsberg and Milan Hejduk on his way to becoming Colorado’s all-time points leader, and he’s only 30 years old. He’s currently playing in his 13th season with the Avs — the same number Sakic played — and he needs just 14 more goals to pass him for the most goals in franchise history. Along with his Calder Trophy in 2014 and a Lady Byng Trophy in 2020, MacKinnon won the Cup in 2022, a Hart Trophy in 2024 and looks poised to add to both this season. — Jesse Granger

McIndoe: There might be a “Has he done enough if he retired today?” debate to be had here, but it’s moot because he’s not going anywhere. In fact, MacKinnon will probably play another decade, then celebrate his retirement by eating a single grain of white rice. He’s in.

Columbus Blue JacketsSergei Bobrovsky

Bobrovsky had a messy ending in Columbus, but there’s no question he established himself as a bona fide Hall of Fame-level player with the Blue Jackets from 2012-19. Bobrovsky won the Vezina Trophy, awarded to the NHL’s top goaltender, in 2013 and 2017, and guided the franchise to its only playoff series win in 2019. In 370 starts with the Blue Jackets, Bobrovsky went 213-130-27 with a .921 save percentage and 33 shutouts. He owns every major goaltending record with the franchise. Bobrovsky has since cemented his credentials by winning the Stanley Cup twice with Florida. — Aaron Portzline

McIndoe: I was borderline two years ago, but the two Cup championships in Florida moved him into the virtual lock tier.

Dallas StarsJere Lehtinen

There are other Stars luminaries with more points than Lehtinen, but none that were better all-around players. Lehtinen was such a fabulous two-way player that he won three Selke trophies (and was in the top 10 of Selke voting six other times) despite being a winger, something all but unheard of since. He was the model Finnish player — dynamic enough offensively (seven seasons of at least 20 goals, including two 30-goal campaigns in the dead-puck era, plus 10 goals in Dallas’ run to the Cup in 1999) without ever sacrificing defense. — Mark Lazerus

McIndoe: He was a great and criminally underrated player. He’s not going to the Hall of Fame.

Detroit Red WingsHenrik Zetterberg

Zetterberg was, above all, a winner. He is a member of the Triple Gold Club and won the Conn Smythe in 2008. He has had to wait because of counting stats — 960 points in 1,082 games — and awards, but he was one of the NHL’s premier two-way forwards for more than a decade, with five top-10 Selke finishes. His low-scoring era surely played a role in the numbers component. In the years that spanned Zetterberg’s career — 2002 through 2018 — only six players had more points. Everyone ahead of him (who has retired) is in the Hall of Fame, and so are the next two behind him. He deserves it. — Max Bultman

McIndoe: I’ve always been a no on Zetterberg, but it’s close. Put it this way: He’s better than at least a few guys who are already in.

Edmonton OilersConnor McDavid

McDavid has one of the most crowded trophy cases of any player in league history — and he’s not even 29 yet. He’s won the Art Ross Trophy five times, the Ted Lindsay Award four times, the Hart Trophy three times and the Rocket Richard and Conn Smythe trophies once each. McDavid’s already in the GOAT conversation. He might be the guy by the time he retires if he leads the Oilers to a Stanley Cup title. He’s got three more chances to do that before his next contract is up. — Daniel Nugent-Bowman

McIndoe: Never heard of him.

Florida PanthersSergei Bobrovsky

Jaromír Jágr is under our games cutoff, as is Brad Marchand. But Bobrovsky is a no-brainer and currently — along with Andrei Vasilevskiy — the active goalie with the closest thing to a slam dunk Hockey Hall of Fame case. In addition to winning the Stanley Cup twice as a Panther, Bobrovsky has two Vezinas, was a Hart finalist in 2016-17, and sits 10th on the career wins list — with a chance to get into the top six this season. There’s no way he doesn’t get in at this point, especially after back-to-back postseason wins. Honorable mention: Aleksander Barkov. — James Mirtle

McIndoe: As I said under Columbus, he’s in. But here’s a fun question: If the Hockey Hall worked like baseball’s used to and forced each player to go in wearing the “cap” of one team, is Bobrovsky a Panther or a Blue Jacket? Seven seasons each, with two Cups vs. two Vezinas. Hmm …

Kings captain Anže Kopitar will retire after the 2025-26 season. (Kiyoshi Mio / Imagn Images)

Los Angeles KingsAnže Kopitar

When you figure that he and Jonathan Quick, the franchise’s greatest goalie, present compelling cases, it is hard to pick one without feeling the other is slighted. But Kopitar is more of a shoo-in given that he’s the Kings’ greatest player — Wayne Gretzky is the greatest to play for the team — and is one of the finest two-way centers of his generation. Kopitar has two Selke trophies and three Lady Byng trophies. And he’s a two-time Stanley Cup champion who, barring injury, will have more than 1,300 points and become the franchise’s scoring leader. Case closed. — Eric Stephens

McIndoe: He was such a good two-way player that I’m always prepared to check his career totals and see that he’s barely at 1,000 points. Instead, he’s going to blow past 1,300. Start working on the speech, Anže.

Minnesota WildMarc-Andre Fleury

Assuming he doesn’t make a comeback when the calendar turns 2026, Fleury should be a first ballot Hall of Famer in 2028. The Hall of Fame human being and world-class prankster ended his career with the second-most games (1,051) and wins (575) in NHL history, three Stanley Cup wins, a Vezina Trophy and a William M. Jennings Trophy. Fleury was a beloved teammate and made life fun on the ice with entertaining glove saves and an affectionate relationship with his posts whenever an opponent shot a puck off of one. — Michael Russo

McIndoe: The “first ballot” part could be debatable for some, but Fleury is getting in. There was probably a debate to be had about him being a compiler on a great team when he left Pittsburgh — think of a modern-day Chris Osgood — but the Vegas years and subsequent Vezina ended that line of attack.

Montreal CanadiensJ.C. Tremblay

In 1972, with the Canadiens on the cusp of their last dynasty, Tremblay left the team to play for the Québec Nordiques of the new WHA. He was 33 and had just had his two most productive seasons on the Canadiens’ blue line with 120 points in 152 games. He went on to play seven seasons for the Nordiques, putting up 424 points in 454 games. When you combine his NHL and WHL numbers, Tremblay had 787 points in 1,250 games. He won the Stanley Cup five times. He was one of the best defensemen of his generation. He should be in. — Arpon Basu

McIndoe: Finally, some HHOF representation for the 1970s Habs! I kid, and Tremblay’s a solid candidate. You’d assume that he’s a no based on how long he’s waited, although with this committee, you’re never quite sure.

Nashville PredatorsRoman Josi

Josi should be the first Nashville Predator who spent all (or most, depending on how things finish) of his career with the franchise to make the Hockey Hall of Fame. The 2020 Norris Trophy winner is 29th all-time in scoring among defensemen and should end up comfortably in the top 20. He’s the highest-scoring Swiss player of all time and was the NHL’s second-fastest defenseman to reach 600 points. — Joe Rexrode

McIndoe: It’s rare for anyone to win a Norris and not make the Hall; only Randy Carlyle can say that among eligible players, although Mark Giordano and P.K. Subban are likely to join him. Josi’s a solid step above all of those players, and I think he gets in.

New Jersey DevilsPatrik Eliáš

Jaromír Jágr would be the answer if he reached the 200-game threshold, but with him just short, the debate came down to Eliáš or Ilya Kovalchuk, who has a long international resume to go along with his NHL achievements. I’m going with Eliáš, though, who has two Stanley Cups and is the Devils’ franchise leader in goals and points and has an Olympic bronze to boot. He also has a higher MVP finish (six in 2000-01) than Kovalchuk ever did. — Peter Baugh

McIndoe: I’ve always had Eliáš slotted in as a very good player (with gusts up to great) who fell just short of the Hall standard. Still, if he did get in someday, it wouldn’t be indefensible.

New York IslandersJohn Tavares

The Islanders already have an elite class of names in the Hall of Fame from their championship era. So I think this pick has to come from more recent times. While I think Ilya Sorokin has the ceiling to be one of the best goaltenders in the world, and could easily be a Hall of Famer, it may be too soon to pick him. Instead, the honors belong to a more bittersweet pick: Tavares, whose skill and leadership helped guide the Islanders for nine seasons. — Shayna Goldman

McIndoe: I’m sure Islanders fans will be cool about this. Now that he’s at 500 goals, Tavares already has a strong case and can spend the next few years moving it to the sure-thing tier.

New York RangersMike Richter

Jaromír Jágr is the biggest shoo-in among players with ties to the Rangers, but as far as candidates who spent the majority of their careers in New York, the pick is Richter. Modest career numbers (301-258-73 record, .904 save percentage, 2.89 goals-against average) have held Richter back, but he’s right there with Hall of Famers Ed Giacomin and Henrik Lundqvist among the greatest goalies in franchise history. He accomplished something neither of those icons did — winning the Stanley Cup in 1994 — and was stellar with a .921 save percentage and 2.07 goals-against average on that playoff run. The Rangers’ championship drought would still be going if not for Richter, who was also a three-time All-Star and top-eight finisher for the Vezina Trophy five times. — Vincent Z. Mercogliano

McIndoe: I’m thoroughly enjoying the fact that every second team has to mention Jágr, even as he wasn’t the final pick for any of them. (My brave take is that he gets in, by the way.) As for Richter, he wouldn’t have my vote, but I’m not sure he’s that far off from the Mike Vernon case, and that one eventually came through.

Ottawa SenatorsErik Karlsson

Karlsson’s resume is Hall of Fame-worthy, having established himself as one of the best offensive defensemen of his era (if not the best during his prime). Two of his three Norris trophies, five of his seven All-Star Game appearances and four of his NHL First All-Star Team mentions came as a member of the Senators. The elite Swede should be bound for the Hockey Hall of Fame as soon as he’s eligible. — Julian McKenzie

McIndoe: No multiple-time Norris winners have ever failed to get the Hall invite. Karlsson will not be the first.

Philadelphia FlyersJohn LeClair

LeClair posted three consecutive 50-goal seasons from 1995-98, as the embodiment of a power forward who could score in a few different ways. The Flyers were a perennial playoff team throughout LeClair’s tenure, sparked after they acquired him in February 1995. He won the Stanley Cup — not with the Flyers, of course, but with the Montreal Canadiens in 1993. (I also owned his jersey as a kid. That counts for something, right?) — Kevin Kurz

McIndoe: Great pick by Kevin here. I’m not completely convinced LeClair deserves a Hall call, but his case absolutely deserves more attention than it seems to get. Anyone who was the best player at their position for a five-year stretch has to be worth serious consideration, no?

Pittsburgh PenguinsSidney Crosby

Apologies in advance to Jaromír Jágr, who may well be one of the five greatest players who ever lived. Jágr, in fact, was perhaps more physically gifted than Crosby. If he ever decides to retire, I think he may just get in. But still, the answer is Crosby. He’s top-five all-time. He scored perhaps the most famous goal in NHL history. His longevity his perhaps incomparable. So was his precociousness when he was a teenager. Crosby may also be the greatest captain in hockey history. I think his accomplishments speak for themselves. — Josh Yohe

McIndoe: I was a “no” heading into this, but Josh has convinced me.

Patrick Marleau owns the all-time record for most games played in NHL history. (Rich Lam / Getty Images)

San Jose SharksPatrick Marleau

It is no surprise that Marleau, who’ll be in his third year of eligibility next year, has been quite a debated case. He is the definition of sustained productivity at a high level without having that single monstrous season or loaded trophy case outside of the gold he won with Team Canada. The versatile forward’s 566 goals and 1,197 points, while passing Gordie Howe and becoming the record holder for most NHL games played, are nothing to sniff at. — Eric Stephens

McIndoe: He’s a divisive pick who rarely, if ever, “felt” like a Hall of Famer, but whose career numbers are hard to argue. I’d be a no, but really, his legacy might be as the Hall’s all-time “peak vs. longevity” poster child.

Seattle KrakenMark Giordano

Giordano was a member of the Kraken’s inaugural roster, playing 55 games for the startup franchise prior to a pre-deadline deal that sent him to Toronto, where he finished his illustrious and unlikely career. One of the greatest undrafted players in NHL history, Giordano played over 1,000 games and won the Norris Trophy in 2019. Typically, Norris winners end up becoming Hall of Famers, with only Randy Carlyle standing out as a historic exception to that rule. — Thomas Drance

McIndoe: It’s a solid case. I don’t think it’s enough, but he’ll make for an interesting discussion when his name comes up.

St. Louis BluesKeith Tkachuk

Tkachuk was arguably the best power forward of his era. In 1996-97, he scored 52 goals, becoming the first American-born player to lead the NHL in goals. In a two-year span, his 102 goals (50 and 52) ranked No. 3 behind Mario Lemieux (119) and Jaromír Jágr (109). He finished with 538, which ranks No. 35 all-time. The only players ahead of him not the the Hall of Fame are Alex Ovechkin, Sidney Crosby and Steven Stamkos, who will be in the Hall, and Patrick Marleau, who may be one day. Tkachuk is also No. 15 all-time in power-play goals (212) and No. 41 in penalty minutes (2,219). — Jeremy Rutherford

McIndoe: Over the years, I’ve shifted from having Tkachuk as a borderline yes to thinking he’s an outright snub. Maybe not quite in the Mogilny level of “what’s taking so long?” but not far off. Put him in already.

Tampa Bay LightningVictor Hedman

Any member of Tampa Bay’s core makes sense here — Nikita Kucherov, Andrei Vasilevskiy and even former members such as Steven Stamkos. These are all future Hall of Famers and cornerstones of the organization. But to start, let’s go with Hedman, whose all-around elite presence on the back end transformed the franchise into a contender and helped lead them to two Stanley Cup titles. He isn’t just one of the best players to wear a Lightning jersey, but has been one of the premier defensemen in the world through most of his career. — Shayna Goldman

McIndoe: The Lightning have an embarrassment of riches in this debate, many of whom are locks. Hedman included, obviously.

Toronto Maple LeafsAuston Matthews

With apologies to John Tavares, who will have a strong case for the Hall of Fame when his career eventually wraps up, Matthews might already be a lock. He’s won three Rocket Richard trophies, an MVP and a Calder as the league’s top rookie. He is one of only nine players with at least two 60-goal seasons. His combination of all-time-great scoring and elite defending has arguably never been seen before. Matthews will soon become the top goal scorer for one of the NHL’s Original Six franchises, and while playoff success would obviously boost his legacy, what he’s accomplished already is the stuff of legends. — Jonas Siegel

McIndoe: Justice for Curtis Joseph! But yes, Matthews is certainly on track, barring a plummet when he hits his 30s.

Utah Mammoth/Arizona CoyotesPhil Kessel

Kessel’s stint in Arizona wasn’t that special, but his overall NHL career was excellent. Kessel scored 992 career NHL points and has won the Stanley Cup three times. Even more impressive than that, however, is that Kessel is the only player in league history with an ironman streak that eclipsed 1,000 games. Kessel’s lack of individual hardware is the only thing holding him back from being more of a slam-dunk inclusion. — Harman Dayal

McIndoe: The career numbers just aren’t there, but if there was a Hall of Fame for guys who were never boring, Kessel would be a first-ballot inductee. Honestly, while I’d bet Coyotes fans would disagree, I’d vote for Kessel ahead of Shane Doan.

Vancouver CanucksMarkus Naslund

Naslund didn’t win the Stanley Cup or hit 1,000 points, so he’s probably not going to be strongly considered for induction into the Hockey Hall of Fame. There was an apex four-year stretch from 2001-2005, however, when he led the NHL in goals and points (besting Jaromír Jágr and Joe Sakic in their primes) and won the Ted Lindsay Award as the league’s most outstanding player, as voted on by the players. Naslund, Carey Price and Mike Liut are the only Ted Lindsay winners in the 55-year history of the award not to be inducted into the Hall of Fame (and Price surely will be). — Thomas Drance

McIndoe: Another guy whose peak felt absolutely Hall-ish even as his career totals mean he’s unlikely to get the call.

Vegas Golden KnightsMarc-Andre Fleury

This was an easy choice for the Golden Knights. There weren’t a ton of options with Vegas’ brief history as a franchise, but Fleury should be an easy first-ballot Hall of Famer when he becomes eligible in 2028. His 575 wins are the second-most in NHL history. His 92 playoff wins are tied for the third-most all-time. He hoisted the Stanley Cup three times and was one of the most legendary goalies of his generation. — Jesse Granger

McIndoe: Oh weird, Jesse picked a goalie. And he’s right, because Fleury is in.

Alex Ovechkin is the NHL’s all-time goals leader. (Scott Taetsch / Getty Images)

Washington CapitalsAlex Ovechkin

Sometimes, these questions are difficult. This is not one of those times. — Sean Gentille

McIndoe: I miss when the Hall would occasionally waive the waiting period and induct guys right away. It was a cool way of separating certain guys as true legends. Ovechkin would deserve that treatment if the rule still existed. Alas.

Winnipeg JetsConnor Hellebuyck

Hellebuyck’s third Vezina Trophy clinched it — every goalie who’s won it three times (in the eras when it was awarded to the top goalie) is already in. A more interesting question might be whether teammate Mark Scheifele can rack up enough points to join him someday. That one’s iffy, but Hellebuyck is a first-ballot lock. — Sean McIndoe

McIndoe: First of all, great writing here. Some real A+ prose, this guy is going somewhere. So is Hellebuyck, who clinched his induction with last year’s monster season.