OUR HALL

We have four categories of our Hall – we don't like the term Builder as originally used.

The first is Honoured Members. This is where the greats of the game lace them up. Whether elected as a first-time inductee or as an Oldtimer (retired more than twenty years), they are placed in the Hall together.

The second category was for Executives and Referees. Coaches fell into this category, as did GMs and owners.

The third category, added later, was a Contributors category. This was a catch-all for anybody not directly employed by the league or its teams, but whom when people think of this person, they think of their contribution to the sport. Foster Hewitt would be the first prominent member of this category. Dolores Claman, while she had her supporters, did not. Who's Dolores Claman you ask? She's the one who wrote the Hockey Night and Canada theme song.

The fourth category was the Builder category. A Builder was a person who elevated the game and brought the status of hockey to a higher level. Frank Patrick was the perfect example of a Builder. Harold Ballard was not. In order to achieve Builder status, one had to be elected in another category. After being elected, the person then had to be renominated from someone on the election committee and gain 15 votes. There were three exceptions to this rule. Their surnames are Patrick, Patrick and Gretzky.

Once elected, a person's conduct off the ice could not be considered grounds for removal, except for the Builders category.