The Central Division is home to the defending Stanley Cup Champion, St. Louis Blues and a large group of talented players. While the Blues and Chicago Blackhawks have combined to win four titles in the last decade, three Central Division teams are without a championship in franchise history. These are the current players from the Central Division that have already built a hall of fame worthy career.
Central Division Hall of Fame
While Blackhawks, Blues and Colorado Avalanche are the only Central Division teams to win the Stanley Cup since 2000, only the Blackhawks are home to hall of fame players.
Patrick Kane
The first overall pick in the 2007 NHL draft, Patrick Kane, has put together a historical career. He became a household name as soon as he entered the league, winning the Calder Memorial Trophy with 21 goals and 51 assists as a rookie.
Kane has become one of the most dominant offensive players in the league during his 13-year career. He’s scored 389 goals and 633 assists for 1022 points in 973 career games with the Blackhawks. Kane is fourth in points in franchise history, behind only Stan Mikita, Bobby Hull and Denis Savard.
He’s a nine-time all-star, has won the Art Ross Trophy, Hart Memorial Trophy, Ted Lindsay Award and led the league in points during the 2015-16 season.
What Kane has done in the postseason is just as, if not more, impressive than his regular-season performances. His 50 goals and 73 assists for 123 points in 127 career postseason games have him nearly at a point-per-game player. His 0.969 points-per-game in the postseason is 36th all-time.
Kane is a three-time Stanley Cup Champion and won the Conn Smythe Trophy in 2013. Not only has Kane achieved individual and team success, but he’s also one of the most entertaining players. His resume is locked and sealed as a hall of famer.
Duncan Keith
The keystone defencemen of the Blackhawks since 2005, Duncan Keith, will find himself in the Hockey Hall of Fame someday.
Keith has spent his entire 15-year-career with the Blackhawks, scoring 101 goals and 509 assists for 610 points in 1138 games. He formed a top defensive pair with Brent Seabrook early in his career, then his offensive production followed.
Keith’s regular-season play has resulted in being one of the best defencemen in the league during his tenure. He’s a two-time James Norris Memorial Trophy winner and a four-time all-star.
Much like Kane, Keith’s story cannot be told without his massive playoff resume. His 126 postseason games played are second among defencemen in Blackhawks history. He leads the franchise in postseason goals (81) and postseason game-winning goals (5) by a defenceman.
Keith was named the Conn Smythe Trophy winner in the 2015 Stanley Cup Finals. He was the first defenceman to win the award since Scott Niedermayer in 2006 and is the most recent defenceman to win the award.
Keith has been dominant in the regular season and equally dominant in the postseason. He’s accomplished it all as a defenceman in the NHL and will be enshrined once he retires.
Jonathan Toews
The captain of three championship teams, Jonathan Toews, has been a centrepiece for the Blackhawks for 13 seasons.
As a rookie, Toews finished second in Calder Memorial Trophy voting losing to his teammate, Kane. The following year, Toews was named captain, at the time becoming the third-youngest captain in NHL history.
Toews has scored 345 goals and 470 assists for 815 points in 943 career regular-season games. He’s a four-time all-star and has won the Frank J. Selke Award and the Mark Messier Leadership Award.
While those numbers and accolades don’t necessarily warrant a call to the hall of fame, his postseason heroics solidifies his spot.
His 128 postseason games played are tied for third-most in franchise history. Toews’s 110 postseason points are sixth-most in franchise history and 10 game-winning goals in the postseason are second in franchise history.
In 2010, Toews led the playoffs with 22 assists and was named the Conn Smythe Trophy winner. Winning the Stanley Cup in 2010 caused Toews to become the youngest player (22) to become a member of the triple-gold club (Olympic gold medal, Stanley Cup champion and World Championship gold medalist).
Toews has been the model of consistency during his 13 years in the NHL. While his numbers alone wouldn’t be enough to get him into the hall of fame, his place in hockey history will be.
The story of hockey history cannot be told without Johnathan Toews being mentioned. He’s done enough to make the Hockey Hall of Fame.
Outside of the Hall of Fame
The Dallas Stars have two players that would be considered for the “hall of very good” in Joe Pavelski and Corey Perry. If Tyler Seguin can continue his strong career and add some more postseason success, he could build a hall of fame resume.
The Colorado Avalanche star, Nathan MacKinnon, is tearing up the league at a young age. He’ll need to sustain his production for a while more before he’s considered, but he’s on the right path.
Another member of the “hall of very good” would be Minnesota Wild captain, Mikko Koivu. He’s put together a long and successful career, but not enough to make the hall of fame.
At the moment, the Nashville Predators, Winnipeg Jets and Blues don’t have any players that are in, or on the verge, of a hall of fame recognition.
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