Theo Fleury: Two Autographed Cards

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This weekend is the Hockey Hall Of Fame's annual induction celebration, which as usual sparks a bit of controversy as to who gets in and when, and also who doesn't. This year, for example, Carey Price gets in on his second attempt, while fellow Vezina winner Pekka Rinne gets in on his first ballot. Who deserved it first/most, if at all? And whose place are they taking? Didn't Jose Theodore also win the Vezina and Hart trophies in the same season? Aren't Jaroslav Halak's statistics pretty much exactly the same as Price's? Price, regular season and playoffs (from HockeyDB):

Halak, regular season and playoffs (from HockeyDB):

And what about Keith Tkachuk? Two 50-goal seasons at the beginning of the Dead Puck Era, a 40-goal season prior, and another 40-goal season right in the midst of it. But no 100-point seasons, not a point-per-game average, no individual hardware, no Stanley Cups; he was, however, the first American to lead the NHL in goals (with 52, in 1996-97). So... U.S. Hall Of Fame? Certainly. Hockey HOF? Where do you set the bar?

Tkachuk was a physical force who scored goals at a time where there were a handful of others like him: Eric Lindros, John LeClair, Todd Bertuzzi; he posted 1065 points (538 goals, 527 assists) with 2219 penalty minutes in 1201 regular-season games, as well as 56 points (28 goals, 28 assists) in 89 playoff games. He was also part of the Team USA squad that won the 1996 World Cup. Lindros was inducted in the Hall with just 865 points (372 goals, 493 assists, with 1398 penalty minutes) in 760 regular-season games, but also 57 points (24 goals, 33 assists) in 53 playoff games, with a Cup Final; LeClair has three 50-goal seasons and a Stanley Cup (not in), and Bertuzzi topped at 46 goals (not in either).

Theoren Fleury was a feisty 5'6" winger who scored 51 goals in 1990-91, and hit the 40-goal mark three other times, the 100-point mark twice and 90 points twice as well; he has 1088 total points (455 goals, 633 assists) in 1084 games (with 1840 penalty minutes) as well as 79 points (34 goals, 45 assists, with 116 penalty minutes) in 77 playoff games, winning the Cup in 1988-89. He also won gold with Team Canada at the 1988 World Juniors and 2002 Olympics, the Canada Cup in 1991, and a silver medal at the 1991 World Championships. All of this while battling depression and alcoholism due to having been sexually assaulted by coach Graham James in Juniors, as had fellow NHLer Sheldon Kennedy.

But regardless of the obstacles he overcame to perform (and win) at such a high level, shouldn't Fleury's numbers by themselves be appreciated and wouldn't they stand alone as comparables to at least Lindros and Tkachuk? Star goaltender Marc-André Fleury (Vezina winner, three-time Cup winner and two more Cup Finals, no relation to Theo) will be eligible to enter the Hall in November 2028; wouldn't it be a great time to also induct his homonym, who finished top-five in Hart voting twice and top-five for the Selke as well? Consider this my resounding "yes".

While he represented both the Colorado Avalanche and New York Rangers in the All-Star Game, he did it five times with the Calgary Flames, which is why this is the way I remember him most, in their red (away) uniform, as seen on card #386 from O-Pee-Chee's flagship 1990-91 O-Pee-Chee set:

And a close-up, from card #282 of OPC's 1991-92 O-Pee-Chee set:

He signed both in black sharpie at a 2010 book signing for his autobiography, Playing With Fire, a must-read.

I couldn't be prouder to have him represent #14 in My Flames Numbers Project.

Theoren Fleury Jersey Card

As is becoming a yearly tradition for me, I took a look at the Hall Of Fame-eligible players this year and was totally underwhelmed. Once again, someone's going to get in who will bring the level of merit down.

In the past, in my opinion, too many "just stars" made the cut, when it's supposed to be the elite of the elite, the world-class, the best of the best, the Immortals. By that, I mean the likes of Mats Sundin, Ed Belfour, Joe Nieuwendyk, Dave Andreychuk, Doug Gilmour, Ron Francis, Larry Murphy, and particularly Mike Gartner.

In the meantime, Rogatien Vachon had to wait 25 years too long to be appointed to his rightful place and Jean-Claude Tremblay and a few others who defected to the WHA are still waiting. And Pat Burns had three chances to be inducted while he was alive but was passed over until he passed on. And people seem to have forgotten just how good Doug Wilson was - much better than Murphy, that's for sure; the fact that he hasn't won anything as the San Jose Sharks' long-time GM shouldn't be a factor in remembering how dominant he was on defense.

Some players absolutely deserve to get in, this year: Boris Mikhailov - the 1970s and 1980s Russian Mario Lemieux - Martin St-Louis, Daniel Alfredsson.

Then there are players that will probably get in that I don't really mind but also wouldn't mind of they didn't, such as Alexander Mogilny; he started out great but didn't keep that pace up throughout his career like Pavel Bure, Teemu Selanne or even Peter Forsberg.

There are players who may get in but in my opinion fall into the "stars, not supertars" category: Sergei Zubov, Curtis Joseph, Jeremy Roenick, and Keith Tkachuk. Alex Kovalev, the first Russian first-rounder and first on the Stanley Cup, had a better career, albeit perhaps not one as consistent - but his peaks were much higher.

Then there's those who just shouldn't even be considered, based on the fact that they accomplished very little on their own, but somehow, perhaps ironically, people have been making campaigns to put in the Hall for years, like Chris Osgood. That's fucking ridiculous. Joseph comes in way before Osgood, and José Theodore comes before any of them with his Hart, Vezina, and success with four different teams. And if Joseph gets in, then you have to consider Sean Burke as well. For me, Theodore and Burke fall short, Joseph falls way short, and Osgood shouldn't even be in the conversation.

Which brings me to players who probably won't get in but kind of should seeing as similar players are in, such as Pierre Turgeon. Theo Fleury is probably tops of that class in my opinion.

455 goals, 633 assists, 1088 points and 1840 penalty minutes in 1084 regular-season games, 34 goals and 45 assists for 79 points in 77 games (with 116 penalty minutes), his name engraved on the Stanley Cup with the rest of the 1989 Calgary Flames, two hart Trophy top-five finishes, and tons of medals with Team Canada  - gold at the 1988 World Juniors, 1991 Canada Cup and 2002 Olympics, and silver at the 1991 World Championships and 1996 World Cup.

All of this, of course, while a "raging alcoholic lunatic" due to suffering sexual abuse at the hands of his former Juniors coach Graham James, with whom he later bought stakes in the WHL's Calgary Hitmen, just to give you an idea of the Svengali grasp James had on his victims.

And, let's not forget, that three years after retiring from the NHL, he came back to competitive sport and was named the UK's Elite Hockey League's Player Of The Year while with the Belfast Giants, posting no less than 22 goals, 52 assists and 74 points (to go with 270 penalty minutes...) in... 34 games.

Fleury was a tremendous player with a ton of heart and matching talent who scored 51 goals in 1990-91, twice more reached the 40-goal plateau, twice exceeded 100 points (plus a 96-point season), and whose worst NHL season deep in the thralls of depression, substance abuse and the Dead Puck Era, consisted of 33 points in 54 games with the Chicago Blackhawks in 2002-03 - or decent second-line numbers by modern accounts.

There are, without a doubt, many lesser players in the Hall.

Here he is sporting the Flames' turn-of-the-millennium red (away) uniform, on Frankencard #GJ-TF from Upper Deck's 2013-14 Series 2 set and UD Game Jersey sub-set:

It features a blue game-worn jersey swatch that likely stems from his days with the New York Rangers (1999-2002). It was while with the Blueshirts that he struck Wayne Gretzky enough to have The Great One - Canada's GM - invite him along for the 2002 Salt Lake City Olympics despite Fleury's drinking and cocaine problems becoming increasingly public. Out of respect to "99", Fleury - who claims to have failed 13 consecutive NHL drug tests but wasn't suspended because he was a star player - went "dry" for the entire tournament.