Five legends enter Hockey Hall of Fame

The new class featured players who stretched their careers into the era beyond the lockout that wiped out the 2005 Stanley Cup final receiving their honors at the former bank building in Toronto now turned into a sport shrine.

“It is such an overwhelming feeling,” said goaltender Leetch, a U.S. star who played for Boston, Toronto and most notably the New York Rangers and found himself awed by taking a place among the game's elder heroes.

“It's difficult for me to think of myself as a member of the Hall of Fame. Guys like Bobby Orr and Phil Esposito and Guy Lafleur, that's the Hall of Fame. When I picture all the players who belong here, I feel like I should be in a visitors' wing.”

Hull made his own mark beyond the shadow of his legendary father, “Golden Jet” Bobby Hull, who joined Robitaille and Yzerman on Detroit's 2002 Stanley Cup championship squad.

It was Yzerman's leadership and spark that helped bring the Red Wings a new era of success amounting to three titles in six seasons ending with the 2002 trophy.

“I'm still not comfortable with it,” Yzerman said of his induction. “Players don't sit around and discuss, 'We're going into the Hall of Fame.' We're just a group of players.”

Hull appealed to all those who love and support the sport in his comments.

“I accept this honor for all those playing pickup, beer league and senior hockey, who never got the opportunity that I did,” Hull said. “For every mom up at 5 who drives to practice, and every dad working overtime to buy equipment and a pair of tickets to take his kids to an NHL game.

“Every teammate that sacrificed, every trainer that patched me up and every stick boy who brought me a cold one after the game. We're supposed to be here celebrating what I did in this game. But I want to talk about what this game gave to me. That's everything, and more than I could ever dream of.”

Lamoriello, the NHL's longest-serving general manager, helped assemble the talent that brought the defense-minded Devils three Stanley Cup titles from 1995 through 2003.

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