Two Penguins Enter the Hockey Hall of Fame

The Hockey Hall of Fame Class of 2019 was announced yesterday with a couple of familiar names in it, the biggest for the Penguins being General Manager Jim Rutherford. Rutherford will be inducted into the HHOF under the builders category. The Hall of Fame’s website states this about electing people into the Hall of Fame, “The following attributes provide the basis on which the election of nominees to Honoured Memberships are to be considered builders: Coaching, managerial or executive ability, or ability in another significant off-ice role, sportsmanship, character and contributions to his or her organization or organizations and to the game of hockey in general.” He recently completed his fifth season as the Penguins GM after a 20-year stint with the Carolina Hurricanes/Hartford Whalers organization as president and GM. He led the Penguins to their first back-to-back Stanley Cups since the 1991 and 1992 championships in 2016 and 2017.  He began his front office work with the Windsor Spitfires of the OHL. He led the Spitfires to an OHL championship in 1988 and with that gave the Spitfires a chance at the Memorial Cup. But before Rutherford even began his front office work, he had a 13-year career as a goaltender, playing for the Toronto Maple Leafs, Los Angeles Kings, Detroit Red Wings, and Pittsburgh Penguins. Drafted 10th overall by the Detroit Red Wings in 1969, he played three of his 13 seasons with the Penguins, sporting a 0.899 SV% and 3.14 GAA. He had a 0.879 SV% and a 3.66 GAA over his career. His time in Pittsburgh was statistically the best of his carerr. Rutherford has been a key part of the Penguins’ recent success and this vote into the Hall of Fame is well deserved. 

The other former Penguin joining Jim Rutherford in the class of 2019 is Sergei Zubov. Sergei Zubov spent the 1995-96 season with Pittsburgh, racking up 66 points in 64 games. Even with his brief stint in Pittsburgh before moving onto a 12-year stint with the Dallas Stars, he played at a little over point per game pace as a defenseman, with 55 of his 66 points coming from assists. He was a good player for his brief time in Pittsburgh.