The United States Hockey Hall of Fame announced its Class of 2024 honorees Thursday, and icons Kevin Stevens, Matt Cullen and Brianna Decker lead the list.
The United States Hockey Hall of Fame has a full cast of deserving honorees, including NHL stalwarts, a women's hockey star and an entire team.
Former NHL stars Kevin Stevens and Matt Cullen, women’s hockey icon Brianna Decker, the first owner of the Chicago Blackhawks and the Paralympic Sled Hockey team that won gold in 2002 were named Thursday as the latest inductees for the United States Hockey Hall of Fame, class of 2024.
Stevens and Cullen are the most recognizable NHL names honored with induction into the U.S. HHOF this year. In addition, Decker, late former Black Hawks owner Frederic McLaughlin and the Paralympic team will also be welcomed into the U.S. HHOF when it conducts its induction ceremony on Dec. 4 in Pittsburgh.
"The impact of the Class of 2024 spans across the sport, and each honoree is reflective of the extraordinary contributions necessary to earn the highest honor in American hockey," said Mike Trimboli, president of USA Hockey. "Their stories are all unique and have positively impacted so many. We very much look forward to enshrining the class in December."
Here's more on each inductee:
Kevin Stevens
The 59-year-old Stevens won two Stanley Cups in his 15-season NHL career. The power forward, nicknamed 'Artie,' played for the Pittsburgh Penguins, Boston Bruins, Los Angeles Kings, New York Rangers and Philadelphia Flyers, posting 329 goals and 726 points in 874 career regular-season games, as well as 46 goals and 106 points in 103 Stanley Cup playoff games.
In the 1992-93 season, Stevens – a native of Pembroke, Mass. – had his second straight 100-point season, finishing the season with 111 points, including 55 goals, the most ever recorded by an American-born player at the time. That goals record stood for 29 years before Toronto Maple Leafs superstar center Auston Matthews eclipsed the record in 2022.
Stevens currently works for the Pittsburgh Penguins as a special assignment scout.
Matt Cullen
Cullen – a three-time Cup champion and native of Moorhead, Minn. – played 21 NHL seasons, skating for eight different teams in hockey's top league.
The 47-year-old is one of only two American-born players to appear in 1,500 or more regular-season NHL games, appearing in 1,516. He generated 465 assists and 731 points in that span. He also had 39 assists and 58 points in 132 Stanley Cup playoff games.
Brianna Decker
Decker – who hails from Dousman, Wis. – is an Olympic gold medallist and three-time Olympian, an NCAA champion and eight-time world champion as a player. She was also named the most valuable player of the 2017 IIHF World Championship. The 33-year-old is currently a coach at Shattuck-St. Mary’s and with Team USA.
In 15 years playing with the U.S. women’s national team program, Decker played in 147 games and amassed 81 goals and 170 points. She is third in U.S. history in career points (68) at the worlds and fourth all-time in assists (40).
Decker also played in the CWHL, NWHL and PWHPA between 2014 to 2021, twice winning the NWHL’s most valuable player award and once winning the league’s inaugural Isobel Cup in 2015-16.
Frederic McLaughlin
McLaughlin, who purchased the Black Hawks in 1926, named the NHL team after the nickname of his First World War army unit, the 86th Infantry “Blackhawk” Division.
A fierce American patriot, McLaughlin aimed to stock his Black Hawks roster with as many Americans as possible.
Under his stewardship, the Black Hawks won their first Stanley Cup championship in 1934, just eight years after the team was founded. McLaughlin remained active with the organization until his death in 1944 at age 67. He was posthumously inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1963. The Black Hawks then became the Blackhawks in 1986-87.
2002 U.S. Paralympic Sled Hockey Team
Finally, the 2002 U.S. Paralympic Sled Hockey team made history as the first American team to win gold at the Paralympic Games.
Under coach Rick Middleton, Team USA made it to the top of the podium at the Salt Lake City Games, which set the stage for four subsequent gold medal performances (2010, 2014, 2018 and 2022) in that category.
U.S. defenseman Sylvester Flis (who hails from Franklin Park, Ill.) was named the Paralympic MVP in 2002 and led the tournament with 18 points.
The class of 2024 will be the 52nd class inducted into the Hall of Fame.
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