MORE MOMENTS
1961:The Hockey Hall of Fame officially opens its doors at the Canadian National Exhibition in Toronto. Canadian Prime Minister John Diefenbaker and United States Ambassador Livingston Merchant preside over the opening. The Hall celebrates by inducting nine new members:
Maurice Richard
,
Syl Apps
,
Charlie Conacher
,
Hap Day
,
George Hainsworth
,
Joe Hall
, Percy LeSueur,
Milt Schmidt
and Oliver Seibert. The Hall remains at the CNE for nearly 32 years before moving to BCE Place in Toronto in June 1993.
1998:
Mike Gartner
officially retires from the NHL after 19 seasons, finishing as the fifth-highest goal-scorer in League history with 708. The last 12 goals come with the Phoenix Coyotes, his fifth NHL team, in 1997-98. Gartner begins his NHL career with the Washington Capitals in 1979 and continues with the Minnesota North Stars, New York Rangers, Toronto Maple Leafs and the Coyotes. Though he owns the NHL record for the most 30-goal seasons (17) and is part of two Canada Cup-winning teams, Gartner never wins the Stanley Cup. However, he is inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 2001 and named to the
100 Greatest NHL Players
in 2017.