Victor Hedman - Future Hall of Famer

[Hockey4Life91]

VH has sealed his fate with the Stanley Cup and Conn Smythe. He could hang up the skates tomorrow and would be a surefire hall of famer. He is in rare air, winning both a Norris and Conn Smythe. Of course, assuming he stays injury free, he has many great years ahead of him. Given his silky smooth skating and incredible reach, I think he will play at a world class level well into his late 30s.

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[The Macho King]

He was already borderline.

Stone cold lock now.

 

[DownIsTheNewUp]

I think both Stamkos an Hedman were locks even before last night. This is just the cherry on top.

With a little more longevity Kucherov are Vasilevskiy are right there too.

Point is still very early but on the trajectory he's on, he could possibly some day build a good case too.

 

[AvroArrow]

Yup, easily a first ballot HOFer

 

[Eternal Leaf]

100% lock.

The guy is incredible.

 

[Fantomas]

Hedman was a lock even before the playoffs. Kevin Lowe is in the hall of fame, folks.

 

[abo9]

Hedman was a lock even before the playoffs. Kevin Lowe is in the hall of fame, folks.

No need to bring the weakest inductions into this, it's kind of an insult to Hedman. He doesn't need any comparisons to vouch for him since he's one of the best of his generation

Crazy how perspectives changes though. I remember at the draft the question being who to pick between Tavares/Hedman/Duchene, and some people laughing at Tampa for picking Hedman over Duchene very early on.

Now, while Tavares has done very good for himself, no one would dare put Hedman and Duchene in the same category.

 

[Picklepete]

He's a beast !
So happy, just mad I couldn't be there like in 2004 !
Damn covid.

 

[Luigi Habs]

Best defenseman of his generation. He's a lock.

 

[Fantomas]

No need to bring the weakest inductions into this, it's kind of an insult to Hedman.

Who put you in charge, random man?

 

[McDavidCrushedLarkin]

Absolutely he is in.

 

[wonton15]

100% lock. Getting in on the first chance he's getting. And he's only 29...

He's just a game changer. Completely controls the game when he's out there. Skilled, big, smart, strong, tools AND toolbox.

 

[Hockey Outsider]

As I mentioned in another thread - Hedman is now one of only 20 players since 1954 (when the Norris trophy was first awarded) to be a Norris finalist 4+ times. 16 of those defensemen are eligible for the Hall, and all of them are in. Chara is a lock. The only other players to accomplish that are Karlsson and Doughty who will both probably end up in the Hall as well.

 

[SlapshotTheMovie]

Him and Stammer are both going in. They can obviously add at this point and make a statement but they have both done enough. Hedman had a massive season on an already amazing career.

 

[tarheelhockey]

Crazy how perspectives changes though. I remember at the draft the question being who to pick between Tavares/Hedman/Duchene, and some people laughing at Tampa for picking Hedman over Duchene very early on.

Bear in mind we had a thread this season suggesting Buffalo should have taken Svechnikov over Dahlin.

A lot of people really don't understand how D prospects compare to forwards.

 

[majormajor]

Hedman was a lock even before the playoffs. Kevin Lowe is in the hall of fame, folks.

And dozens of players better than Lowe aren't.

The better measuring stick is Sergei Zubov, who was inducted into the Hall in 2019 despite never being a Norris level guy, I don't know if he was ever nominated.

 

[Video Nasty]

The Conn Smythe definitely accelerated his candidacy. If he wasn't one already or over the couple seasons, he certainly is now.

4 consecutive top 3 Norris finishes, 2 Norris trophies, the Conn Smythe/Cup, and he's been great for more than just the last four seasons.

Absolute lock.

 

[kovnik]

It's amazing how Örnsköldsvik keeps producing those top tier players. Forsberg, Sedins, Hedman and so on.

 

[Hockeyholic]

Lock for sure.

As is Stamkos.

Kucherov is on his way to becoming a lock.

Vasilevskiy is a lock with another Vezina imo.

Cooper is a lock with another coach.

 

[DFC]

He's had a bunch of year-end All Star selections too. Already as many as other Hall of Famers.

 

[ItWasJustified]

Hedman was a lock even before the playoffs. Kevin Lowe is in the hall of fame, folks.

Kevin Lowe knows a little bit about winning though.

 

[tempofound]

It's amazing how Örnsköldsvik keeps producing those top tier players. Forsberg, Sedins, Hedman and so on.

Markus Näslund too. Ridiculous really. Näslund is like the fifth best player born in Örnsköldsvik between 1973 and 1990.

It's a town with about 30k inhabitants.

 

[Montreal Shadow]

Best defenseman of his generation. He's a lock.

This seems to change every year.

 

[Luigi Habs]

This seems to change every year.

Who's been as consistently dominant as Hedman over the past years? You always have one or 2 who have ridiculous season here and there, but no body's been as consitently ridiculously good as Hedman.

 

[SlapshotTheMovie]

Lock for sure.

As is Stamkos.

Kucherov is on his way to becoming a lock.

Vasilevskiy is a lock with another Vezina imo.

Cooper is a lock with another coach.

I highly doubt vas gets another vezina but i do agree if he does he is in and cooper should be if he either keeps this run going for a few more years or is able to duplicate it with another team. A coach of the year does it for sure but i think he has ways in without that. This tampa team has been really good for a really long time. Going to get some retired numbers and hofers for sure.