Carey Price, Patrice Bergeron, Cindy Curley, Pekka Rinne, Keith Tkachuk and builder Brian Burke were formally inducted Monday in Toronto
TORONTO — National Sports News – Carey Price and Patrice Bergeron led a six-member group into the Hockey Hall of Fame on Monday, joining Cindy Curley, Pekka Rinne, Keith Tkachuk and builder Brian Burke in the Class of 2026. The ceremony brought together stars, pioneers and an executive whose work reached several Canadian clubs..
Price used his speech to trace the long route from Anahim Lake to the Montreal Canadiens. He thanked his family, the Canadiens organization and supporters, and said he was proud to represent the Cariboo Chilcotin region and the Ulkatcho First Nation. Montreal selected him fifth overall in 2005, and he later won Olympic gold with Canada in 2014.
Bergeron spoke about the people and values that shaped his career. The longtime Boston Bruins centre entered in his first year of eligibility after a career built on two-way excellence, leadership and team success.
Rinne’s path was different. Nashville selected the Finnish goaltender 258th overall in 2004, and he developed into the face of the Predators’ net. He became the fourth Finland-born player inducted into the Hall and used his speech to encourage young athletes whose careers do not follow a simple path.
Curley represented the United States at the first IIHF Women’s World Championship in 1990 and helped open doors in the women’s game. Tkachuk recalled how Winnipeg gave him his NHL start after the Jets drafted him 19th overall in 1990. His career later took him to Phoenix, St. Louis and Atlanta.
Burke entered in the Builder category. His front-office career included work with Hartford, Vancouver, Anaheim, Toronto, Calgary and Pittsburgh, as well as the NHL. He won the Stanley Cup as Anaheim’s general manager in 2007 and remains closely linked to the 1999 draft maneuver that brought Daniel and Henrik Sedin to Vancouver.
The class reflects several routes to hockey’s highest honour: a celebrated Canadiens goaltender, a model two-way centre, a late-round success story, a women’s hockey pioneer, a power forward and a builder whose influence stretched across the league.
