Paul Holmgren, a St. Paul native who was a player, coach and general manager for the Philadelphia Flyers, is one of three members of the U.S. Hockey Hall of Fame Class of 2021.
St. Paul native Paul Holmgren elected to U.S. Hockey Hall of Fame
The rugged winger played for the Gophers and North Stars, and is well known for his association with the Flyers.
September 10, 2021 at 1:16AM
He joins Stan Fischler and Peter McNab in the class, which was announced Thursday by USA Hockey.
Holmgren played briefly for the Gophers before he was drafted by the Flyers in the sixth round in 1975. He played nine seasons in Philadelphia, and was the first American-born players to have a hat trick in the Stanley Cup Final. He was an All-Star in 1981 and played in two Finals before ending his NHL career with one season playing for the North Stars. Holmgren had 144 goals in 527 regular season games and 19 more goals in 82 playoff games.
He coached the Flyers for four seasons, starting in 1988, before spending four seasons as coach and general manager of the Hartford Whalers. He returned to the Flyers organization and was GM for eight years starting in 2006 before serving as team president for five seasons.
Fischler, from Brooklyn, has been a hockey journalist since 1955 and also was a broadcaster for the Madison Square Garden network for many years, covering the Rangers, Devils and Islanders. The 89-year-old has also authored more the 100 books on hockey.
McNab, who was born in Vancouver, British Columbia, is 19th among American-developed players in NHL history with 813 points, including 363 goals. His teams made the playoffs 10 times, and he made the Finals with Buffalo in 1975. He was a standout player at the University of Denver, with 170 points (78 goals) in 105 games for the Pioneers. McNab was an NHL All-Star with the Bruins in 1977 when he had a career-high 86 points. He also played for the Canucks and the Devils, and is in his 26th season as a color analyst for the Avalanche.
The Class of 2021 will be enshrined in December. There are now 190 members of the Hall of Fame, which is in Eveleth, Minn.
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