On Tuesday November 3rd, The ECHL announced that there will be no inductees in the league’s Hall of Fame in 2021. This announcement comes just four days after the NHL announced they were doing the same thing.
Class of 2020
Jared Bednar
The class of 2020 was an impressive class that was headlined by former South Carolina Stingray and current head coach of the Colorado Avalanche, Jared Bednar. Bednar spent 15 seasons with the Stingrays, where he became the first player to secure three Kelly Cups. In eight years in the ECHL between the South Carolina Stingrays and Huntington Blizzard, Bednar recorded 43 goals and 130 assists for 173 points. He did so in 434 games. In the postseason, he would add two goals along with 15 assists which made for 17 points. He did so in 56 games.
Once his playing career came to an end, Bednar would spend four years as an assistant coach before being promoted. He was named head coach of the team in 2007. He spent two years as head coach of the Stingrays before making the jump to the AHL. There, he then spent seven years with the Peoria Rivermen, Springfield Falcons and Lake Erie Monsters. Bednar will be entering his fifth season with the Colorado Avalanche when the season commences.
Glen Metropolit
Metropolit only spent two years in the Eastern Coast Hockey League, but during those two years, he managed to put up some jaw-dropping numbers. This saw him record 65 goals along with 78 assists for 143 points. He did this between the Nashville Knights and the Pensacola Ice Flyers, where he spent a year each.
Appearing in the postseason both years, Metropolit would tally 12 goals along with 24 assists which made for 36 points. He did so in 17 games. It’s statistics like these that would put him in the league’s Hall of Fame. He then spent eight years in the NHL, doing so as a journeyman between a number of teams.
This included the Washington Capitals, Tampa Bay Lightning, Atlanta Thrashers, St. Louis Blues, Boston Bruins, Montreal Canadiens and Philadelphia Flyers. Throughout the course of his career, Metropolit would score 57 goals along with 102 assists for 159 points. He did so in 407 games. His playing career would continue on afterwards, spending seven more seasons in Germany, Switzerland and Italy.
Derek Clancey
The next member of the Hall of Fame Class for 2020 is Derek Clancey. Clancey spent majority of his playing career in the ECHL between a number of hockey clubs. This included the Erie Panthers, Toledo Storm, Columbus Chill and Chesapeake Ice Breakers. He also played with the Winston-Salem Thunderbirds.
Throughout, he scored 150 goals, tallying 368 points for 518 points. He did so in 391 games. In the playoffs, he would add on six goals along with 20 assists which made for 26 points. He did this through 31 appearances. He is currently ranked seventh all-time with 368 assists and is tied for the most assists in a game (7).
Once his playing career concluded, Clancey spent two more years with the Chesapeake Ice Breakers where he worked as a player-coach. He would then spend six years as a bench boss with the Jackson Bandits and Reading Royals. In 2007, Clancey joined Pittsburgh as a scout, and in 2010, would be named by the Penguins as Director of Scouting for them. Clancey held this position until 2019 when he became the Director of Player Personnel.
Dany Bousquet
The last and final member in the class of 2020 is Dany Bousquet. The native of Quebec native jumped on the scene in his rookie year, scoring 54 goals along with 53 assists. That made for 107 points, a total he would tally in 68 games. He would end up winning Rookie of the Year, along with being named to the All-ECHL Second Team.
Bousquet’s scoring prowess wouldn’t end there, as he would score at least 35 goals in all six seasons he spent in the ECHL. This included back-to-back seasons of 50 goals or more in 1996-97 and 1997-98. He would finish his career in the league with 254 goals and 296 assists which made for a total of 550 points. He did so in 389 games.
Despite those jaw-dropping numbers, he only played 27 games in the American Hockey League. Bousquet would end up heading overseas following the conclusion of the 2001-02 season. As such, this would see him spend time playing hockey in Germany, Austria and Italy.
It was after that he joined the LNAH for a single game before hanging up his skates. Once his playing career concluded, Bousquet would spent one season overseas in Germany as an assistant coach.