Hockey Hall of Fame: Sakic, Bure, Sundin, and Oates Are 2012 Inductees

On the same day he was named head coach of the Washington Capitals, Adam Oates capped off this memorable Tuesday by being one of the four inductees into this year's Hall of Fame class.

Oates, Joe Sakic, Pavel Bure and Mats Sundin form the quartet that is the 2012 Hockey Hall of Fame class, according to Dan Rosen of NHL.com. 

Oates and Brett Hull formed a fantastic duo in St. Louis before he moved on to greener pastures in Boston and Washington. The center is considered one of the best passers in NHL history and led the league in assists three times—1992-93, 2000-01 and 2001-02.

Joe Sakic, one of the most decorated players in the history of the league, was a lock to make it in his first year of eligibility. Not only did he record 625 career goals, 1,016 assists and 1,641 points, but he did it all with the same franchise. 

Two Stanley Cup championships and a nearly two-decade-long captainship later, Sakic had nothing but a Hall of Fame plaque left to put on his resume.

Pavel Bure was one of the NHL's best young talents when he entered the league, winning the Calder Memorial Trophy during the 1991-92 season. He led the league in goals three times—1993-94, 1999-00 and 2000-01—finished his career with 437 goals and is fifth all-time in goals per game.

Finally, we have Toronto Maple Leafs star Mats Sundin.

Besides serving as Maple Leaf captain for 11 years, Sundin holds the franchise records for points (987), goals (420), power-play goals (124) and game-winning goals (79). He was also inducted in his first year of eligibility.

Some big names who didn't make the cut were Brendan Shanahan—a favorite with 656 career goals— Eric Lindros and Jeremy Roenick, among others.

They all will have to wait another year to see if they'll receive the sport's greatest accolade.

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