NY Islanders legends Stan Fischler and John Tonelli elected to the NY Hockey Hall of Fame

Their names may not be in the Hockey Hall of Fame, but yesterday, Stan Fischer and John Tonnelli were immortalized in the New York State Hockey Hall of Fame. At the ceremony held in Troy, NY, the two names synonymous with the NY Islanders were inducted along with 14 others.

Stan Fischler

Stan Fischer has been instrumental to the growth of the game on Long Island through his story telling and knowledge of the Islanders to which there is no comparison.

Fischler has been around the game for nearly 80 years, unimaginable to most people. He's one of the sport's greatest historians, part of the highs and lows through the Islanders' 50 years of existence.

"I'm here, thrilled to death, honored beyond all means," Fischler said. "But I have to tell you. It's not what I did for hockey. It's what hockey has done for me.” 

Fischler, who is now 91, is still going strong as a contributor for The Hockey News, with seemingly no plans to call it a career any time soon. 

John Tonellli

Though he retired more than 30 years ago, John Tonelli seems to only recently be getting the credit he deserves as one of the most noteworthy contributors in Islanders' history. Arguably Tonelli’s most memorable moment in the blue and orange came during Game 6 of the 1980 Stanley Cup Finals, sliding a pass over to Bob Nystrom, who slotted home the cup-clinching goal in overtime.

"Kids are often asked me, you know what, what's the best play or what's the best thing you ever did in hockey?" Tonelli said. "Well, the best thing I ever did was make that pass to Bobby Nystrom to win our first Stanley Cup.”

Tonnelli had his number 27 retired on February 21, 2019, the seventh player at the time to have his number hanging from the rafters of Nassau Coliseum and UBS Arena.