Two former NY Islanders named to the 2025 IIHF Hall of Fame Class

Frans Nielsen and Zdeno Chara were never teammates on Long Island, but the two former New York Islanders will become IIHF Hall of Famers together.

The International Ice Hockey Federation announced their 2025 IIHF Hall of Fame Class on Friday, which includes the two former Islanders among the seven new members. Nielsen (DEN) and Chara (SVK) will be joined by former New York Rangers goaltender Henrik Lundqvist (SWE) and David Vyborny (CZE) along with Builder, Kai Hietarinta (FIN) and two standouts in the women's game: Kim Martin-Hasson (SWE) and Vicky Sunohara (CAN).

The IIHF Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony will take place on medal day at the 2025 Men’s World Championship in Stockholm, Sweden on May 25, 2025.

Nielsen is one of the most successful Danes ever in professional hockey. He became the highest-drafted player from Denmark when the Islanders selected him 87th overall at the 2002 NHL Draft. Known for being an excellent two-way center, Nielsen became known for his prowess in the shootout and versatility in the lineup. He spent parts of 10 seasons with the Islanders, scoring a career-high 25 goals and 58 points during the 2013-14 season. He signed as a free agent with the Detroit Red Wings after the 2015-16 season and was named an NHL All-Star in his first season with the team. He finished his NHL career with 925 games, scoring 167 goals and 473 points.

Chara retired from the NHL after the 2021-22 season at age of 45 after 24 NHL seasons. Chara spent the 2021-22 season with the Islanders, the team that drafted him in 1996, scoring 14 points (2 goals, 12 assists) in 72 games . On February 24th, 2022, in a game against the San Jose Sharks, he skated in the 1,652nd game of his career, the most ever by a defenseman, breaking the mark set by Chris Chelios. Chara established himself as a star in Ottawa and went on to sign with the Boston Bruins as a free agent in 2006. He served as captain during his 14 years in Boston, won the Norris Trophy in 2009 as the league's top defenseman, and led the Bruins to a Stanley Cup in 2011.