List of members of the Hockey Hall of Fame The Hockey Hall of Fame was established in 1943 and is located in Toronto , Ontario , Canada . It is a hall of fame and museum dedicated to the history of ice hockey . Originally , there were two categories for induction , players and builders , and in 1961 , a third category for on - ice officials was introduced . In 2010 , a subcategory was established for female players . In 1988 , a " veteran player category " was established in order to " provide a vehicle for players who may have been overlooked and whose chances for election would be limited when placed on the same ballot with contemporary players . " Eleven players were inducted into the category , but in 2000 the board of directors eliminated it and those inductees are now considered to be in the player category . For a person to be inducted to the Hockey Hall of Fame , they must be nominated by an elected 18 - person selection committee which consists of Hockey Hall of Fame members and media personalities . Each committee member is allowed to nominate one person in each category per year , and candidates must receive the support of 75 % of the members of the committee that are present , or a minimum of ten votes . In any given year , there can be a maximum of four male players , two female players , and a combined two in the builders and on - ice officials categories . For a player , referee , or linesman to be nominated , the person must have been retired for a minimum three years . Builders may be " active or inactive " . The induction ceremony is held at the current Hall of Fame building and was first broadcast by The Sports Network in 1994 . The Hockey Hall of Fame also displays " Media honourees " , who have been awarded the " Elmer Ferguson Memorial Award , " which is awarded by the Professional Hockey Writers ' Association to " distinguished members of the newspaper profession whose words have brought honour to journalism and to hockey " , or the " Foster Hewitt Memorial Award , " which is awarded by the NHL Broadcasters ' Association to " members of the radio and television industry who made outstanding contributions to their profession and the game during their career in hockey broadcasting . " However , the media honourees are not considered full inductees , and are not included in this list . The winners are announced and honoured at different times than the other honourees . Some of the award winners have been inducted into the Hall of Fame as builders , including Foster Hewitt . As of 2009 , there are 244 players , 98 builders and 15 on - ice officials in the Hall of Fame . Thirteen of the honourees have been inducted posthumously . Members . Players . The Player category has been in existence since the beginning of the Hall of Fame and the first players were inducted in 1945 . Since then , 238 players have been inducted . For a person to be inducted to the Hockey Hall of Fame as a player , they must have been retired for a minimum of three years and must be nominated by an elected 18 - person selection committee . The waiting period was waived for ten players deemed exceptionally notable : Dit Clapper ( 1947 ) , Maurice Richard ( 1961 ) , Ted Lindsay ( 1966 ) , Red Kelly ( 1969 ) , Terry Sawchuk ( 1971 ) , Jean Beliveau ( 1972 ) , Gordie Howe ( 1972 ) , Bobby Orr ( 1979 ) , Mario Lemieux ( 1997 ) and Wayne Gretzky ( 1999 ) . Following Wayne Gretzky ' s retirement , it was announced that the waiting period would no longer be waived for any player except under " certain humanitarian circumstances " . As of 2010 , a maximum of four players can be inducted in one year but the greatest number of players ever inducted in a year was 27 , in 1962 . They were inducted because the Hall of Fame was trying to induct many pre - NHL era players . 221 of the player inductees are Canadian - born , while only 10 European - born players have been inducted . The NHL team with the most player inductees is the Toronto Maple Leafs , with 56 . Seventy - six defencemen are in the Hall of Fame , more than any other current position , while only 35 goaltender s have been inducted . In 1988 , a " veteran player category " was established in order to " provide a vehicle for players who may have been overlooked and whose chances for election would be limited when placed on the same ballot with contemporary players . " Eleven players were inducted into the category , but in 2000 , the board of directors eliminated it , and now those inductees are considered to be in the player category . A . Player was inducted into the Veteran Player category . In 2000 , it was merged with the Player category . Builders . The Builder category has been in existence since the beginning of the Hall of Fame and the first builders were inducted in 1945 . A builder is a person who has contributed to the development of the game of hockey , and as the name refers , one who has built the game forward . Since then , 98 builders have been inducted . For a person to be inducted to the Hockey Hall of Fame as a builder , they may be " active or inactive " and must be nominated by an elected 18 - person selection committee . As of 2007 , a maximum of two builders can be inducted in one year . Former members . On March 30 , 1993 , it was announced that Gil Stein , who at the time was the president of the National Hockey League , had been inducted into the Hall of Fame . There were immediate allegations that he had engineered his election through manipulation of the hall ' s board of directors and by telling them to change the rules for selection . Two lawyers , hired by the league to lead an investigation , recommended that Stein ' s selection be overturned , although it was soon revealed that Stein had previously decided to turn down the induction . In 1989 , Alan Eagleson was inducted as a builder , but he would resign from the Hall in 1998 after pleading guilty of mail fraud and embezzling hundreds of thousands of dollars . His resignation came shortly before a vote was held to expel him . On - ice officials . The On - ice official category has been in existence since 1961 and since then fourteen have been inducted . For an official to be inducted to the Hockey Hall of Fame , they must be retired for a minimum of three years and must be nominated by an elected 18 - person selection committee . As of 2007 , a maximum of one on - ice official can be inducted in one year . 2010 inductees . The 2010 inductees were announced on June 22 , 2010 , and they will be inducted on November 8 . Angela James and Cammi Granato are the first women to be inducted into the Hall of Fame .